Loyalty is a complex matter to discuss in a world of changing authorities and powers. It is too easy for those sitting upon their golden thrones to wage war without care or compassion, for dynasties to pursue endless expansion and conquest to the detriment of their people. It is the historian who will look back on the events that happen ad judge them by their merit, who will judge if the alliegance of the loyal soldier was deserved by their master - judged by the merit of the reason that soldier's life was sold and the successes made towards that goal.
Privileged rulers sit upon their thrones speaking of their visions; rule the world or save it, provide the betterment of all or the damnation of the many. So many grandoise goals and even a few humble and yet, all of these kinds and presidents and el presidentes and priests are bound by the same inexorable bondage that binds all be it serf or God-King. No vision no matter how great can ever match the omniscience of hindsight, and it would be the historians that would judge the actions being taken in these coming years.
"Why in the Khan's girdled horse beard did we have to guarantee that accursed Riverine Realm?!" Senor Barkowitz slurred out in drunken rage, smashing his half-full bottle of rice-wine into the mud-wall of the government building he called his office. The straw floor was left intermingled with glass shards and a small semi-coherent piece of Barkowitz's mind sighed knowing that would need to be cleaned up. Someone would come in upon hearing that, the mud-hut of the Khan's official palace only had like 5 rooms, after all. "We could've taken 'em! Those bastards cursed them. Them, the damn Zonghou and the damn Rus. We... we could've gotten reven-*hic* revenge, see!"
Barkowitz wiped his eyes with his sleeve, his nose running slighty as he fought desperately hard to seal away his emotions. "Damn Chagatai. You should've seen it. The fields were green. You did it." And it was in this moment that Barkowitz's solitude was broken and the newcomer was greeted by the sight of an old man in his 30s crying to himself at his desk with a broken bottle of rice-whine in the corner of the mud-hut.
"Venerable Elder, are you ok-" The middle-aged man who recently arrived on the scene cried out, he was a new hire from Siberia, born under the reign of Petrovich he welcomed the Khan's liberation and worked hard to evebntually get to the position he was at now. Dodging a paperweight thrown at him by his new coworker. "Venerable Elder!"
"Ah shut it kid. You'll never replace Chagatai. You tell anyone I was crying and I'll kill you, understand!" The warhawk waved a knive in front of the scientist, his labcoat having just enough ooddly coloured brown stains to hide any blood stains.
"Of course venerable elder!"
"Good! Now help me plan the provisional strategy to annex the Guanqi Order." Barkowitz ordered his subordinate advisor to the Khan, sobering up quickly and wiping away the residue of his emotional weakness earlier.
"S-sir, I wasn't aware we were going to go to war with the Order."
"That's why they're provisional for when we get the chance to declar war on them!"
"...I see." The unnamed scientist looked in the corner of the mud hut to the spilled rice-wine longingly. God he really wanted a drink. Sighing to himself, the new science advisor began to try his best to prevent another from happening, filling the role left by Chagatai's passing. The man would get his funeral in time, but even with his Poisoned Pastures restored and the farmland healed, there was still work to do and resources would not be squandered easily. Perhaps when the Republic is safe will he and all the other heroes be exhumed from their burial pits and given proper funeral rites.
If only they were to know of what was to come. Loyalty, honour and trust - They were the pillars of the Republic and the strength of these pillars would be tested in the coming times. To break the Khan's trust would be to lose their favour, to lose the Khan's favour was to seal your fate.
A man stood in a quiet, dark battlefield. Blood and gore covered the valley, lit by the burning wrecks of vehicles scattered around the blasted terrain. Thousands had died today, and he knew thousands would die tomorrow, and the next day, and so on until this war was over.
He had seen the mindless zeal of the Central Yropans firsthand, heard their propaganda pushing their population to ever greater heights of militarism, and finally their desperation and spite when they launched the same weapons that ruined the world once before.
None of it had prepared him for what the Ilians would bring.
Countless men were sacrificed to take a small stretch of blasted and barren mountainous ground. Corpses piled so high that the stone beneath them was completely covered. The sight brought tears to his eyes.
These were the stuff of nightmares, but they had shown him how dark the world beyond the idyllic borders of their great kingdom were. This was not some singular point of horror, but the standard for all nations after the Fall.
Few members of the Legion fell into despair, instead it hardened their resolve. They would bring this world out of the depths it had sunk into.
Debates rage, as they are prone to do, over what instant noted the creation of the Norican Legionary Republic, some would argue it was a direct successor of the western federation, that merely took time to determine its own path and thus it was formed at the signing of the Treaty of Old Mexico City that dissolved the WestFed but maintained the independence of two of its states. Others would say the Treaty of the Rio Grande, or the Treaty of the Superior, both of which progressed that political entity towards a form more recognisable to modern citizens. A few would claim it was not truly exant until the completion of the "Norican New Deal", which made significant economic transitions and carried with it major social ramifications. Most though, agree the Dallas Convention was where the NRL became a new entity.
The Dallas convention was originally convened to appoint new governors for the lands ceded by the Superior treaty, and to make policy on the distribution of cybernetics, the reclamation of old industry and research facilities and the application of Geo-engineering technology in the reclaimed wastelands. However, the question of governorship was challenged by occupants of reclaimed lands loyal to the Federation in what was once Denver. Principally, it was the idea that no governor could be appointed to command one state of the federation by the elected governor of another state without electoral and judicial oversight. So soon after the moment of glory, the bureaucracy, inefficiency and factionalism that had almost killed the Westfed threatened to infect it's successor. Perhaps if the military staff had not been disordered following the death of General Lund and the need to make ready for new operations, they would have strong-armed a military backed executive and ended democracy in the name of strength. Fortunately the new leaders had less mind to do that and so instead the civilian government sought to re-organise itself no longer with military oversight.
After throwing out many of the legal precedents established by the WestFed and disavowing the legacy as a direct continuation, Taylor brought representatives, legal scholars and local leaders from across the nation and occasionally beyond. After gathering, they began to debate what would become of the new Republic. The actual records here are well documented, but hold mostly documents establishing how to establish procedure and so we will not examine the details to closely. What was eventually decided was a government with a strong executive branch, a weak judicial and a small central legislature, but impeachment was a tool distributed to many that could be utilised in many circumstances. While new presidents would have huge power, they would be quick to be reminded of their place if they misused them, it was hoped this could prevent autocracy, while also not leaving them as feeble and restrained from within as the WestFed once was. Other agreements, set out in a document known as the Davidson Comprimise, included Taylor resigning from his office due to his title as the most senior figure in the WestFed to avoid surrender now meaning little. It also gave extensive legislative and political power to a military council, as their actions restabilising peaceful areas after the Riverine council conscripted the populace and retreated meant many though more kindly of them than of the civilian leadership. The conference made further commitments to ensure all territory under it's governance was properly surveyed, and that all citizens had the right to suffrage, but these ambitions required significant infrastructural work and so they results were only firmly established in later, smaller conventions.
These documents here would eventually define the term legionary republic, a term which included militarism, a strong executive and an opposition to factionalism as founding tenants. That honoured the sacrifices of the military, while acknowledging that civilians to must sacrifice, but be rewarded for their sacrifice by a justly elected government after bearing that title for so long. Indeed many would look to the peaceful abdication of Taylor, who served as a friendly face for a military government as a sign of major progress. Though as he ran for re-election soon after it was clear there was little enough dissent that the leaders could have some control over the pace of change. And a change of pace was for some time the prize for Taylor, as the governor appointed to president who led a nation through storms, wars and reformation was, for a while at least, free to return to his home in Rancho Nuevo and drink recovered coke with Tropican Rum on a quite beach with his family. To do as many now would and to sit under their own vine and fig tree, where no man would make them afraid.
We, the Norican Salvation Army Council, hereby officially announce on this day, 28th of June 16, that we have placed what was formerly known as the Erie federation under our control. The constitution of the weak and corrupt Riverine League is officially suspended, and all territories under Council control will be folded into the newly established Reorganized League Government. The following edicts shall be put into action effective now:
I. All Riverine League governing bodies shall be dissolved immediately. Legislative, executive and judicative government branches shall fall under control of the Army Council for purpose of national unification until peace time when a civilian governing body can be established. II. Political speech and action against Norican national unity shall be punishable by death. III. Martial law is in effect indefinitely over all territories of the Reorganized League Government. All economic activities shall be placed under military jurisdiction. IV. Those holding pacifist, anti-military and anti-Norican views are seen as enemies of the state and shall be punished appropriately. V. All citizens are to register with local authorities to be tested for Mezclan ancestry. Those who refuse will face severe punishment. VI. Civilian police shall be put under military control for persecution of corrupt and disloyal elements. VII. Restoring public virtues and traditional Norican morals shall be the prime goal of the new administration. VIII. Acting chairman of the Reorganized League Government shall be General Magnus H. Baxter until General Troy Cofield is released.
We call upon all the nations of the world sympathetic to the plight of the true Noricans to support us in our struggle against corrupt Federalism and Mezclan treachery. There can be no peace until General Troy Cofield is freed and Norica reunited! Down with the High Council! Down with the Legion! Long live Norica!
YEARS SIXTEEN TO TWENTY - YROPA IN FLAMES Now he has arisen: he, who slept so long,
from the depth arisen, out of arches strong.
Huge he stands and unknown in the twilight land,
and the moon he crushes in his blackened hand.
Over stormstrung clouds reflecting fiery brands,
to the deadly dark of frigid desert sands,
down he pours the fires, withering the night,
phosphorus and brimstone on Gomorrha bright.
YROPA The Eagle Falls, the Vultures Feast
Weakened, overextended, beset from all sides, crumbling from within and without; at the dawn of the sixteenth year, the Central Yropan Confederation, once the mightiest nation in Yropa, the empire whose name had struck fear into the hearts of all within its sphere of influence, is in its death throes. All around, the sharks smell the blood in the water. Soon, the vultures descend to feast on the empire's carcass, each attempting to tear as much flesh from the corpse as they are possibly able to.
From the North, the warlike island peoples of the Gaelic and the perfidious Albion strike a pact with the successor state known as the Scandian Tsardom and stage a joint invasion of the Northern and Western holdings of the Confederation in a storm of guns, blades and bombs. The scattered and disorganized armies of the Confederation are stretched thin and are no match for the powerful invasion army of the Gaelic, breaking in the face of a fierce attack all along the Francian border. The Knight Houses move in mercilessly and secure large swathes of Francia even against the intense resistance of the local population, eliminating all traces of armed opposition and insurgency along the way, until internal strife tears the Knight Houses apart and forces the Gaelic troops to turn back and deal with the turmoil at home. Before the firepower of the mighty steamships and dreadnoughts of the Albion, rulers of the waves, the bunkers and fortifications of the Northern Yropan coastline are turned to dust, allowing the Royal Marines to make landfall and push forward into Western Francia and Northern Jermani until determined opposition from surviving Central Yropan divisions bolstered by armed civilian Volksverteidigungsfront brigades stops the lightly armed infantry. Other detachments of the Royal Marines seize the oil rigs in the Baltisch sea that fuel the mighty Central Yropan war machines. The Scandian government institutes mass conscription of native Scandians and gleefully sends these auxiliaries, supported by merciless aerial and naval bombardment that makes no distinction between civilians and armed militia, to reclaim Daenia as well as conquer most of Saksen-Prusia where they encounter troops from Muscowy. A tense standoff commences.
From the East, the comparatively rural and fertile Prusian-Polanian lands are overrun by Muscowy's finest, the Bears of Fyodorovich, and their meat shields in the Home Defence Army. The death toll is high, but this is not something that could deter the Great Knez Lushenkow, who has reached such a point of mental deterioration that he is barely conscious of his surroundings, with his son Alexei II covertly taking over most functions of government.
Far in the West, in the lands of Castilia, two powers jockey for control: the newly reorganized Norican power calling itself the Norican Legionary Republic dispatches a military expedition with the stated goal of liberation of all CYC holdings in the Iberian peninsula, taking control of the old Castilian defensive assets at the Pyrenees, beginning the transition to a non-totalitarian Castilian government as well as the prevention of further CYC nuclear capacity. With their sleek and highly advanced Deathstroke suits and cybernetically enhanced elite infantry, the invaders from beyond the great ocean trounce the undermanned, battle-shocked and ill-equipped defending Landsknechte regiments with ease. Capture and integration even goes relatively smooth, as the Castilians harbor a deep hatred for the Central Yropan occupiers and even turn armed resistance fighters over to the Norican liberation forces. Only time will tell if they merely exchanged one oppressor for another...
The other power invading from the West is the mighty Democratic Republic of Aygia: not content to only meddle in the affairs of its home continent, the DRoA sends forth a legion of undead warriors and covertly transports them across the vast oceans with the help of an allied power, landing on the shores of southern Castilia in a rapid surprise attack. The soul-bound warriors dash across the peninsula on their fire-breathing steeds, butchering any and all who dare to bear arms against them. As the two forces meet, they agree to carve up the peninsula between themselves, with the lower half of Castilia going to the Khan, while the upper half falls under Legionary management.
All around, the frontline of the Confederation breaks apart and the illusion of invincibility so carefully cultivated over the decades is thoroughly shattered.
Soon after the front line falls completely and traumatized soldiers fleeing from the carnage arrive in the towns and villages in droves, the enemy reaches the homefront. For the ordinary people of Yropa, these last days are a time of endless suffering and total societal collapse, later to be referred to as the Years of Blood and Shame. For many people, their entire world breaks to pieces as they resign themselves to shameful defeat and begin searching for their missing friends and relatives in the wreckage of their homeland. Scurrying along the burnt-out ruins of apartment blocks and government buildings draped with torn flags that tell stories of former glory, scraggy figures dressed in rags feast on rats and human flesh, attempting to eke out a miserable existence under the shadow of their new overlords. The gut-wrenching weeping of those who have nothing left to live for and no more blood to bleed is heard in every corner of the empire. However, in many other citizens, the powerful propaganda of militarism and Yropan supremacy that has been drilled into them since their birth prevails. A sizeable percentage of Yropan citizens is determined to give their lives for the fatherland instead of living in a post-Confederation world. Volksverteidigungsfront units are spontaneously assembled as Yropan citizens take up arms, led by reservist soldiers and Sicherheitsdienst agents, press-ganging everyone into service capable of holding a gun. Former government agents and soldiers now take it upon themselves to act as judge, jury and executioner in one, court-martialling those who refuse to fight for cowardice in the face of the enemy and betrayal of the homeland even in the final days of the empire when all hope is lost. Many cities become veritable fortresses in which every single inch is fought over to the last. Every apartment bloc is turned into a bunker, every street corner into a beachhead , every streetcar into a troop transport. The fanatical resistance shocks even the most hardened veterans and among Scandian, Gaelic, Albion, Norican and Rus soldiers the Central Yropan front becomes synonymous with hell on earth, a hell that swallows millions upon millions of men, women and children.
Confronted with total collapse, the fearsome Wetterau Clique desintegrates. Some die in the field, their bodies never identified and tossed into unmarked mass graves alongside their soldiers. Some choose the bullet or the poison capsule, rather than to resign themselves to the shameful fate of the defeated. Some are killed in desperate internal power struggles by friends and comrades who they masterminded the conquest of all Yropa with just years before. Some even die at the hands of their own people: in several cities, especially those that formerly belonged to the fascistic surveillance state of Castilia, the invaders are seen as liberators and the CYC-appointed governors as well as their lackeys are hunted down by angry mobs and lynched on the streets. Only one manages to survive, Sigismund Tempelhof, the War Master of Yropa. He gathers his personal guard as well as several loyal bataillons of infantry and abandons the Clique, retreating to the most easily defensible part of Central Yropa, the Ruhr-Rhein province under attack by the Albion. Standing in the window of a bombed-out theater, Sigismund Tempelhof officially proclaims the "Tempelhof Empire" to an audience of about a hundred loyal confidantes, the first and only successor state of the Central Yropan Confederation, a mere rump state compared to the power and the glory of the Confederation. With an iron will and an authority built up over three decades of conquest, he organizes the defense of the last remnant of the Confederation and manages to beat back the Albion marines through a combination of strategic acumen and ice-cold ruthlessness, managing to shatter the will of the invading force by employing psychological terror warfare.
Thus, a single splinter of the mighty empire that stretched from the Western coast of Castilia to the Eastern-most reaches of Polania holds on for dear life.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Second Gaelic Civil War
Invictus Norm had been masterminding the demise of his half-brother and his own ascension to the throne for the better part of two decades, engaging in astute political maneuvering to win support of other disgruntled Gaelic factions and masterfully exploiting the social and political instability and turmoil of the Knight Houses of Knowledge for his own gain. At the end of the sixteenth year, Norm knows that it is his time to step up and challenge the House Regent for the rule of the Gaelic state, as it is already on the precipice of collapsing due to overextension and infighting. Being warned of incoming assassination attempts against his person by an outside power, he even hires knights for his personal protection. However, his paranoia would not save him this time. In the night of the 22nd of december of Year Sixteen, a day that would live in infamy, a crack team of elite assassins sent by an unknown power breaks into his residence and kills the pretender in his sleep, ending his ambition for good. The civil war, however, this fails to prevent. Instead, the nation is torn apart.
The disloyal factions, now without a leader to mediate between them, are outraged, splintering into different groups with their own ideological goals and declaring war on the government. Shamus Jaxx, meanwhile, announces that he mourns the passing of his brother and swears that he would never want his loathed half-brother dead despite their difference. In secret, he orders Subhouse Dominithica agents to produce evidence framing the United Nations Reclamation Corps for the murder and condemning their meddling in the affairs of other sovereign nations. The release of this evidence pursues many to join the government's side. Nevertheless, a sizeable minority takes up arms in open revolt, and soon the streets all across the nation run red with blood, as protests turn to riots and riots turn into open warfare. Government buildings are burnt down, military vehicles bombed, people dragged out of their houses and lynched for being suspected of supporting the wrong side and even within the elite Knight forces brother turns blade against brother. It becomes the first multi-continental civil war of the New Era, as rebels and government-aligned forces clash in Afrique and Yropa.
In the newly conquered territories of Francia, a clique of disloyal Knights use the chaos on the mainland and declare themselves rulers, proclaiming the Round Table of the Loire and seceding from the Knight Houses of Knowledge to build a state of their own, one more to their liking. In order to bolster their numbers, they invite refugees and politically persecuted folks from the mainland to join them in subjugating the unruly Central Yropans and integrating these subjects into a feudal way of life, offering land parcels and political asylum, and thousands heed the call. Over time, an ethnically structured society forms, with the Gaelic landed settler-elite lording over their Central Yropan serfs.
Over time, the organizational superiority as well as numerical advantage of the government-aligned forces begins to become more and more apparent. After over seven months of intense fighting, the last pockets of resistance are reintegrated into the nation and the remaining rebels flee to Francia or go into hiding. Thousands upon thousands lie dead, but the nations has survived, even holding on to the colonies in Afrique. The nation has gone through its true baptism of fire and emerged on the other side, battered but alive.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Final Ride of the Equites Dulce et decorum est pro patria mores.
- Famous Ilian proverb
Completely unperturbed by the carnage around them, the two Southern Yropan powerhouses, the Kingdom of Malizia and the Leaguer of Ilios, are locked into a titanic life-and-death struggle, a struggle that only one of them can emerge from. It is a war so total that every man, women and child becomes fuel for the engine of war, it is a war that would swallow millions upon millions of lives, a war that would level mountains and fill valleys with corpses, turn farmlands into wastes and cities into tombs, villages into cinder and forests into bleak ash lands. Who between these two titans would be the one left sitting on the throne of skulls?
At the dawn of year 16, the Malizians, not content with letting the famously skilled Ilians troops finish the construction of their trademark impenetrable defenses in peace, begin their rapid blitzkrieg attacks across all fronts spearheaded by the superhuman Chosen and the veterans of Andras' Legions bolstered by hulking bipedal constructs capable of levelling apartment blocs retrieved from the war against the CYC coupled with cloak-and-dagger sabotage behind enemy lines and supported by Black Sun mercenary aircraft tirelessly flying sorties to bombard the defenseless Malizians. The offensive manages to catch the Malizian army off-guard and to punch through the hastily erected enemy defensive lines at the border and scatters their forces to the four winds, driving them back into the Itanian mainland and severing the connection to the recently conquered Sapaudian provinces, though the Malizian ground forces incur significant casualties as well due to their sheer fanaticism of the defending forces eager to put their lives on the line for the fatherland as well as the well-organized fallback tactics courtesy of Cestus. In a single day, more than fifty-thousand Ilian soldiers are lost, but it is merely opening act to a tragedy that would devour an entire generation of Malizians and Ilians. However at the foot of the mountains of Itania shielding the Ilian heartlands, the Malizian offensive is ground to a bloody halt as the Ilians begin erecting more and more sophisticated defenses consisting of fortified bases spread out in constellations of barbed wire and caltrops and mines and pit traps and petrol bombs and deadfalls, linked in an iron fence of death that becomes a grave to thousands and thousands of Malizians, and the sheer weight of numbers which favors the Ilians is becoming more and more apparent. The Malizians respond by hunkering down themselves, aiming to lay a nation-wide siege on Ilios to minimize losses and starve out the Ilians until the Malizian trump cards are ready to be played.
Now at this, her most dire hour, Ilios mobilizes all her strength for a final effort to protect the sacred spirit of the Ilian way of life Thus, such is this extremity, that Sudis and the Sun-Temples give pardon for all sins committed by Ilians who give themselves to holy martyrdom and die in battle against the Malizian invaders. For now all sins committed on this earth are insignificant in the face of combat against true evil. All Ilian officers that bring to the Sun-Temples fifty Malizian scalps are declared to be raised to the Patriciate and granted the right to establish their own clans, all Ilian legionaries that bring five Malizian scalps shall be granted brevet command and entered into the records of nobility, and all Ilian slaves and noncombatants that bring but one scalp shall earn a lifelong pension from the Leaguer and freedom from all bonds that prove displeasing to them. All Ilian citizens held imprisoned or in penal servitude are granted leave to go to battle and die with honor against the violators of their motherland. Thus, a tide of flesh threatens to roll over the Malizians, but it is not all Ilios has to offer, for deep in the temples complexes, new and terrifying relics of days gone by are readied to be unleashed upon the unsuspecting demon-worshippers.
In this moment in which any and all dishonor pales in comparison to not maximally warring against the forces of evil, Ilios begins rebuilding the WMD arsenals of her mythic past under the watchful eyes of Galena. Holding dark techno-sorcery rites of the most primeval eras of the young Leaguer; concocting terrible witch's brews of burning acids, suffocating gases, paralyzing and blood-clotting venoms, and bone-poisoning atomic plagues. In an especially callous move that the Malizians failed to anticipate, any and all diseases and biological terrors Ilios can point in the direction of Malizia's lines are developed for human contagion with the help of martyrs seeking life outside of slavery or incarceration, to be carried to the invader by both deliberate volunteers and unsuspecting Malizian slaves given the chance to "escape" with their own flesh providing the weapon's delivery. The Malizians in their eagerness to take in, free and arm any and all slaves from the Ilians readily invite death into their very midst. Soon, the biological terrors show their effect, delivering excruciating deaths upon thousands of Malizian troops and forcing them to scatter and quarantine elements of their forces. Presently, the toxic agents would be delivered into the cities by unaware slaves returning home. Ilios would not stand by idly, but seize this moment with all its strength.
The Ilian offensive is heralded by days and nights of endless heavy artillery bombardment with white phosphorous and incendiary ammunition, seeking to scour the entire Apennine lowlands clean of life rather than to have them fall into the hands of the arch-enemy, starting massive wildfires and forcing the Malizian forces to pull back as well as by the same token obscuring the Ilian invading forces with smoke clouds a hundred feet high. Across hundreds of thousands of miles of Itanian, formerly Ilian territory, wildfires rage that consume everything in its path, their hundred feet high clouds of ash and smoke choking the life from every being unlucky enough to be caught in its raging charge. The demon kingdom however has its own tricks up its sleeve, turning the Ilian weapons back on them by taking samples from the biological terrors unleashed upon them by Ilios and loading them as replacements for the warheads from the aircraft, then ordering the Black Sun mercenaries to drop them on the city of Ilios and all other population centers major population centers, a virus-bombing that causes mass outbreaks of lethal plagues among the Ilian civilian population. The advance of the newly formed Manipuli Comitatenses, a combined-arms of all legions, with the Ilians working together not just as different tactical elements within an operation but as different parts within tactical units, is as relentless as it is unstoppable.
Sensing defeat looming in the face of the relentless advance of the Manipuli Comitatenses, the Malizians pull back every single soldier to the front, leaving their northern territories unguarded save for civilians in costumes and in their desperation, the Kingdom plays its final trump cards: thousands and thousands of Malizian undergo the rites of Malphas, surrendering their bodies to be toyed with by the Great President of Hell. Most do not survive, being torn apart by the unearthly energies building up inside their bodies, their souls ripped into the ether forever, but a minority have the willpower to survive and receive Malphas' gift: a pair of torn, leathery wings erupt from their backs, causing constant, excruciating pain but allowing them to take to the skies and outspeed any living animal on earth, Heralded by their screams of anguish, they now act as the deep strike force of Malizia, battering the Ilian formations, snatching away men and machines and disappearing again into the night. As the final nail in the coffin, ships formerly belonging to the Khanate from the horizon and begin their blockade, having deserted to join the holy war they were destined for. The blockade cuts the Ilians off from the base metal reserves in their provinces, destroys their ports and sinks their raider ships and supply convoys and coupled with another last Malizian offensive, sabotage by agents behind the lines, spreading plagues in the cities demonic monstrosities being unleashed upon the soldiers, relentless bombardment from the sky and the scorched-earth tactics destroying the Ilian economy heralds the beginning of the end. The breaking point of the nation has been reached. Ilios has given its all and there remains no more strength to spare.
Even as Ilios is in its death throes, it still exacts a bloody toll from the demonic invaders as ancient guard towers and bunkers that have since ages past been painted over as hunting lodges or shepherd's huts or noble villas are now returned to their first and greatest purpose, and the cyclopean rings of Golden Age ruins ar ebrought back to life and warmth. Every time the Malizians finally capture a defensive base or a forward outpost after weeks and weeks of brutal sieging and savage assaults, vast underground reservoirs of oil and crude napalm and choking sulfuric agents are rigged to blow with the base headquarters and incinerate all nearby troops with them in a final glorious display for the Sun. But the Leaguer can not be sustained upon sacrificial spite alone, and thus collapse soon follows, this time total. On top of the broken remains of what was once the proud Leaguer of Ilios, terror of the Mediterranean, now stands the heretic Kingdom of Malizia, wracked by plagues, bled dry by years of constant warfare and almost as battered as the enemy they defeated. The Malizian High Command, or what is left of it, orders the Malizian troops, or what is left of them, not to desecrate or destroy the city of Ilios, or what is left of it, but the enraged soldiers will not forgive those who turned their lives into a living nightmare and killed and enslaved their relatives and friends. Seven days and nights of plundering and pillaging later, glorious Ilios, Queen of Cities is razed to her very foundation. The remaining, depopulated and scarred provinces of the mighty Ilian Leaguer are incorporated into the kingdom as the last pockets of resistance are extinguished or surrender.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Last War of the прее́мники
Muscowy had been a thorn in the side of the mighty Democratic of Aygia for decades, being the last successor state that would not cooperate with the superpower of mainland Aygia, rather maintaining ties with their far-away space-faring rivals the United Nations Reclamation Corps. With Muscowy itself being in a state of turmoil after the death of Great Knez Lushenkow I Fyodorovich, the time is ripe to strike. In the winter days of year 18, the Great Khan proclaims a jihaad against Muscowy and is joined by Scandia, undeterred by Muscowy's ties to the powerful UNRC, the first shots being fired at the formerly Confederation-controlled Polanian border regions. After over 40 years of war across Northern Aygia and Eastern Yropa, this would be the last war of Fyodorovich's прее́мники, the last war in which two states founded by successors of Fyodorovich would clash. Pushing south from Scandian-held Yropan territory, the Great Khan himself leads a legion of soul-bound elite warriors to cut off Muscowite supply lines as they engage the Scandian military, effectively encircling and leaving the Muscowite army trapped in hostile territory. The Khan's air force carries out surprise strikes targeting Muscowite air fields, inflicting severe damage on the shocked Muscowite air corps. On the Castilian front, the Khanate forces dig in to stall and intimidate the UNRC's forces as well as perform recon. Meanwhile, Khanate legions mrarch into the undefended Yural mountains, a clear dismissal of all the UNRC's warnings and guarantees.
All diplomatic avenues fail and the Khanate does not yield to any threats, meaning the UNRC is stuck in a catch-22 situation: to come to the aid of their far-away allies and risk a war with the Democratic Republic of Aygia or even Albion or the Knight Houses, potentially violating the Treaty of the Islands, or to leave their ally to die and damage their standing in the world?
After a day of deliberation, the UNRC officially declares war against Scandia once again, accompanied by their trademark alpha strike of orbital bombardment, air to surface missile strikes and swarms of drones taking over the skies while submarine-launched ICBMs inflict severe losses on the Scandian navy. The mighty twin carriers Huginn and Munnin scour the earth and cut apart the heavens with their technologically superior weapon systems while their swarms of highly advanced AI-piloted drones are unleashed upon the Scandian air force. The night sky above Eastern Polania, the site of the fiercest fighting turns almost orange, illuminated by endless missile fire cutting through the dark clouds, crashing and burning aircraft, tracer fire and vehicle wreckage ablaze with flames while the fertile grasslands are turned into bombed-out wastelands pockmarked with craters. The encircled veterans of a dozen campaigns, the Bears of Fyodorovich, many over 60 years old and equipped with the best military technology this side of the world, fight with righteous fury in their hearts, killing three times their number and even wiping out an entire Khanate Legion and putting thousands more to panicked flight, but in the end they too crumble before the Khan as they are starved out, cut off from any supplies and the unwillingness of the UNRC to go to war with the Khanate or even cross into its territory dooms them.
Now the main Muscowite military force has fallen, the Khan marches into the Muscowite heartlands, merely defended by badly trained militia troops. With trained super soldiers and an veteran air force up against them, the militia folds and breaks. Every settlement is given the choice to join the Khanate or burn, with the Khan's presence ensuring that they make the "right" choice. On the Yural Front, the approach is even more merciless. As the Khanate Legions kill, burn, slaughter, the entire East of Muscowy is lit by the lambent flames of burning settlements and any surviving resisters are herded into overcowded prison camps. Soon, rumours spread of shady cults and occult rituals being conducted by robed figures at these camps, but they are dismissed as the fever dreams of traumatized inmates.
In the treaty of Muscowy, the division of the lands is arranged. The city of Muscowy, the "New Center of the World" and everything to the West of it is turned over to the Scandian Tsardom, while the Eastern territories around the Yurals fall under the aegis of the Democratic Republic of Aygia. In between the two, a vassal state is carved out of the remaining territories. The survivors of the Bears of Fyodorovich, venerable veterans who are still fiercely loyal to whoever they see as the successor of Fyodorovich, are deemed to be too uncontrollable to be allowed to continue to operate as a cohesive corps. Their unit is broken up and dissolved for good, their commander executed and the individual soldiers dispersed across the entire empire, there dispatched by small groups of two or three to dangerous missions so that their numbers rapidly dwindle. Thus quietly ends the legacy of the last veterans of Fyodorovich's great conquest. The vassal state of Muscowy is instead allowed a small Home Defense Corps for personal protection.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- AFRIQUE First Afrique Summit
Seeing nations from all over the world carve up Afrique and rule over her people, the M'tetwa Zulu, who see themselves as having the mandate to rule all of Afrique from Cape Agulhas to the tip of Ras ben Sakka, prepare for war against the foreign imperialists. When an unidentified foreign ally relays to the Zulu the secrets of Culmite and how to effectively neutralize it, the war preparations kick into overdrive. In the morning hours of the 2nd of January, Year 17, a massive offensive across all fronts from the equally famed and feared Zulu Bull Horns overruns the outskirts of the Gaelic holdings in Afrique with lightning speed, their weapons frighteningly effective against the "invincible" Gaelic knights. Only the uncompromising and possibly supernatural intervention of the Commonwealth of the Holy Scarab prevents the situation from becoming a veritable bloodbath, seeking to reconciliate the antagonistic factions and subtly redirect the Zulu towards their rivals, the Thirteenth Tribe of Judah, whose belligerent attitude and terroristic activity deeply concerns the Scarabite leadership.
To mediate between the different parties, the first Afrique Summit is convened by the Commonwealth. A piece of parchment paper, simple in design and sealed in a protective tube of chitin, finds its way to diplomatic centers across Afrique in every territory owned there. Invitations sought a meeting place for representatives of all peoples of Afrique to meet together. At this summit, important issues concerning the future of the cradle of mankind, and by extension its future, shall be held. In February of Year 17, delegates from all powers with a stake in Afrique meet in a designated neutral zone at the coast of Northern Afrique, a small party of the Commonwealth Priesthood standing amix a large gathering of Scarabites of all castes who have gathered to help provide labor and security to ensure a safe and comfortable stay for the important guests.
Many raise strong objections, but ultimately, the foreign powers agree to the terms set by the Zulu, softened by the Commonwealth pulling a few strings behind the scenes. None of the foreign powers is willing to be the first to throw themselves against the military powerhouse that is the Mtetwa Zulu. All foreign powers are to surrender their holdings in Afrique over a period of 15 years, giving one third to the Zulu every five years so that in fifteen years time, no spot of land in Afrique would be owned by a Yropan, Norican, Surican or Aygian.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Divine Purification
Arch-Priest of the Scarab Esuhl'Jerim'Enshal has lived a long and prosperous life under the wings of the Scarab. But with years of experience, and with the task of bringing back the Old Arcana and inheriting the Earth completed, this accomplished Priest, now an Arch-Priest in rank, such is the respect he commands, seeks one final act of Ascension to cement his legacy, as he knows the time has come for him to join the Scarab on the cosmic plane. He shall give what is left of his life performing the Ritual Art of Divine Purification.
Esuhl spends his last moments alone, floating upon the Nile Delta, surrounded by caskets of sacrificial insects buzzing around him. Raising his arms to the sky, the Arch-Priest focuses, with every remaining fiber of his being, on weaving together his natural borne Fleshshaping powers, with the Healing Magicks of the Old Arcana. The insects release, swirling as a tempestuous swarm around him, absorbing and magnifying his life energy as he marries the Divine powers and communes finally with the Scarab. And then… all earthly parties drop dead, the Priest's soul finally joining the Holy Scarab in the afterlife. The insects, having absorbed Jerim's Divine Healing Essense, dissolve into the waters and sediments of the Nile, spreading out across the entire Delta and beyond into the great wastes of Afrique. The effect is immediate-- the waters become permanently embued with healing, life-giving properties, and life flourishes under it's blessed touch as disease is washed away and mutation is lost. Combined with the massive irrigation project, this ritual shall be the first step in allowing life to flourish once more throughout Afrique.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Claiming Madagasikara
Using the chaos in Yropa as a distraction, the Ypanese megacorporation Takahashi Media Conglomerate takes initiative on its own and seizes the island of Madagasikara, by now for the most part turned over to the Norican Legionary Republic, with PMCs in the dead of night, a move to secure their grasp on international trade routes and expand their access to markets beyond the Indu ocean into the Alantik. This ill-considered move born out of a drive for more and more profit almost causes an international incident as the New Legionary Republic and the Grand Albion Empire quickly issue statements condemning this illegal takeover as a doing of the Empire of the Black Sun as a whole and threaten war unless control is immediately relinquished and the island returned to its rightful owners.
Drakul convenes an emergency meeting with the CEO and convinces them to call off the operation. Though the resulting withdrawal without much fanfare costs billions and worsens an already existing economic downturn in the Black Sun, a full-on war is ultimately prevented.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- AYGIA & OSEANIA Artaxerxes Sees the Light
On March 6th of year 18, a significant day in the Scarabite cosmology, as the third month represents the three segments of an insect body, and the sixth day represents the six legs, Artaxerxes, leader of the rebellion against the Azarid Empire, officially declares that he has found his true calling and shall heretoforth dedicate his life to being a devout and pious servant of the Holy Scarab and from this day forth his realm shall become a constituent part of the Commonwealth of the Holy Scarab. This certainly has very little to do with the fact that he has been having recurring dreams of being reincarnated in a different form, being reborn as a cosmic insectoid entitiy crawling upon the tree of life attached to the back of the great and divine Scarab as it scuttles around the upper plane, or with the fact that there seem to be more or more insect-like priests in his inner circle whispering of the greatness that he is destined for. It also has nothing to with the fact that he has been in communion with the Priesthood of the Scarab almost daily by now, or that his advisors who have argued against the Scarabite menace have vanished without a trace, or that there have been reports of hermits travelling the land performing miracles and mass-converting the poor to the faith of the holy Scarab. It is a decision born entirely out of free will. It is a decision that was meant to be.
"Maryam, have you heard it?! They announced it just yesterday, we're becoming part of the Commonwealth! Artaxerxes sold us out, the goddamn traitor, may the divine Azar punish his wretched soul! Tah hatek! You think that... wait... What are those molehills in our backyard? Were they here yesterday? By god, those are the biggest I've ever seen... Hold on, what do you mean 'humanoid insect sightings'?"
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Azarid Empire Strikes Back O glorious Azarid, your splendor the envy of the entire world
How I long for you to return and protect me with your motherly embrace
Your enemies, the tribes of Al-Arab, the Indu, the Aitoulians, the Suryians, the Kasach, the Gyptus, Thrakians and Graecians, they were made as those who exist not
Their palaces you shattered and their cities you razed like a whirlwind
To the North, the South, the West, the East, they quivered in their bodies
For half a century everyone bowed before you. How could you have been broken
Like a lion who grew old, your spirit turned craven and your paws limp
- Lament of Samira Behdad
The fragmentation of the Azarid Empire into loyalist and rebellious factions and the ensuing decade-long civil war has brought ruin to the lands, depleted the treasures and heavily damaged the authority of the God-Queen, the Shahbanu, but even with their power and legitimacy diminished, the Azarid loyalists maintain the heartland of the old empire, split apart but unbowed and determined to reconquer what was lost. Now, with their long-time rival gone, the Azarid military marches out in full force to once more reconquer Aitoulia, the land that had been a battleground for Graecians, Thrakians and Pershans for so long with the explicit backing of the Democratic Republic of Aygia. For the first time in years, the legions of Takabara, Sparabara and the Immortals, all bolstered by fresh recruits who grew up in the Empire at its height and are eager to see it flourish once more, embark on a campaign of conquest. Carried across the hot and arid Aitoulian wastelands by wheeled troop transporters and heavy tanks while the Immortals circle overhead like hawks carrying out surgical strikes against forward observers and operating bases, the armies of the Azarid quickly envelop and capture the unprepared Aitoulian forces who are largely holed up in the cities dotting the drylands. Outnumbered, outgunned and with no air support to speak of, the Aitoulian troops surrender in droves.
As his only allies are locked in a holy struggle that demands that not a single bullet go to waste and only have moral support to offer, Satrap Kybernis II of Cius stands alone against the might of the Azarid loyalists. Thus falls the short-lived Hellenic Koinon. For his betrayal of the divine Azarid bloodline, the satrap sentenced to be burned alive, but before he can be captured he flees to Ilios with a civilian convoy. A new satrap replaces him to govern Aitoulia, now again in service of the Azarid Empire.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Grand Theft Warhead
As the eighteenth year draws to a close, the Dark Matter Warhead, the most dangerous weapon of this century, is still hidden within a bunker on an island in the Pacyfic, carefully guarded while the New Phoenix Islands make their preparations to dispose of the horrifying weapon as safely as possible, by flying it out to the edge of the solar system and detonating it there. One power, however is not content with letting one of the few remaining technological marvels from before the Collapse go to waste just like that and draws up plans to take the warhead all for itself.
In the most daring heist of the century, elite agents dressed as British Squaddies break into the facility, steal the warhead, then make off with it, incurring substantial casualties in the process. This causes an uproar across the entire world, with wild accusations being thrown around and the situation nearly escalating to full-scale war. The New Phoenix Islands scramble their agents and military vessels, managing to catch more of the thieves alive, but the ship carrying the warhead escapes into the unknown. The most well-kept secret of the New Era, the weapon that should never be, the relic from a forgotten era, the weapon that could spell doom for an entire nation, is now gone, in the hands of an uncertain party, or maybe lost entirely.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- NORICA The Nordalantik Truce Organization
The different factions with a vested interest in the affairs of the Nordalantik sea meet at the negotiating table, agreeing that some solution has to be found for the failed state that once was the Nordalantik Confederacy and secure lasting peace in the North of the Norican continent. Many possible solutions are drawn up, hotly debated and rejected again, and in the end, a two-state solution proposed by the Riverine League is finalized and ratified, one that shall divide the former lands of the Nordalantik Confederacy between the remains of the belligerent Hagen Horde and a merged Veiker and Grynmen government, free at last from the tyranny of the King in the North.
The Nordalantik Truce Organization, heretofore referred to as NATO, is an agreement and compact amongst the various successor factions to the Nordalantik Confederation and the powers backing such. In the interests of preserving life, economies, territory, etc., all foreign military and intelligence interventions for or against the various successor organizations shall cease indefinitely. Under NATO, several goals shall be pursued.
1. The Hagen clones shall have their own state established on the former mainland territories of the Nordalantik Confederation excluding Nova Scotia. All non-Hagens shall have a state consisting of the Nova Scotia area and the Grynlan and Veikland islands.
2. The non-Hagen state shall maintain their naval forces so that they may maintain state sovereignty and protect their peoples from attack and interference.
3. All current residents shall not be restricted from choosing their state of residence.
4. Under the NATO direction, the Hagens shall be assisted in establishing a functioning civilian government and shall have their raiders/pirates disbanded.
Through discrete arrangements, attempting to give them an outlet for their piratical tendencies, the Norican Legionary Republic convinces the Hagens to abide by the terms of the treaty and thus, in July of Year 16, NATO is created and the treaty put into action, with the successor states of the Nordalantik Confederacy being merged into two distinct nations, the Nordnorican Alliance and the Hagen state. Jesper Kleist of the former Advisory Council of the Confederacy is appointed as the head of a two-year provisional government in the Alliance, after which free and fair elections are to take place. However, Admiral Bjork Deneuve, leader of the Veikland navy, is not content with simply leaving the Hagens alone on the Nordnorican mainland, and begins scheming behind the scenes to finally rid the world of the hated Hagen menace once and for all...
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Norican Constitutional Crisis
The Norican Riverine League has been through a lot of trouble in the last two decades, having been reduced to a mere rump state after two devastating defeats in fifteen years time. There is a growing sense of disappointment with the government and discontent spreads like wildfire among the angry populace and especially the top military brass, who see the two crushing defeats against the Lost Legion as a massive blow to national pride and a failure of the civilian government, which they blame for the military disasters. Soon, barely veiled demands spread among the troops and officers for 'strong and competent governance' and a 'national restoration', and rumour on the streets is that the military plans on taking over the country and dispose of the weak and corrupt High Council entirely.
In response to the looming coup, the High Council of the Riverine League takes staunch action, such as pulling its Militia batalillons into intensive training programs, beginning to shift them outside of normal military jurisdiction and making them swear loyalty to the High Council alone, sending civilian officials to begin talks with the generals regarding potential fixes for the government structure and secure their loyalty and canvassing for potential changes among the population, efforts which begin to show progress soon after. The Council manages to get some of the disgruntled officers on their side and the training of a military force loyal and dedicated to the High Council alone progresses well. Several constitutional laws are covertly altered as to centralize power on the High Council and make rooting out insurgent elements and mobilizing the executive branch easier without having to worry about violating any of the bothersome constitutional rights.
Still, the situation heats up. Seeing as the High Council has begun to act with surprising swiftness, the radical military faction decides to take its efforts to the public. People rally around decorated Four-Star General Troy Cofield and his staff and retinue, who style themselves the "Norican Salvation Army Council". They promise a "national rejuvenation", to retake the lost territories and reunite the families torn apart by the war, initiate massive military buildup as well as call for throwing out any citizens of Mezclan origins and denounce the weakness and incompetence of the Riverine High Council. In several cities, discontented locals such as veterans, citizens who lost relatives in the wars and those who fled from the lost territories riot, loot and burn, demanding that the government should step down and let the Army Council take power.
The High Council though is not willing to let itself be toppled quite that easily. Operation Wordplay commences: While Jen Alami and his staff begin drafting speeches and propaganda messages to deploy over normal news services including those not under the Propaganda Machine and prepare to seize control over those services, General Cofields movements are tracked and a plan is hatched to intercept his convoy while travelling the highway. On the 25th of June 16, loyalist Military Police units ambush Cofield's convoy while it is on its way across the interstate, first jamming communications and creating a roadblock with spike traps and deployable barriers on the road as well as ambush points about 1 kilometer apart, then the MPs move in to arrest all personnel present. The operation is a success, as Cofield is captured and detained with only minor bloodshed.
With the news of General Cofield's capture, the remaining Army Council loyalists go into overdrive. Riding a wave of massive, organized and militant riots supported by renegade tank platoons shelling the local Erie Federation parliament building and disloyal infantry companies storming government buildings and patrolling the streets, the military faction seizes most of the Erie Federation territory surrounding the Great Lakes following days of heavy fighting on the streets. On the 28th of June 16, the Norican Salvation Army Council officially proclaims the Reorganized League Government, a tightly organized, supremely militaristic dictatorship under the control of a council of generals, that immediately announces a slew of edicts abolishing many aspects of the constitution of the Riverine League, putting all aspects of government power under the control of the Army Council and instituting martial law as well as declaring mandatory ancestry tests and the persecution of all "anti-Norican" elements. There can be no peace until one side is destroyed completely.
Within the Reorganized League Government, those with Mezclan ancestry are under general suspicion, as xenophobic sentiments take hold among the citizenry, massively encouraged by official government doctrine. They start becoming the scapegoats for the military defeats against the LL, being branded as collaborators and traitors who sabotaged the motherland's military operations. Many of them see the writing on the wall and flee to start a new life in the Norican Legionary Republic, Aztlan of Gran Colombia or even the newly created Hagen state, but for many others it is too late. Thousands of Mezclan citizens, even those who fought and bled for the Riverine League of Norica just years prior are hounded out of their houses and pelted with rotten fruits and stones or beaten by angry mobs, their belongings destroyed, looted or seized by the government. Others who're deemed by the Army Council to be "endangering Norican national unity" or are framed as having connections to the Norican Legionary Republic, especially labor activists, anti-war activists, civil rights campaigners and other unruly elements are arrested and confined in hastily constructed prison camps and blacksites, where torture and extrajudicial killings by power-tripping, jackbooted guards are the order of the day. Still others covertly assist the Riverine League in its fight against the Reorganized League Government by acting as informants or sabotaging military assets, a highly dangerous duty that becomes many brave militants' undoing.
In reaction to the encroaching rebel troops and the alarming discovery that the Norican nuclear warhead is within RLG territory, the High Council commences a last-ditch effort to save itself:
Operation Door Knocker. First, oceanic naval forces are deployed to secure coastal towns in rebel territory, a comparatively easy task as the navy has mostly stayed loyal to the government. The few enemy vessels encountered are sunk, then loyalist troops take control of port infrastructure where possible, being beaten back by the Patriotic Marine Corps paramilitary forces in some towns and succeeding in others. Quickly, a blockade against any military/rebel leadership forays into the Alantik is established. Simultaneously, a diversion force is prepared along the Mississippi River and nearby routes of approach connected by the Interstate system using all river boats, several High Council Guard bataillons and the ballistic missile launchers in support. The Army Council forces take the bait, and soon a formation of renegade tank platoons supported by mechanized infantry units and paramilitary pushes in the direction of the Mississipi river, eager to crush the loyalists once and for all. The brave High Council troopers die standing, having little to offer in reply to the relentless advance of the armored bataillons, but attempt to draw out the engagement as much as possible by holing up in hastily dug trenches and behind barricades while ballistic missile strikes and naval artillery pick off tanks and disrupt RLG operations.
While their comrades die in the field to buy time, High Council Guard units push in from the east-southeast towards the bunker storing the nuclear warhead with support from loyalist Air Force assets. Upon securing the undefended bunker, the nuke is extracted to the capital under protection of rear-echelon units at maximum speed. The Air Force redeploys and catches the overconfident Army Council forces unprepared, their forces now bombarded from multiple fronts without meaningful anti-air assets. The rout becomes a massacre. At the end of the weeks-long battle, corpses, destroyed fortifications and burnt-out wreckage of armored vehicles litter the entire highway from the north to the south.
The battered remaining forces join up and head towards rebel headquarters as quickly as possible as to prevent the RLG military from regaining its footing with what remains of the High Council Guard and the riverboat force while missiles and air force are kept in reserve. Following weeks of heavy urban fighting against paramilitary forces holed up in the cities and with assistance from resistance fighters within the RLG, the Reorganized League Government collapses as its headquarters are captured and the prison camps liberated. On the 22nd of August 16, the flag of the Erie Federation is once again raised on top of the parliament. The civil war is over, and retribution is swift. The High Council has proven it has the strength and ruthlessness to weather a revolt and earned the loyalty of many Noricans, now it needs to prove it can maintain the peace. In an attempt to purge what remains of the military of disloyal elements, hundreds of collaborators are put on trial, most incarcerated for life or simply sentenced to death by hanging. Only a minority of the high-ranking officers of the Norican Salvation Army Council ever face a trial, as most commit suicide or flee abroad.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- SURICA Operación Agrotóxico
The Jungle stirs... In response to the civilizations encroaching upon its borders, the Nuevo Brasil Jungle grows wilder and more dangerous, like a giant living organism reacting to a virus destroying its cells. Over a few weeks, an increase of over 240% in reported missing persons is noted and multiple times forward operating bases and camps are overrun by frenzied megafauna, all buildings completely overgrown with jungle flora a few days. It does not take long for the Colombians to react and attempt to coordinate a response with their fellow Suricans. The Cuerpo de Exploración in cooperation with the Granadan Federales and even the military makes use of incendiary rounds, flamers, and industrial herbicide, focusing on holding on to what they have secured thus far rather than expanding. Trenches are flooded with water blessed with the rites of Tlaloc's Third Pitcher in order to maintain a safe perimeter beyond which plant life will start to decay, even pressurized water cannons are employed to blast hostile flora with the stuff as well. Even with these valiant efforts, brilliantly coordinated by El Libertador, hundreds are taken by the Jungle, never to be seen again.
The clearing of the Brasil Jungle, which was up until now a dangerous but still semi-controlled affair, becomes a struggle for survival as hostile fauna pours out of the densely overgrown forests and multilayered canopies. Even with the marvels of geo-engineering technology at their disposal, the Legionary Republic is overrun, forced to abandon their outpost on the coast of Brasil. Slowly, even the Colombians lose ground.
That is, until they reveal their ultimate weapon: Project Cloudburst, developed from a prototype unearthed from the ruins of Sao Luis, an airborne chemical weapon system that was in the planning stages but never finished. Until now. A massive, remote-controlled drone is launched from a dedicated Granadan outpost, ascending into the toposphere, where it releases chemical acid in a large radius, an acid so strong that it corrodes buildings, plants and stones. Wherever it hits, the jungle is defoliated... permanently. Everything sprinkled with the chemical compound dies a miserable death, wilting in fast motion like waterless flowers. Again and again, the drone flies its destructive sorties, and bit by bit the Jungle is scoured by the terrifying weapon of mass herbicide. A weapon that, now revealed to work, could be used for decidedly less noble purposes...
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Inkan Traditionalist Revolt
Not everyone within the Rik'chaq Suyu Inka is as open and worldly as the Sapan Inka Pachutica Atahualpa Hanan, and many within the Inkan empire reject the sudden rapprochement to the Northern heathen states, nations ruled by the mob instead of an enlightened autocrat with the mandate of the Sun, nations that do not worship the same gods (or in some cases, any), nations that let their economy be decided by the anarchy of the market system. "And we should join these foreigners?", many Inkan citizens ask themselves. A faction of Inkan royal hardliners and Inti fundamentalists, who find it unacceptable to join an alliance of heathen republics as equals and are calling the current Sapan Inka a traitor and weakling who does not have the mandate of the Sun, coalesce around an anti-emperor who is upheld as the legitimate Sapan Inka. Even the Villac Umu, High Priest of the Sun expresses his support for the movement. The disagreement turns violent quickly. In a shocking incident that amounts to a declaration of war against the government, Inti fundamentalist hardliners storm a temple complex, kidnapping 22 priests who have professed their support for the alliance and the ruling Sapan Inka and throwing them off the mountains. The revolt quickly turns into a brutal civil war, both sides almost equally matched, a civil war that devastates the Inkan economy whose operation depends entirely upon regular labor tithes and speedy as well as regular distribution of goods along the supply chain and sends tens of thousands to an early grave.
In reaction, the Gran Colombians turn all their intelligence efforts towards strengthening the legitimacy of the Sapan Inka. Their Demagogues are redeployed to propaganda duty in service of the Span Inka Pachutica Atahualpa Hanan, as well as the Revolutionary Cadres, who are assigned to helping organize local militias in a protracted war against the fundamentalist elements rebelling against the government. Overwhelmingly, Gran Colombia recognizes the need to assure the current Inkan emperor that Colombia stands behind him. El Calpuleque himself serves as a go-between counseling him through this turbulent period of his nation's history and instilling his passionate belief in the Federation.
While the ruling Inkan elite maintains the upper hand in most cities with the help of the Colombian covert ops expertise, in the more rural and traditionalist areas the anti-government rebels continue to enjoy much support, which creates a vicious dynamic. While many thousands are killed in the months of fighting, at least thrice that number die of starvation as rural areas refuse to supply the cities they see as heretics and traitors to Tayta Inti. Slowly but surely, the more numerous Hatun Ruta regiments of the Sapan Inka, bolstered by conscripted militia forces trained in the art of guerilla warfare by the Colombian experts, push back the rebels in a grueling campaign of warfare across the terraces and mountain cities of the Quechua Anti. After five months of revolt, the last mountain holdouts in the north surrender without a fight.
One hundred of the head conspirators, including the former Villac Umu, are ritually decapitated upon the ruins of the great Inkan pyramids, the heads cut from their twitching bodies and offered to the Gods. Afterwards, the most successful and experienced generals of the Sapan Inka, those who have won too much fame and glory for their own good in their conquests are charged with treason and put to death as well, for no one may dare outshine the sun.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Overall Rank: Regional Power (47) Map Colour: Dark Blue Geographic Location: The Moon, Earth orbit, Gibraltar, parts of the Iberian Peninsula, northern Morocco Culture Groups: Chinese, American, Russian (Predominantly). Many other smaller groups of pre-apocalypse cultures. Government Type: Ostensibly democratic, military dictatorship in actuality. Characters of Note:
President Sydney Beauclair (C5, Charismatic, Stubborn, Desires: to reconquer Earth)
Dr. Marcus Device (C10, Spark of Genius, Substance Abuser, Desires: to become transhuman)
General Mikhail Gagarin (C4, Logistician, Arrogant, Desires: establishment of secure supply routes from earth to the moon) Stats: Size 2, Military 18, Intelligence 7, Resources 8, Diplomacy 1, Cohesion 6 Special Features: Advanced AI (2), Old World Treasures (1), Widespread Automation (2), Culmite Secrets (1), Orbital Drop (2), Moonbase (0), Ancient Caches of Knowledge (1), Orbital Debris (1), Rods from God (1), Star Wars (2), Starfleet (1), Strait of Gibraltar (2), Low Population (-1), Alien Cultural Values (-2), Physical Atrophy (-2) Military Assets: Navy 2 (Bellerophon), Infantry 2, UNAS Muninn (3), UNAS Phoenix (3), Defenses (1), Restored Defense Sattelites (1), USS Liberty (5), UN Peacekeepers (1) Resource Assets: Uranium (2), Industry (4), Base Metals (1), Elenium (1) Intelligence Assets: OIS (2), OTC (5) Relations: Enemy (Scandia), Rival (Albion), Trade Agreements (Gran Colombia, Empire of the Black Sun, New Phoenix Islands), Uneasy Alliance (Muscowy) Issues: Small size, mortal enemy (Scandia), at war, very low manpower
- The project of synthesizing Culmite for military use, officially dubbed "Elenium" is finally finished. (+1 Elenium).
- All resources of the nation are dedicated to the construction of a megaproject that shall make the whole world tremble, the first dedicated space battleship of the New Era, a megaship dubbed the USS Liberty, equipped with state of the art technology for the reclamation of earth, with no expenses spared, a ship so mighty that even keeping it running swallows enormous amounts of money. At the end of year nineteen, it goes online and embarks upon its maiden voyage (-1 treasury, Adds USS Liberty)
- Wasting resources and sending troops off to die in a war to protect a monarchy half a world away upsets the people of the United Nations Reclamation Corps, and the questionable diplomatic dealings around Muscowy damage the UNRC's standing in the world (-2 cohesion).
- While the Scandian fighters are no match for the UNRC air carriers and their fleet of AI-guided drones, the war in Eastern Yropa still causes tangible damage for the UNRC as the seasoned pilots of the Firebolts sacrifice theselves to bring down one of the air carriers in exchange for being completely wiped out (UNAS Huginn destroyed).
- A small contingent of UN Blue Helmet troops for future deployment in conflict areas is formed with volunteers from all over the world, including Gran Colombia, the Empire of the Black Sun, Muscowy and the Commonwealth of the Holy Scarab (+1 UN Peacekeepers).
Overall Rank: Major Power (52) Map Colour: Bright Orange Geographic Location: All of Polynesia, Australia and NZ, Hawaii + scattered Pacific Islands Culture Groups: Polynesian, Hawaiian, Yndonesian, Osstralian, Kiwi Government Type: Presidential Democracy Characters of Note: Phoenix Lord Kamalani Keona (C7, Highly Intelligent, Culturally Stagnant, Desires: to reestablish Maritime South-East Aygia) High Priestess Ihe Kaipo (C5, Incredibly Wise, Speaks in Riddles, Desires: to spread the faith of Pele) Stats: Size 6, Military 6, Intelligence 6, Resources 11, Diplomacy 5, Cohesion 5 Special Features: Island Nation (2), Blasted Wasteland (-2), Tattoo Magic (3) Military Assets: Navy 3, Infantry 2, Air Force 1 Resource Assets: Base Metal Reservoirs in Osstralia (3), Oil (3), Industry (3), Food (2), Culmite (1) Intelligence Assets: Propaganda Machine (3), Popular Movement (1), Domestic Intelligence Agency (2) Relations: Uneasy Friendship (Yndonesian Bloc, Empire of the Black Sun), Trade Agreement (United Nations Reclamation Corps) Issues: Mighty jingoist neighbours, small air force, no monies
- Gaelic Guest Workers assist the Phoenix Islands with the construction of their own industry base (+1 Industry)
- Production of synthesized Culmite alloy is started, with schematics provided by a foreign ally (+1 Culmite)
- A huge construction project for defenses against missile strikes and naval invasions is begun, and soon bunkers, ground-bases missile interception systems, radar stations and military bases dot the numerous islands of the Phoenix realm (+1 Defenses)
- Gaelic Powered Armor are studied and blueprints are manufactured, slated for mass production, but due to a lack of resources the project stalls in its prototype stages.
- A string of unexplained murders of government officials and agents and several terrorist attacks as well as bombings unsettles the people, especially after even the famed General Nohea Kelii falls victim to the assassinations. (-1 cohesion, General Nohea Kelii dies).
- The disappearance of the warhead from Polynesian confinement deeply damages the standing of the New Phoenix Islands in the world (-1 Diplomacy).
Overall Rank: Major Power (58) Map Colour: Emerald Green Geographic Location: Most of Northern Africa, Israel, Jordania, Lebanon Culture Groups: Scarabites Government Type: Incomprehensible to traditional methods of political thought Characters of Note: Arch-Priest Esser'Veemsha'Leeveah (C8, Calm, Stubborn, Mutation: Grey Star, Desires: to make the Holy Scarab's Domain expand over all of Nordafrique) Mantrid Gunvier'Saness'Ehula (C11, Determined, Anxious, Genetic Mutation: Blind, Desires: to uphold the cohesion of her cohorts and communities under her protection) Velsha'Fooheem'Jerrdahneeha (C3 [of course], Gifted Architect, Control Freak, Mutation: Damaged Brain, Desires: To dig tunnel networks under all of Nordafrique) Velsha'Elooheem'Geehzuh (C12, Incredible Organizer, Overprotective, Mutation: Hemochromatosis, Desires: to raise the greatest monuments the world has ever seen in honor of the Holy Scarab) Gunvier'Muushoo'Kyro (C7, Selfless, Naive, Desires: to liberate Nordafrique from the colonial masters of Yropa) Esuhl'Versia'Zuudin (C8 Loyal, Extremist, Mutation: Lung Disease, Desires: to spread the faith of the Scarab by any means necessary) Stats: Size 9, Military 11, Intelligence 8, Resources 8, Diplomacy 9, Cohesion 9 Special Features: Hidden Tunnel Traps (1), Secret Fortified Underground Tunnel Network (2), Sprawling Hivelands (2), Pharao Reborn (2), Leader Enhancements (1), Alien Cultural Values (-2), Deserts and Wastelands (-2), Irradiated Population (-2) Military Assets: War Priests (2), Infantry (5), Colombian Militias (1), War Beasts (3) Resource Assets: Bugs (5), Oil (2), Treasury (1) Intelligence Assets: Demagogues (2), Moles (3), Seducers (3) Relations: Trade Agreement (UNRC, Gran Colombia), Uneasy Friendship (Mtetwa Zulu, Westafrique Freemen's Domain), Stabilized Relations (Thirteenth Tribe of Judah) Issues: Uninhabitable wastelands, mutated and irradiated population, vast empire that can be attacked from all sides, few resources
- Now that the Hivelands of the Commonwealth are engineered to such a great extent, the time has come to integrate the life-giving nectars of the Nile into them. The Nile is expanded as tens of thousands of industrious workers begin siphoning the fresh, clean water through a massive network of underground irrigation tunnels that stretch throughout the Commonwealth until the water is finally pumped towards the surface, an irrigation project of untold proportion. Slowly, over the years the massive desert wastelands are pushed back, turning into grasslands of lush green (+1 to Deserts and Wastelands).
- The Ritual of Divine Purification is cast successfully and turns the Nile into a stream of life, finally relieving the Scarab's disciples of some of their worldly suffering (-2 to Bugs, loses Mutations, +1 to irradiated Population)
- With food shipments coming in from outside sources and increased domestic food production to feed the growing swarms, which in turn feed the sprawling populace, the Worker Caste begins the construction of large underground 'greenhouse' Chambers, where they create environments amicable to the growth of plant, miss, and fungus for the purpose of farming large quantities of Bugs (+4 Bugs)
- The induction of Artaxerxes and subsequent acquisition of his territory presents the Scarab's first step into Aygia, bringing hundreds of thousands of new followers into the fold and plenty of worldly treasures on top of that (+1 Size, +2 Oil, +1 Treasury)
- Terrorist attacks and bombings from the Lions of Judea squatting in the ruins of old Jeruschalajim kill workers, priests and warriors alike and damage parts of the sprawling underground Hivelands, collapsing tunnels and spires through targeted detonations (-1 to Sprawling Hivelands, -1 Cohesion).
- With the Khanate and the Commonwealth settling a land swap, Southern Castilia falls under Scarab rule, which presents the first time the Holy Scarab has extended its antennas to Yropa as well as Afrique and Aygia (Loses land around Sinai, gains southern Iberia)
Overall Rank: Major Power (51) Map Colour: Bright Yellow Geographic Location: Gran Colombia + Chiapas & Carribean Culture Groups: Grenadan, Genízaro (descendants of indigenous slaves), Tropicano (islanders), Aztla, Chiapa, undead equivalents of all of the above. Government Type: Constitutional Republic w/out term limits (Granada), Participatory Democracy (Aztlan), Illiberal Democracy w/ dominant party (Tropico) Characters of Note: El Libertador (C11, Brilliant, Arrogant, Desires: consolidating the entire continent into Gran Colombia, ensuring the stability of the federation after his death) El Capuleque (C10, Passionate, Stubborn, Desires: Redistribution of all Colombian land back to the Campesinos, full autonomy for Chiapa communities in Aztla and Granada) El Presidente (C5, Persuasive, Impatient, Desires: Building Tropico into the global centre of sea trade and replacing Granada as political centre of power in Colombia) Stats: Size 8, Military 10, Intelligence 3, Resources 15, Diplomacy 4, Cohesion 6 Special Features: Project Cloudburst (2), Bermuda & Galapagos Naval Outposts (1), Aztlan Ley Lines (1), Pyramids of the Dead (2), Granama Canal (3), Meritocracy (1), Founding Father (-2), (Un)Aging Population (-4) Military Assets: Navy (4), Infantry (1), Vehicles (1), Irregulars (3), Defences (1) Resource Assets: Oil (6), Cash Crops (3), Gold (2), Base Metals (3), Industry (2) Intelligence Assets: Three Letter Agency (Domestic 2), Demagogues (1) Relations: HATED YANQUI (Riverine League of Norica), Future Federation Member (Rik'chaq Suyu Inka), Working Relationship (Westafrique Freemen), Uneasy Friendship (Lost Legion, UNRC, Commonwealth of the Holy Scarab), Rival (Grand Albion Empire) Issues: Rivals across the ocean, diverse member states, looming overpopulation crisis
- Old World documents suggest a rich vein of high quality iron ore in what was once Ouenza, which can easily be investigated by surveyors from Petrobras. As the area proves viable for extraction operations, a fresh batch of Cuerpo de Exploración recruits is shipped off to begin construction of a new mining settlement in Al-Jeerja immediately, paying attention not to disturb the locals (+1 base metals).
- With the approval of the Sapan Inka, Colombian engineers assist their southern friends in the construction of a brand new nuclear power plant to boost the Inkan electric grid, create a slew of new jobs, and reduce reliance on fossil fuels. Unfortunately, rabid traditionalist rebels would destroy it just months later.
- In reaction to the worrying hyperaccelerated growth of the Nuevo Brasil Jungle which threatens to swallow Granada whole, the Gran Colombian government authorizes the development and deployment of Project Cloudburst, official Codename "Coatlicue", schematics of which had been found in the ruins of Sao Luis. The project swallows a great amount of resources, but ultimately, it succeeds and is distributed along diplomatic channels to the militaries of both the Inka and Lost Legion, along with instructions and training on how to safely deploy it on the field (Gains Project Cloudburst).
- While the Inka obviously bear the brunt of the traditionalist revolt, there are also a number of Colombian operatives who let their lives in the struggle for the Federation. Their sacrifice was not in vain, as the government loyalists gain the upper hand and crush the fundamentalist uprising (-1 Demagogues).
- The additional colonies staked out in the cleared regions of Nuevo Brasil extend the borders of Gran Colombia and lead to the foundation of a new member state, the Tenentes Republic, as retiring veterans are resettled under an ejido model of cooperative land management (+1 Size).
Overall Rank: World Power (69) Map Colour: Dark Grey Geographic Location: Japan, Korea, Parts of Eastern Russia Culture Groups: Ypanese, Joseon, Rus, Ballkhanik Government Type: Corporate Nobility Characters of Note: CEO Drakul Vladimir (C15, Ruthless, Ancient Wisdom, Desires: to ensure his peoples survive and thrive) CEO Dio (C3, Charismatic, Megalomaniac, Desires: to rule the nation) CEO Diavolo (C11, Mastermind, Paranoid, Desires: to rule the nation) Shogun Murata, Shogun of the Cyberhematic Samurai (C5, Loyal, Stubborn, Desires: Keep the military strong) Brahm Staker, Chairman of the Black Cloaks (C3, Charismatic, Intolerant, Distrustful Desires: to turn the entire world into Vampyres) Penumbral Artificial Intelligence (C7, Genius, Obsessive, Desires: to know everything) Stats: Size 6, Military 19, Intelligence 10, Resources 20, Diplomacy 2, Cohesion 6 Special Features: Blood Moon Under Construction (1), Cultural Icon of Afrique (2), Vassal (Westafrique Freemens' Domain) (3), Susanoo Array (2), Maritime Empire (1), Corporate Meritocracy (1), The Black Sun (4), Empire of the Fallen Sun (1), Vampyrism (-1), Pretender (-2), Incompetent Character (-1), Contested Succession (-2), Widely Disliked (-1) Military Assets: B.S. Impaler Fleet (3), Cyberhematic Samurai (2), Rail Walker Nosferatu (1), Air Force (3), Pophyric Magi (2), Navy (3), Defenses (3), Unholy Ones (2) Resource Assets: Treasury (9), Industry (6) Intelligence Assets: Black Cloaks (Domestic 4), In Midnight Clad (Foreign 4), Seducers (2) Relations: Uneasy friendship (UNRC, New Phoenix Islands), Rivalry (Yndonesian Bloc, Guanqi Order, Sibirsk Tribes) Issues: Strong position as world power will draw attention, disparate and scattered territories, purely elite units, widely despised
- The sunken Hagen craft are rigged with explosives by agents infiltrated with submersibles from stealth aircraft. A nasty surprise for all who go treasure-hunting!
- Vast amounts of resources and industrial capacity are expended to build up huge resource reservoirs in Joseon, more fuel for the hypercapitalist engine of terror (+3 base metals, +2 rare metals)
- A bustling underground black market is discovered by agents of the Empire, where everything can be found from counterfeit art, illegal drugs and high-grade weapons to stolen aircraft parts.
- In secret, the ships disassembled to appease the Yndonesian Bloc are reassembled, the informants paid off and blackmailed to keep their mouths shut (+1 Navy).
- A new, great hyper-secret project that should is started in form of the ominously named Blood Moon, meticulously protected by the Black Sun intelligence agencies to be kept under wraps until the world is ready to witness its glory (Adds Blood Moon Under Construction).
- The swift recall of the PMCs of Takahashi Media Conglomerate from Madagasikara, clearly a step out of line, costs billions in upfront payment and untold billions more in opportunity costs and worsens an existing economic downturn, but also earns the Black Sun some measure of international recognition and legitimacy (+1 diplomacy, -2 treasury)
- Brahm Staker, head of the domestic intelligence arm of the Black Sun is caught secretly attempting to establish vampyric lodges inside the Khmer Brisot, who are outraged and immediately cancel any diplomatic agreements and trades.
Overall Rank: Regional Power (41) Map Colour: Light Red Geographic Location: The Alpine Region Culture Groups: Svizzera, Jermani, Itani Government Type: Theocratic Monarchy Characters of Note: Grand Priest Byleth (C12, Dutiful, Orderly, (Perfect Being), Desires: to lay waste to the heretical city of Ilios in dedication to the fallen Malizians and the gods from beyond)(Bearbeitet) High Commander Beleth (C6, Clever, Merciless, Desires: to spread the Malizian belief across the world) Stats: Size 7, Military 9, Intelligence 5, Resources 8, Diplomacy 1, Cohesion 3 Special Features: Otherworldly Lore (3), Hannibal (2), Perfect Being (2), Competent Character (1), Demon Council (1), Fanatic Purifiers (-3) Military Assets: Wall of Gehenna (1), Apollyon's Chosen (1), Andras' Legion (1), Freeman Militia (1), Byrath's Legions (2), Navy (2), Kheshigg (1) Resource Assets: Gold (2), Iron Shafts (2), Industry (2), Hydro-Electric Dams (1), Treasury (1) Intelligence Assets: Silent Watchers (3), Missionaries of Astaroth (2) Relations: - Issues: Isolated on the world stage, coming off an apocalyptic war, surrounded by powerful enemies, dangerously low cohesion
- Grand Priest Amaymon dies, a final possessed spasm choking the life out of him. After long weeks of consulting the gods from beyond in midnight communions, an unassuming young bishop is brought before the assembly of cardinals and coronated as the next Grand Priest of Malizia (Grand Priest Amaymon dies).
- In an unprecedented incident, the Khanate navy as well the Kheshigg go rogue, deserting the Khanate entirely to join the holy war against the Ilian invaders in Malizia (+2 Navy, +1 Kheshigg).
- The war to end all wars, the war that would bring hell into the life of every single Malizian and devour entire generations, and nothing but ruin is left (-2 Cohesion, -1 Industry, -2 Food, -2 Andras' Legion, -2 Valac's Champions, -1 Apollyon's Chosen, -1 Tirallieur War Walkers, -1 Walls of Gehenna, -1 Missionaries of Astaroth, -1 Gold, -1 Base Metals +2 Byrath's Legions, +1 Freeman Militia)
- The conquest of the Ilian lands, at least that least bring a modest amount of new territories into the fold of the kingdom, extending its reach solidly into the Mediterranean (+1 Size, +1 Base Metals, +1 Gold, +1 Treasury).
Overall Rank: Regional Power (43) Map Colour: Red Geographic Location: Great Britain Culture Groups: Albion Government Type: Constitutional Monarchy Characters of Note: Cyber-Queen Elizabeth II (C4, Knowledge Of The Ancient Ways, Relic Of A Bygone Age, Desires: to ensure the safety of Britain) Arthur Pendragon (C10, Courageous, Prideful, Desires: to return Albion to its glory days) Admiral Belson (C10, Cunning, Brutal, Desires: to increase the size of the British Navy) Stats: Size 6, Military 5, Intelligence 4, Resources 12, Diplomacy 5, Cohesion 6 Special Features: [NEW] Rudimentary Space Tech (1), Cloning Tech Blueprints (2), Naval Outpost Madagasikara (1), Rule Britannia (2), Cultural Artifacts (3) Military Assets: Air Force (1), Royal Navy (1), HMS Unsinkable (3) Resource Assets: Coal & Oil (5), Industry (2), Royal Treasury (3), Uranium (1), Base Metals (1) Intelligence Assets: The Squaddies (4), Domestic Intelligence Agency (2) Relations: Hated Enemy (Muscowy), Good Relations (Westafrique Freemens' Domain), Uneasy Friendship (Guanqi Order, Knight Houses of Knowledge, Democratic Republic of Aygia), Formerly at War (New Phoenix Islands, Empire of the Black Sun, Gran Colombia, Empire of the Black Sun), Marriage Alliance (Scandia) Issues: Mortal enemy of Muscowy, vulnerable to infiltration, ruler of below average competency, weakened by war
- The naval invasion of the Northern Francian territories of the CYC led by Admiral Belson as well as the seizure of the Central Yropan oil platforms is a success, but one paid for in blood, as casualties among the Royal Marines are high, the resistance from the newly formed Tempelhof Empire too fierce for the relatively inexperienced light infantry (+3 Oil, -1 Royal Marines).
- In numerous dangerous missions abroad, squaddies are captured or killed, with only a dedicated core of hardened veterans of thievery remaining (-2 The Squadies).
- Through diplomatic back door dealings, the Albion come into possession of some rudimentary spaceflight technology. Soon, the final frontier shall be accessible to the isles of Britannia (Adds Rudimentary Space Tech)
- Whatever industry is not dedicated towards completing foreign agreements is ordered by Pendragon to produce consumer goods for the Britannian people, easing integration of the conquered lands somewhat as well as temporarily satiating the masses (+1 Cohesion).
- The Royal Marriage between the daughter of the Scandian Tsarina and Regent Arthur Pendragon, while mired by the intervention of an unwelcome foreign seducer stealing the princesses heart, at least brings the two houses together and gives the people of Albion something to celebrate for the first time in years (+1 Cohesion).
Overall Rank: Regional Power (47) Map Colour: Azure Blue Geographic Location: Ireland + holdings in Central West Africa Culture Groups: Gaelic, Scot, some Anglo-Saxon, Zentralafrique Natives Government Type: House-Based Representative Oligarchy Characters of Note: House Regent Shamus Jaxx (C9, Great Warrior, Stressed and Overworked, Desires: to see more nations band together in acquiring knowledge and science) Archana Minos (C7, Powerful Sorceress, Fear Of Fighting Without Magic, Desires: to have more powerful magic users throughout the lands) Felios Shehaan (C10, Master of Gun and Blade, Hotheaded Straight Shooter, Desires: to improve the houses' military at all costs) Command Director of Subhouse Dominithica (C4, Tidy, Reclusive, Desires: to assure total stability in the Knight Houses, whatever the cost) Madison Paige (C5, Loyal, Cursed, Desires: to see peace on earth and cure her disease) Stats: Size 6, Military 6, Intelligence 6, Resources 8, Diplomacy 7, Cohesion 6 Special Features:NEW: Rudimentary Space Tech (1), Secret Military Base (2), Old World Treasures (1), Boons of Knowledge (+2), Contested Succession (-2), God-King (-2), Tundra (-2) Military Assets: Infantry 3, Navy 1, Air Force 1, Defenses 1 Resource Assets: Culmite 2, Treasury 3, Gold 2, Base Metals 1 Intelligence Assets: Subhouse Dominithica (Foreign 2), Subhouse Invinicabalia (Domestic 2), False Front (1), Moles (2) Relations: Uneasy Friendship (Grand Albion Empire, Democratic Republic of Aygia, Tsardom of Scandia), Rival (UNRC) Issues: Coming off a civil war, small core territory, militaristic neighbours, in danger of breaking apart
- The civil war could not be prevented through his assassination, but at least the loathsome Norm is dead. It has to count for something (Loses Pretender).
- The second Gaelic Civil War devastates large swathes of the country and drains the Gaelic population, treasury and military strength, but the Knight Houses of Knowledge emerge from it alive and with a renewed sense of national cohesion, now that the most unruly elements of the population have been dealt with (-1 Infantry, -1 Air Force, -2 Treasury, -1 Culmite, -1 Domestic Agent, +2 Cohesion).
- After the civil war, huge amounts of resources are funnelled into the creation of a top-secret heavily fortified military base within the Afrique colonies to allow for improved force projection, better defense of the Afrique territories and all the super-secret-not-at-all-shady blacksite needs (Gains Secret Military Base)
- Through diplomatic back door dealings, the Gaelic come into possession of some rudimentary spaceflight technology. Soon, the final frontier shall be accessible to the Knight Houses of Knowledge (Adds Rudimentary Space Tech)
Overall Rank: Major Power (64) Map Colour: Maroon Geographic Location: Almost all of Central Asia and parts of Russia and Siberia Culture Groups: Mangled Men Government Type: Representative Democratic Communal State with a Monarchy Characters of Note: The Great Khan (C14, Persuasive, Military Genius, Desires: To protect all the weak and helpless people of the broken world under his aegis ) Senior Barkowitz (C7, Diplomatic, Warhawk, Desires: To take the land of Zhongguo, Norica and Rus as a form of payback against the Great Powers) Science Officer Romanov Heissen (C9, Diplomatic, Warhawk, Desires: To take the land of Zhongguo, Norica and Rus as a form of payback against the Great Powers) Stats: Size 9, Military 4, Intelligence 9, Resources 21, Diplomacy 9, Cohesion 7 Special Features:[NEW] Vassal: Muscowy (2), Secret Knowledge (3), Vassal: Paxisteni (3), The Great Khan (5), Assembly of Clans (2), Large Scale Bunker Network (1), Ideals of the Republic (2), Irradiated Population (-3), Mutations (-2), Deserts (-2), God-King (-2), The Khanate Will Not Falter (-2), Contested Succession (-2) Military Assets: Khanate Legions (3), Air Craft (1) Resource Assets: Smuggler Network (2), Industry (8), Food (3), Base Metals (3), Oil (3), Treasury (2) Intelligence Assets: False Front (1), Demagogues (2), Propaganda Machine (2), Domestic Agency (3) Relations: Uneasy Alliance (Grand Albion Empire, Knight Houses of Knowledge), Rival (Muscowy, Azarid Empire, Guanqi Order, Manzhourian Wastes) Issues: World power status will draw attention, surrounded by enemies, vast swathes of land almost impossible to defend, lacking in military strength
- The offer of integration is rejected by the High King and the Council of the Paxisteni vassal, who value the autonomy of their state too much. The government asks for a grace period of ten years instead of immediate integration into the empire.
- In a move to increase centralization and massively decrease the risk of provinces seceding from the vast empire, all satrapies across the nation are dissolved, the provinces themselves directly put under the control of the central government. Outrage across the nation is great, but as a strong and stable power the Khanate can weather the difficulties and persevere (-2 Cohesion).
- The Azarid Loyalists are openly recognized as the only true Azarid Empire and given the diplomatic urging to attack Aitoulia, leading to the conquest of Aitoulia and the destruction of the Hellenic Koinon.
- Consent is manufactured to justify a future invasion against the Khmer Brisot, long a thorn in the side of the great Democratic Republic of Aygia, as a major regional player that is belligerent and will not bow to any other power.
- The Khan dedicates some of his time towards creating a stronger and more effective domestic agency, funneling money into (+2 domestic agency, -1 treasury)
- In an unprecedented incident, the Khanate navy as well the Kheshigg go rogue, deserting the nation entirely to join the holy war against the Ilian invaders in Malizia (-2 Navy, -2 Kheshigg).
- The newly synthesized nanoil is used to great effect, as the already substantial industrial capacity of the Khanate is bolstered further (+2 Industry).
- Under mysterious circumstances, the Khanate comes into possession of entire libraries worth of top-secret knowledge (Adds Secret Knowledge).
- The conquest of Muscowy is a costly affair, but it brings in new wealth, resources and further territories into the vast, ever-expanding horde of the Khan (-1 Khanate Legion, -1 Air Craft, +1 Size, +1 Oil, +2 Base Metals, +1 Treasury, Gains Vassal: Muscowy)
Overall Rank: Regional Power (37) Map Colour: Dark Slate Blue Geographic Location: United States, parts of Canada Culture Groups: Mezclan, Native Norican, Glakian, Quebecois, Southern, Plains Norican Government Type: Council Dictatorship Characters of Note: President of New Merlons Jen Alami (C4: Inspirational, Vindictive, Desires: Destruction of all magic users in the world for the continuing ruin brought upon the Norican people) Minister of the Mezclan River Collective Valerio Quintares (C10: Good economist, Harsh on workers, Desires: Reclaim Mezclan!) Speaker of the Erie Federation Anastasia Lyne ( C7: Shrewd Negotiator, Anxiety, Desires: Bringing in outside sources to help fix the devastation wrought upon most of the Norican continent and stabilize the political situation in favor of the smaller constituents of the League) Stats: Size 6, Military 5, Intelligence 5, Resources 5, Diplomacy 5, Cohesion 4 Special Features:[NEW] Mutant GMO Samples (1), Artifacts from a Forgotten Age (1), Secret Knowledge (1), Ace in the Hole (3), Deserts (-1), Natural Disasters (-1), Wasteland, Baby! (-2), East Coast (3), US Interstate System (1) Military Assets: Air Force (1), Navy (2), High Council Guard (1), Ballistic Missiles (1) Resource Assets: Base Metals (1), Treasury (1), Industry (1), Smugglers & Blockade Runners (1), Rare Earth Elements (1) Intelligence Assets: Propaganda Machine (2), Three Letter Agency (Foreign 2, Domestic 1) Relations: Hated Enemy (Norican Legionary Republic), Rivals (Gran Colombia, Nordalantik), Friendly (Scandian Tsardom, Yndonesian Bloc) Issues: Hated enemy at the border (Norican Legionary Republic), military in shambles, recent civil war, rump state, resources exhausted
- Ocean-going naval units are dispatched to go "fishing," trying to find the sunken Empire treasure ship off the coast of Afrique. However, they find that the NLR was there before them.
- Through operations and infiltration abroad, secret knowledge is gained that the Riverine League of Norica should not possess (Adds Secret Knowledge).
- Excavations around former military bases, research centers, and abandoned production areas as well as NASA sites turn up artifacts from ages past (Adds Artifacts from a Forgotten Age).
- Through a shrewd trade deal with the Mtetwa Zulu, the Riverine League receives mutant GMO samples from Pelindaba that could massively boost food production and kickstart the research and development of other biological wonders (Gains Mutant GMO Samples).
- A small unit of conventional medium-range ballistic missile vehicles is built (+1 Ballistic Missiles).
- With a military coup looming, the militia units remaining from the last war are reassigned to be put directly under Council jurisdiction, retrained and bombarded with pro-Council propaganda, creating a fanatically dedicated Council Guard unit (-1 Militia, +2 High Council Guard).
- The Civil War is won, the traitors are dead or in chains, their tanks useless wreckage and their flags burned! The High Council stands on a shaky foundation, but it stands triumphant! (-1 High Council Guard, -1 Tanks, -1 Navy, -1 Infantry, -1 Industry, -1 Domestic Agents +2 Cohesion, Government Type becomes Council Dictatorship)
- While the civil war interrupts the mineral exploitation operations, they are resumed afterwards and unearth small amounts of rare earth minerals in the Rockies (+1 rare earth elements).
Overall Rank: Major Power (53) Map Colour: Burgundy Geographic Location: Most of Mexico Culture Groups: Vaquero, Mezclan, Albreetan, Midwestern, Texan, American Southlander Government Type: Representative Republic Characters of Note: President Jack Taylor (C4, Charismatic, Paranoid, Desires: To see the lost legion's territory establish a stable civilian government again) Engineer James McKinley (C7, Brilliant Inventor, Cybernetic Mastery, Frail, Desires: to see the utilisation of his cybernetics and geoscaping technology on a mass scale) General Jose de la Huerta (C4, Skilled Maneuverer General, Violent Temper, Desires: to reclaim his homeland in Northern Mexic) Philomenes of Thrakia (C5, Reliable, Perverted, Desires: to get all vampyres out of Hellas) Mouhammad Ouati Keita (C8, Educated, Careless, Desires: to see Afrique entirely independent of foreign influence) Stats: Size 7, Military 8, Intelligence 4, Resources 11, Diplomacy 2, Cohesion 6 Special Features: Culmite Knowledge (1), Competent Character (1), Geo-Restoration Technology (3), Cybernetically Enhanced Population (2), West Coast (3) Military Assets: Infantry (1), Vehicles (3), Special Forces (2), Irregulars (1), Air Force (1), Coastal Defenses (1) Resource Assets: Nanoil (3), Industry (4), Rare Earth Elements (1), Food (1), Uranium (2), Rare Earth Elements (1), Treasury (2) Intelligence Assets: Legion Int-Sec Force (Domestic 3, Foreign 1) Relations: Enemy (Riverine League of Norica), Uneasy Friendship (Gran Colombia, Yndonesian Bloc) Issues: Hated enemy at the borders (Riverine League), recently integrated territory, maritime trade blockaded
- Now that the old Westfed Homelands have been reclaimed, the Lost Legion decides to entirely reform its government into the Norican Legionary Republic, a civilian government founded upon a basis of militarism, a strong executive and an opposition to factionalism as founding tenants (Loses Temporary Alliance).
- A couple of borrowed submarines are dispatched to retrieve the gold from the sunken Hagen raiding ships and give the warriors a viking funeral, but the wrecks were mined by the Black Sun, sinking several submarines and destroying the lost treasure for good.
- Realizing that they hold huge amounts of Norica, but the land is woefully undeveloped and under industrialized for the huge territory present, the newly reorganized Legionary Republic kickstarts the New Deal for Norica, the biggest infrastructure project seen on the Norican continent in decades that consumes an entire nation's worth of resources and helmed by the foreign expert Gaelea from the far-away lands of Ilios. First efforts focus on getting power back in the nation via nuclear reactors and reconnecting the settlements to a central grid enabling increased quality of life and industrial capacity. Then, the Republic's own industry focuses on industry reclamation efforts especially in areas such as silicon valley where industry once roared and can be enticed to do so again. Additional treasury resources are used to dump loans for industrial businesses into the market, sell many industrial resources cheaply, then increase demand via ongoing purchases with other treasury funds. This sudden boost to the market causes enough growth in those sectors that competition ensures industrial output is usably cheap when the nation dials back the over purchasing, while the sudden increase in money moving around the market keeps these new businesses with enough wealth to repay the loans. Over the years, the formerly deserted Norican territories on the West Coast turn into bustling centers of commerce and industrial activity (+2 Treasury, +2 Industry, +1 Cohesion, loses Ports in Ruins).
- Mohammed Ouati Keita is dispatched to Madagasikari to smooth over the transition and scout the economic capabilities, but when the PMCs take over Madagasikara he is killed in a firefight before he can hide when the government building is stormed (Mohammed Ouati Keita dies).
- The well-planned and executed conquest of the Castilian territories goes over relatively smoothly, with losses being replaced easily with the industrial capacity of the Republic. What little industry remains intact in these lands is seized by the Legionaries and put under state control. Holding the lands is relatively easy, as the Castilians despised their Central Yropan overlords (+1 Size, +1 Industry -1 Cohesion).
- The coastal defences whose construction was abruptly cancelled by war are now finished. Never again shall the Republic be denied access to the oceans! (Adds Coastal Defenses)
Afrique Westafrique Freemens’ Domain Overall Rank: Regional Power (37) Picture/Banner/Emblem: Map Colour: Dark Yellow Description: A loose conclave of outcasts raiding and terrorizing the Atlantic Ocean. Barely a state, as it has no constitution or anything, more a loose collection of towns ...
"We're striking a military camp. Explosives take out the wall, Knights storm the base."
"That base is in the middle of an Irish town."
Felios shifted and sighed. His medals of honor have a glint from the dim lighting. "They lost the right to call themselves Irish the moment they let domestic terrorists built a fortress in the middle of their town."
"So?! They had no choice, you know the odds of a poorly armed civilian fighting a Knight. You think they want a war? Let alone one that will come and kick them in the fucking teeth?"
"Jaxx, so what if they don't. Collateral damage is a fact of war, and everyone has to deal with it. Don't act so pious to me, either...we're using tactics you thought up for dealing with those African warlords."
Jaxx slammed his hand on Felios' table. "This is completely different!"
"Why? Because they're our people? They aren't. They're under a regime we're dismantling. Like the warlords."
"Those aren't warlords, those are previously trusted generals. Those are friends, that's your wife, that's your son commanding some of those Knights-"
"You think that I don't know that? You think every time I order an op on my own fucking son and wife I don't consider not sending the order? But I do. Every single time. Because I have a duty to these people. To the Irish Houses, divided or united. To peace, to the days where I can hug and kiss my sweet Belline and not pull a HI-EX magnum on her head with shoot-on-sight orders. I don't care who stands between me and that day, be it warlords, government conspiracy, rival pacts or you. Now get out of my office Leathcheann ólta...I have the demise of my only son to plan."
A young man in long flowing robes stepped onto a richly decorated platform and approached the podium at its center. Surrounding the platform, their eyes all locked on the man, were hundreds of thousands of Malizian citizens that had come hear the words of Grand Priest Byleth, the newly appointed leader of the Kingdom and closest mortal to the Watchers Above and Below. The Grand Priest raised his hand to silence the murmurs of the crowd. His solemn voice spoke into an ornate microphone in the shape of a twelve-winged being holding an eight pointed star.
"Brothers. Sisters. All followers of the Faith. These years of strife have been a terrible burden on our people. Every one of you here has lost more than can be put into words. Our country. Nay, the world mourns the deaths of untold thousands of the greatest it had to offer. The stress even brought the end to the beloved and wise Grand Priest Amaymon, a man who will go down in history as one of its greatest leaders. The warlords of the Central Yropan Confederation and the vile slavers of Illios have laid waste to the entire continent with their cruel weapons and barbarity. You need not look further than our own doorstep to see the destruction they have brought."
Byleth paused, letting his words sink into the crowd. He saw many weep openly, personal losses taking their toll. He had to choke back tears of his own as the anguish of his people flooded over him. He maintained his composure, as a proper leader should, and spoke once more with a fire in his voice.
"Despite this evil arrayed against us. In defiance of this evil arrayed against us, Malizia has not broken! For ten years we have stood against the worst the world can bring to bear against us. For ten years we have withstood this test. Not through hate, not through anger, but through FAITH have we endured. Through the darkest times imaginable We. Are. Still. Here." He paused to breathe, his hands shaking with incredible fervor. "My fellow faithful standing with me now, and those listening all across the Kingdom. I am not here to speak of another successful campaign, nor a newly captured city or freed slaves. No! I stand here before you because WE ARE VICTORIOUS. Illios has fallen! The Great Holy War has come to an end!"
A shocked silence enveloped the crowd before being replaced by deafening cheers as quickly as it had arrived. Where moments before there had been tears of sadness and loss, now there were tears of joy. Byleth could feel the delighted shouts and applause as it shook the stage, such was its intensity.
Such was the pent-up emotions in the citizens of the Kingdom that it took five minutes for the crowd to finally quite down once more.
"Every soul that has been lost in this decade of tragedy is smiling down at us from their place among the stars, for their sacrifice was not in vain. We emerge from this stronger than we have ever been. In this peace we will honor those who are no longer with us and make a land worthy of those who will come after us. From the ashes of war we will forge a paradise in this decayed world. Through our struggles we have seen the darkest depths Earth has sunken to and we have risen above. Let us never forget the lessons we have learned from this. Our people prevail! Our faith prevails! Above all, Malizia prevails!"
"Remember young one, a man can love a person dear to you with a human love, but an enemy can only be loved with divine love." Senor Barkowitz spoke as Science Officer Romanov mde good the last minute arrangements and oversights of the Shining City of Peace and Prosperity. The Mangled Men have long been a humble people, out of necessity first and then necessity soon after. The peoples of the Aygian Republic have long taken pride in their just culture, noble history and strong spirit but now they had one more thing to take pride in. Their Khan and the actions he has begotten.
Romanov Heissen smiled, nodding respectfully while trying his foremost to ignore the unkhanly itching in the ceremonial robes that he could swear Barkowitz's daughter was smirking at. Ignoring the glib young woman with a shrunken hand but larger-than-life smile, he turned to the foreign children who had arrived to see the construction of the first League of Nations City of Peace and Prosperity. "As is the benevolence of the Khan, I agree Venerable Elder." Romanov smiled, skin burning red under his torturous garments. "Now children, would you like to take a step into our wondrous city? Already the leaders of all the civilised and just nations of the world are pouring in to begin talks for a new age of peace and love and righteousness. You stand to see the beginning of a new era!"
Maria Olga Anastasia Mirabella Celestina Ranavalona Lakshinta Barkowitz laughed in the background, no doubt amused by the clearly uncomfortably itchy Romanov as he went through his rehearsed greeting. Her father watched on in the background, saccharine smiles meeting salaciously with the tortured young workmate of her father. So this was the boy that reminded her father so much of his beloved friend, hmm? Well Maria Olga Anastasia Mirabella Celestina Ranavalona Lakshinta Barkowitz would be sure to see what exactly was so special about him that warranted her own abandonment!
Sighing to herself, the general's daughter went back to her campaign planning. If her father sought to deny her an inheritance, she would make one of her own. Let her father and the puppy work towards the Khan's peace, their task would bind them for 5 years and with her father's influence waning, the Khan's ear would be open. It was a shame Romanov was so busy, the she-witch of Aygia mused as she cackled away from the bones of the city of peace, it would be a good moment for him to learn tha things happened whenever she was left alone.
And as petty family squabbles and large, grand diplomatic meetings occurred off in Mazhouria, on the other side of the continent-spanning polity, the Khan made preparations of his own. Yet more children were to be lost but it would be for a worthy cause. A heavy burden but it was one necessary, for the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few.
<A missive is to all nations is sent out, inviting them to negotiate and weigh in on the formation of an international body to provide a forum for nation to communicate with one another and come to peaceful and respectful settlements of grievances without reducing themselves to destructive wars. A 5 year period of discussion has been called and all diplomats of all civilised nations are invited to make their opinions known.>
League of Nations - Peace and Prosperity Charter
1 - The 5 Greatest Nations (hereupon dubbed the Guardian 5) shall be given council seats allowing them a mandate to vote for sanctions, diplomatic denigration and a status of responsibility and privilege in relation to their brethren nations. With Great Power comes Great Responsibility and the League of Nations will ensure the G5 hold themselves as such. Each G5 Nation will serve a 5 year term before reevaluation regarding whether or not they are eligible to serve additional terms.
2 - Each member of the League of Nations shall be granted a new slate in regards to their past sins. This is a mission of peace and good will to all nations. National grievances may be worked out between the aggrieved parties within the framework of the League of Nations.
3 - Nations not a part of the G5 have an aggregate of 3 votes per issue which can be relied upon should a G5 Member use a veto on an issue.
4 - All Nations who join the League Nations agree to be the ideals of the League of Nation in regards to the fulfilment of world peace and as such will seek to limit war and bloodshed and the usage of WMDs as defined by the G5. Wars of aggression without Just Cause are not what this organisation stands for.
5 - All subordinate and vassal nations will be given observer status and allowed to send their own representatives though they will not be allowed to vote or be recognised as equal nations within the framework of the League of Nations.
Invitations going to
The Empire of the Black Sun
The Commonwealth of the Holy Scarab
The Yndonesian Bloc
The Riverine League of Norica
The United Nations Reclamation Corps
The Norican Legionary Republic
The Imperial State of Granada
The British Empire
The Gaelic Knight Houses
The New Phoenix Islands
The Azarid Empire
Mtetwa Zulu
The Scandian Tsardom
Rik'chaq Suya Inka
The Hagen Horde
Nordnorican Alliance
The Malizian Kingdom
All invited Nations may of course bring any subordinate nations/vassals to the assembly of nations.
(If I forgot a nation, feel free to tell me.)
Edit:
This deserves it's own post but I don't want to double post.
Memoirs of Ivankan Ilyadorvic - The "Pauper Prince" of the Rus Intellegnzia Society
Rage and sorrow be seated in my heart, impaling deep so I may be scarce remain alive. Oh what a mercy it would be, to be relinquish the pain and responsible forced upon me by the barbarian filth that has raped the sweet fields of Mother Muscowy. Oh weep for the Lordship of Aygia, weep for the Great Knez Kutikov II Fyodorovich who rots in his grave helpless to save his lands and people. The Lands of the Rus have lost so much, brought down by the degenerate filth of the Toxic Steppes of the Bastard Khan.
Our Ancestors have abandoned us as the Khan grows ever stronger and all we have to say thanks is that Fydorovichs's Jewel remains safe from the Mangled Hordes of the Khagan, interred to the mongrol hands of the bastard Scandian ilk. Oh be us grateful for such mercy even as these Khagan burns our lands and takes our people. Oh may we give thanks to the accursed Moon Men who weak in will and body abandoned us to have our treasures drained.
I am but a pauper, bereft of the noble treasury of my bloodline by the capricious Khan. I live only for my art, for the sorrows of the Rus shall be known to all their people so that in time we may grow strong from our hardships and make not the mistakes tht brought this fate upon us.
From the East and West did they come, spreading far from their cursed homeland like the blight upon this world they are. From their homeland they at first claimed the Sirbirsk Lands of Petrovich and we did nothing for they were an enemy and we were not Sirbisk. Then they went east and shattered the peasant militia of the Mazhouria and again we stayed our hands for what do the Rus care for the follies of the lesser Aygian people? And then we foolishly poked the Aygian Hordes, seeking to intimidate and remind them of their place. Oh precious Muscowy, how great our folly was!
It was not fear we evoked but anger. The rabid dog had been made to look upon us and in our hubris we believed it no threat to us. The Skylords granted us safety and yet abandoned us even as we did as they requested and brought an end to their Yropan threats! Traitorous swines that can never be forgiven. May their cowardice haunt their heathen hearts and rot their malformed souls!
Oh my brethren of the Rus, let all of Fydorovich's children take heart this message. The pestilence was born from the poisoned heart of Aygia, from their poisoned theu came and their poison was spread. Wherever these accursed heathens have walked there has been only war and bloodshed and the civilised lands have blinded themselves in jealousy. Envious of the Rus they turned away, deeming the barbarians just and our fates irrelevant. Well they shall know that be you Scandian, Rus, Norican or Gaelic, it will matter little to the poison of Aygia; where they go they will bring only death and destruction!
And we shall laugh, for when their cities burn and their children be taken, they will know our pain at last. Worry not my brethren, for the nobility of the Rus can never be extinguished and when the barbarians turn the world to ash, we shall rule over the ashes once again. The fire will burn until it can burn no more and the icy spirit of the Rus will endure.
Two ways to view the world
So similar at times
Two ways to rule the world
To justify their crimes
Juan Martín Díez was born in North-Eastern Spayn, a child blessed to be born in noble Castilia a nation ready to withstand any blows that struck it. At first he willed to become an efficieny enforcement officer in Castilian Clothing rations lmt, but as foreign powers threatened to destroy his family he knew his duty and destiny lay elsewhere. Thus he was honoured to serve on the eighth Pyranees bastion as a defensive technician.
By kings and queens young men are sent to die in war
Their propaganda speaks those words been heard before
Two ways to view the world brought Europe down in flames
Two ways to rule
Tomás Díaz was born a citizen of the Riverine League, but in a town full of other sympathies. His uncle was executed for supporting Columbia and many suffered similiar fates. The town changed hands along with so many others in the three weeks war, and with few exceptions this was widely celebrated. After the town was taken by a unit of EIS many saw them as heroes. This was likely at least part of why Tomás joined the legion at sixteen, in time to serve in the second reclamation war.
Has man gone insane?
A few will remain
Who'll find a way
To live one more day
The eighth bastion did not fall. That is all that can be said well. Shell, bomb and bullet kept the fort under constant fire even as massed tonnes of lead and high explosive returned the other direction. Juan slept perhaps four hours a night, otherwise consumed with undoing the work of countless artillery pieces and aircraft. The bastion suffered 71% casualties after the war but the Yropan heathens attacking them suffered worse, they ran out of shells for some of their larger guns and while the rush of infantry charging the forts rarely slackened their support did. It seemed glory awaited them and the intelligence operatives saw victory coming ever closer. So so close to going home a hero, then a bomb came and all was ash and chaos and ruin and death.
Through decades of war
It spreads like disease
There's no sign of peace
Religion and greed cause millions to bleed
At first Tomás believes he can not be stopped. Towns and cities are swiftly overtaken by Legionary troops, with most of their raised forces in the north and the population here still largely sympathetic to the legion towns and cities are bypassed or taken with scarcely a shot fired, his unit reaches the rockies and begins to secure the Uranuim strip before this really changes. At Alegres Mountain a triggered rock fall followed by an ambush with concealed machine guns cuts off the unit, and despite good cover a third of them are dead to LMGs or grenades before air support drives off the ambushers and a Deathstroke Drakon is brought in to help take the rest of the mountains. The push is slowed, infrastructure rebuilt and lines of supply carefully maintained but guerrilla warfare in this mountains bleeds the legion. As the war is ending he takes command of a squad and prevents a unit of Hagen auxiliaries being cut off in Yellowstone. For this he receives a medal and is forwarded to the EIS, a fitting reward for a dedicated soldier.
Three decades of war
From dawn to dawn they're fighting die where they stand
The fog of war lies thick when armies scorch the land
When all of Europe is burning what can be done
They've been to war a decade two more to come
Yropan forces first move in to engage in hard occupation, though many are soom redirected to some front in the east. Juan is left with nothing. There are rumours of ships in the south that evacuate them to somewhere else to continue the fight, but by the time he reaches the shore they have stopped. Something about a blockade. He can't settle in this Spayn though, and so remains a warrior. He's killed men before with artillery of course but this is his first time with a knife and pistol. Stabbing a CYC MilPol officer then dragging his body through leafless forests to a lake where one more corpse makes little enough difference.
Long way from home
(Döpas och dö i strid)
Lifetime at war
The EIS it emerges is even more active than the rest of the military. Soon sending Tomás to Castilia on a mission of liberation. The fighting was intense and close but the enemy militaries had nearly collapsed before they even arrived. With increased Deathstroke support, and partisans decidedly favouring their incursion over CYC occupation the was was not in question for long. Death stalked the civilians of course, for this remained a war true and terrible but soon the five links were flying over every city in the northern half of Iberia. What was more striking was the breakdown of CYC soldiers, and the lethality of mobs that lynched every Jermani conscript in their reach.
Has man gone insane?
A few will remain
Who'll find a way
To live one more day
Through decades of war
It spreads like disease
There's no sign of peace
Religion and greed cause millions to bleed
Three decades of war
"But the wicked will perish: The LORD's enemies will be like the beauty of the fields, they will vanish--vanish like smoke." That was what Juan's mother had taught him, read to him from an old tome of truths written by some great and ancient Castilian. Yet what that writer must have missed Is the fire that turns the wicked to smoke burns the good all to easily. The foot lost to an incendiary grenade to readily showing this. Yet the wicked were killed, and new forces arrived. Soldiers forged of steel, or giants carrying men inside them. Like the artillery guns but faster and more terrible. They bought food, they promised safety, but Juan knew how often the prize for trust was slavery and so he turned away. Carrying nought but an old and battered rifle, a few spare clips and a willingness to do what must be done.
When they face death they're all alike
No right or wrong
Rich or poor
No matter who they served before
Good or bad
They're all the same
Rest side by side now
"In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return." The funeral services that followed were unforgettable, masses of dead cremated by necessity not religious observation. Upon the insistence of the Castilians a seperate furnace was set aside for CYC servicemen and women but all would be scattered on the same hills, a final dusting of ash upon a country that had burned. Yet more was to be done, so they returned to their duty of feeding and guarding the civilians no time to more foe or those who may have been friends.
Has man gone insane?
A few will remain
Who'll find a way
To live one more day
Through decades of war
It spreads like disease
There's no sign of peace
Religion and greed cause millions to bleed
Three decades of war
Juan has found himself a captain in the camps that dotted forgotten paths in the Pyranees and here being an officer meant looking after your troops. The MREs that had survived in that buried storeroom of bastion 19 were soon to run out, and boys from across a fractured Yropa ran to camps like this. Refugee camps had long been clogged up by more civilians than they could handle and so it fell to him to ensure he and the other could still eat. Expeditions into the Loire had failed so they had fixed those bikes and those larger guns they could, making ready to raid a Legionary food convoy.
Has man gone insane?
A few will remain
Who'll find a way
To live one more day
Through decades of war
Tomás was hesitant to accept this second deployment as many EIS had moved into more civilian based roles after the Yropan peace. Bodyguards, security, search and rescue things like that. But instead he was still here, with the Castilian garrison to ensure the ongoing safety of aid workers. A call had taken him out to a road up in the mountains where an ambush had apparently been prepared. More routine than this should have been. Over the course of a few minutes there was the sound of metal hands grabbing living flesh, bullets and guns falling to the ground, shouts of suspicion and alarm and a few final gunshots. Shining metal left the hands of cybernetic soldiers and soon after two bands of killers went their separate way once more for an uncertain and all to bloody future.
It spreads like disease
There's no sign of peace
Religion and greed cause millions to bleed
Three decades of war
F'r what hadst hath seemed an aeon, darkness ensnar'd the w'rld. The des'rts of n'rd afrique, once alive and prosp'rous, hath fallen silent. The wing beats of buzzing insects and the prayeth'rs of the faithful smoth'r'd und'r the oppressive thirst of whatev'r hadst did lay beyond the veil.
Wailing torment and despair swept across the continent like a plague in that evening. In a time of great prosperity and growth, a tragedy of proportions unimaginable had been delivered to the adherent Scarabites. For decades a hard working and joyous people, now wandered aimlessly, hopeless around their enclaves, their eyes both human and compound often gazing ahead like a soldier in shell shock. Denial. Bargaining. Anger. The Eternal Love, the Divine Light, was lost. Even the Priests were at a loss for words. The sheer scale of the loss was unfathomable, and the intensity of grief that followed was so great the in that day, even the wind did not blow; too solemn and shocked to muster the strength to carry away even a single grain of Afrique sand. And even they, the ancient grains of sand, seemed sluggish as they clumped beneath the idly shuffling feat of the faithful scarabites.
They wandered, at first seemingly aimless. As the day crawled on, the silent sun beaming upon their whatever carapace or flesh was not protected by soft silk or linen robe, the wandering crowds seemed to conglomerate. They moved, as one, towards some object of purpose... sometimes a large cave, sometimes a chamber beneath the earth, sometimes a great monument of clay stretching up into the sky from the horizon like a skyscraper. From the tops of the hills, they were watched. Upon great obelisks of earth and stone stood gargoyles; golems of stone built in the image of a now passed deity. Their legs held out to the sun, wings spread as a protective aegis, their bulbous marble eyes none-the-less felt cold and empty now to the great processions of people. The sun was beginning its descent to the West now, and the penniless faithful folk, clad in chitin and dirt, clutching amulet of sand and icons of straw, looked up at the priesthood for comfort. For hope, any, that could be found. The deafening silence that had lasted so long at once broke, one by one, the Priesthood revealed themselves from their homes. Looking upon the great masses on wondering faces, a thousand-fold of a thousand priests held up their hands, and to the shock of their faithful, began to sing in prayer. That in itself, was not shocking, not what caused the awe. A prayer of mourning, a prayer of despair, a pray of pleading, that was expected and already murmured on the dry lips of many. No, these prayers... were prayers of jubiliation.
The priesthood came down from their chambers, and on their divine hymns came not the obituary of their beloved One. Of their Holy Scarab. Soon, the shock began to fade. Understanding took its place, as for hours they listened. As the sun's rays weakened, the sky grew red, and the shadows lengthened, the dumbstruck Nord Afriquens listened on to a sermon of hours and hours and hours, their only movements often only to sit, row by row, as their attention remained affixed. The Priests spoke not of death. Never of death-- for, in all truth, what was the Scarab people loved, had not died. An image of the scarab had fallen away... the spiritual realm had fallen silent of His buzzing wings, that much all knew. But what it had taken a night of shock and solace for even the arch priesthood to comprehend was now clear the the most humble worker honorable warrior amongst them. The Scarab had not truly passed, even if the spiritual energy had been consumed by some parasite, for the Scarab was not truly just some beetle soaring above the clouds. The Scarabites knew better-- the Scarab had not always been there, and the Scarab, too, was alive. A being not eternal and unmoving, but transient and fluid.
And living things passed... but they understood, then, that living things, life, beings, never really died. Life, so the teaching of the Divine Insect had taught, was not about the permanence of statues and monuments or the certainty of steel and ironworks. Life was about transformation and cycle. The transition of flesh from one organism to another, reproduction. All things in time faded away, no structure or being lasted forever, not even a God. But what had made the God of the Scarabites so special was his attribute. The Divine Scarab was not a God of Earth, who rose great mountains. Not a God of Fire, who cast down flaming meteors upon his enemies, or a God of the Seas whom swept the shores of the infidels with tsunamis. No, the Scarab was a God of Life. And Life was the true immortality. Even for a being to die, its flesh was consumed by predators and scavengers, and its kin would live on. All the life on Earth, connected as a singular, interconnected even if apparently competitive with itself. In truth, it was always improving, dying only to be reborn again and again after every trial and fire that had tested it. The Sword of Life grew only sharper, harder, and more resilient no matter how many times the forces in the universe shattered it in an attempt to snuff out its radiance. Despite every destruction it endured, life on this planet continued to do just that, Endure. Recover. Thrive. The resilience of all life itself was the Scarab, and just as all living beings have, the Scarab has left a living legacy in His followers.
They were alive. They lived yet, the Scarab's gifts coursing through their hearts, minds, their souls. They were His Children. Built in His Image. It was on that evening that the Scarabites knew that the Scarab was not gone. The Scarab would never be gone. He lived on in them, not merely in the obvious gifts of chitin shells and buzzing wings, or sharpened compound eyes or twitching antennae. No, the Scarab's philosophy lived through them as well, in their minds. The Scarab's will to endure and adapt and overcome, in their spirits. And His Divine, ever evolving and empowering Love, roared to life in their hearts after an evening of mourning. Across Nord Afrique, hand clasped in hand clasped in claw and feeler. Standing to their feet, if they had any. Sometimes one, most times two, often three, four, six or eight, but they stood to them if they could. Smiles upturned, where mouths were able, tears shed, where eyes still could. A generation they had lived under the Wings of the Scarab's protection, growing and prospering as He had intended. And now, they realized, one and all, that they were now to take on that mantle. They were the image of the Scarab now, His Children. And as His gifts lived on through them, so too did He. And in time, as from each of the Scarabite's hearts a pair of burning spiritual wings unfurled, and began to buzz. This manifested in their throats. At first it was quiet... and then, sure enough, it grew louder, and louder, and louder, as the people swayed together. As the sky deepened, in a tradition of celebration and remembrance, the peoples threw off their dullness, their despondency and their numbness, and began to dance as a people. And from around Afrique, on that fateful first night since the monstrous clouds had parted, as the sun finally set, the darkness on that continent was not met with sobbing wails or mournful cries.
That night, the entire continent was alight with furious, joyful, buzzing humming of hymns, the stomping of dancing feet, and the jubilant, cascading symphonies of a million wooden drums and chitin wind instruments that grew louder and louder, without end, all through the night, and into the morning. The cocoon of despair that had enveloped the Scarab's larval people had molted. And now, as the sun rose again on their jubilation, something new happened. For the first time, as a People, their Divine Wings unfurled, and embrace the entire Commonwealth in their comforting embrace.
All foreign outlets of the Confederation of Gran Columbia release a scathing report documenting the discovery of Knight House foreign agents found amidst the rubble of the great fallen Temple Cities. These men were dressed in the false colours of friendship, wearing uniforms stolen from Columbia's Legionary allies. Communications and ID found on their persons revealed they had been in constant communication with their mother country's intelligence agency and implicate them in the disaster that sent scores of innocent Columbians to the next life, and hundreds of thousands to the life beyond that. The bodies have been preserved the way they were found by the sacred embalming rites of our surviving Priest Cadres and the evidence is available for inspection for all friends of Columbia who wish to see for themselves the damning proof of this rogue state's callous actions.
In an emergency address broadcast well beyond Columbia's borders, the three founding leaders of Los Confederación spoke on the travesty and the evidence of its Hibernian origin. El Calpuleque talked sorrowfully of the great human suffering in the regions devastated by the Aztlan Lines' explosion, but also of the compassion of Columbia's doctors, medical technicians, those serving in the Cuerpo de Construcción and the volunteers who heeded the call of their country to aid the relief effort. He ended by leading those gathered in a prayer to the Earth and Ancestors to hasten those who were lost for the first time back to their families, and those who suffered second death to their peace in Xibalba until the earth calls them back to take new form. He then stepped aside to allow a Priest Cadre to sacrifice the prepared body of a jaguar, normally reserved for great leaders, to the nation's dead.
He yielded the floor to El Liberatador, who announced heartfelt pride in his nation's people for their response to the crisis, before addressing the elephant in the room. Of the Knight Houses, he said this; "Columbians; we have been threatened, insulted, and now slaughtered by an enemy who thinks Surica, Afrique, and all the world exist only for them to reap their bounty. It is my sincere hope that even men such as these, who subject the peoples of Mali and Mauritania to ceaseless looting, maiming, and the yoke of imperialism we ourselves once suffered not so many years ago, would not knowingly condemn eight hundred thousand to death. But even if this incident has been caused by blunder over malice, tampering with the leylines left to us by those who came before even the Old World, Columbia will not let it go unpunished. The Knight Houses have no knowledge to share; only feudal ignorance dredged from the dusts of the past. And it is past time this cruel imperial system returned to that dust."
Next, came El Presidente, his khaki uniform rumpled as ever, but his face marred by a seriousness uncharacteristic to the man. He coughed into the microphone, shook his head, and said simply; "We will end the bastards."
YEARS TWENTY-ONE TO TWENTY-FIVE - THE VALLEY OF THE SHADOW OF DEATH
YEARS TWENTY-ONE TO TWENTY-FIVE - THE VALLEY OF THE SHADOW OF DEATH "There was a great earthquake. The sun turned black like sackcloth made of goat hair, the whole moon turned blood red, and the stars in the sky fell to earth, as figs drop from a fig tree when shaken by a strong wind.
The heavens receded like a scroll being rolled up, and every mountain and island was removed from its place.
Then the kings of the earth, the princes, the generals, the rich, the mighty, and everyone else, both slave and free, hid in caves and among the rocks of the mountains.
They called to the mountains and the rocks, "Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! For the great day of their wrath has come, and who can withstand it?"
Revelation 6:12-17
YROPA To Pick Up the Pieces
At the dawn of Year 21, the Yropan mainland is a land of death and desolation, of ashen-grey lands and havocked ruins of ghost towns once prosperous. Ravaged by devastating wars that have scoured entire regions of life and struck by plague and famine, life in Central and Southern Yropa is a daily struggle for the ordinary people.
Following the total collapse of de-facto legal authority and widespread state dissolution, the pauperization and displacement of large swathes of formerly comparatively well-off Yropan middle-class and the return of many shell-shocked veterans to what's left of their home, War orphans and displaced peoples with nothing else to live for emerge as warrior bands adapted to their new ways of life and baptize themselves in the ash and fire of their new world. The cataclysmic events of the last few years have completely uprooted the lives of most of the people still alive and driven many of them from the former urban centers and surrounding countryside now in ruins into the wild, where they make their living raiding plundering and pillaging or selling their services to the numerous warlord states vying for control of the continent.
Marauding bands of these scavengers raid and terrorize Western and Central Yropa. In the Francian lands now administered by the Grand Albion Empire, mad marauders on half-tracks and technicals assault the border towns, putting the inhabitants to the sword, lynching Brittannian officials and plundering what little wealth remains there before retreating back into the wilderness. The Albion find themselves incapable of dealing with these raids without a real standing army and are unable to pay protection money, which means the raids continue for the foreseeable future.
The Castilian lands, now under the stewardship of the Norican Legionary Republic are not spared either. The NLR government begins their efforts to integrate the newly conquered overseas regions in Castilia by shipping in food from overseas, sheltering and taking care of refugees, purifying the irradiated areas of Castilia with their geo-engineering technology and so on, but their efforts are largely thrown into disarray as the marauding bandit bands. Over time, the NLR is able to respond and keep them in check with Homeland Defense Force and Deathstroke detachments, but sporadic raids still occur. Times are hard for the weary Castilians even with the medical services, food and shelter the NLR provides to them.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A Last Gasp
Sigismund Tempelhof, former War Master of Yropa is many things, but humility cannot be counted among his qualities. At the helm of his small rump state, he is seething, having been brought low by lesser peoples, cast down from being the most powerful person in Yropa to the ruler of a small backwater. His destiny had been denied to him. From the day he had announced the formation of the Tempelhof Empire in the ruins of a bombed-out theatre, he had been plotting to regain power, no matter how much more the people following him would have to suffer for it.
First, he turns his eyes towards the weakly defended Francian holdings of the Albion. Taking them, he speculates, should be easy as the Grand Alnion Empire does not maintain much of a standing army. Out of remnants of the famed Landsknechte units of the CYC and force-conscripted citizens, he amasses an army about 10,000 strong. "The Last Army of the Confederation", it would be termed by later historians, nothing but an ill-equipped rabble of rag-tag infantry and artillery support of varying types recovered from the Yropan battlefields.
On the 27th of June, the Tempelhof Empire strikes, roundabout 8,000 soldiers marching across the border, claiming several towns in formerly Francian, now Brittanian-controlled territory. Albion civil servants flee before the army arrives, knowing what would happen to them if they were to be caught.
However, Tempelhof likely did not expect a threat from the South. During the first days of the invasion, he receives word that the Malizian army is marching on his holdings, pillaging everything in their path. The Last Army of the Confederation is forced to turn back and meet the Malizians in battle, where they are encircled and crushed, the comparatively small force of infantry with lacklustre equipment presenting to match to the battle-hardened combined arms units of the Malizians. Puzzlingly enough, the Malizians withdraw again afterwards, leaving the lands be.
The Albion march into the Tempelhof Empire weeks later, almost unchallenged. Sigismund Tempelhof is captured, tried and executed by hanging for war crimes and with him dies the last remnant of the mighty Central Yropan Confederation.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Return of the King
In the waning July days, an unexpected figure approaches the grand palace of Malizia. The baffled guards first don't believe their eyes, but it becomes clear soon that the man standing before them is none other than former Grand Priest Amaymon who is demanding that his birth right be returned to him immediately. He insists that Grand Priest Byleth is nothing but an imposter and a pretender to the throne, and that only he has the authority of the Dark Prince that was vested in him over twenty-five years ago. Soon, a crowd of excited onlookers gathers in front of the palace, ecstatic that the famous hero of the Great Holy War has returned to them. What a blessing! The guards immediately notify High Consecrator Ziminiar and tell Amamymon to stand down, but he refuses.
High Consecrator Ziminiar is alarmed and takes a force of elite guards with him to exorcise this devil for good. He knows this isn't a blessing. The High Consecrator meets Amaymon outside and orders him to follow him to be inspected, but Amaymon refuses, no matter how much he is threatened. One nervous guard fires a shot into Amaymon's chest and in a blink, Amaymon's demeanor... changes. With a horrifying, gargling noise and to the sound of flesh tearing itself apart, Amaymon sheds his earthly hull, shedding his wrinkled skin like an insect peeling off its cocoon. The form of an unworldly beast is revealed, a fleshy abomination of endless horns, gasping tongues and mouths that spew forth a constant canon of blasphemous verses.
The creature wreaks havoc in the palace, smashing through the great double doors and devouring many of the screaming palace guards alive. Finally, and with great effort, the creature that was once Amamyon or is impersonating his likeness is banished using ancient exorcism rituals, sent back to the hellish dimension whence it came with an unearthly howl. The official statement of the Malizian Kingdom is that this was a last, depicable curse from the depraved and spiteful Illian lords. A final sacrelige against the noble Malizians to take the form of one as loved as Amaymon.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Cataclysm "I looked, and beheld, an ashen horse; and he who sat on it had the name Death; and Hell was following with him.
Authority was given to them over a fourth of the earth, to kill with sword and with famine and with pestilence and by the wild beasts of the earth."
Revelation 6:8
Born from genocide, called into being by the voices of a million dying souls and beckoned into this reality by foolish, power-hungry, maddened tyrants to spite their enemies, the Great Eater or He Who Devours is unleashed upon an unsuspecting humanity. Seven times seven bells are heard tolling across the world, heralding Its arrival. Blackened storm-clouds approach all across the globe, and howling winds that carry the screams of the damned are heard across all corners of the earth, dread portents of what is to come. The sky takes on a fearsome purple-red color and otherworldly lightning bolts dart across the heavens. Some swear they can make out mournful faces across the tempestuous firmament, visages twisted in torment. Families put their terrified children to bed and shut their doors and windows. Those magically gifted (or cursed) sense a terrible disturbance, like a great maw has been opened. Something terrible is about to be unleashed. Someone has crossed a threshold that should never have been crossed.
The otherworldly storm-clouds grow in intensity to soon swallow the entire planet, reaching out of the atmosphere and beyond. Even up in the void of space, the maelstrom envelops the mighty space-fleet of the United Nations Reclamation Corps. The intense storm heavily damages the USS Liberty flagship, which only survives due to its Elenium-reinforced hull and state-of-the-art shields. Entire convoys of space freighters with cargo and crew are lost forever, never emerging again from the mist. Frantic SOS messages and calls for help are received from the defense sattelites in orbit of earth, but contact cuts off soon after. Later expeditions into the derelict but undamaged sattelites find that every single crew-member has vanished without leaving behind a trace.
In the North Sea, a veritable tsunami devastates the Northern Yropan, Scandian and Albion coastlines. The massive waves whipped up into a frenzy by the storms following in the wake of the emergence of the Great Eater crash upon the Western coastlines of Albion with the force of an enraged god's fist destroying everything in their path and dragging thousands into the hungry sea screaming, swallowing them to never be seen again. The destruction in the coastal areas is enormous: ports are wrecked, oil drilling platforms toppled, industrial centers flooded. Tens of thousands find an early death and the economic cost is almost incalculable.
The Knight Houses of knowledge are spared the worst of the natural disasters following in the wake of the unholy cataclysm, but instead their most gifted users of the arcane are struck with an ominous sickness. At first, they merely complain about strong head-aches. in the entire realm are suddenly struck with a mysterious illness, and overnight the devastating sickness kills off the best magic users in all the Knight Houses territory, with nothing that can be done to save them. Much of the knowledge the Knight Houses have painstakingly gathered dies with these experts of the arcane. Among the dead are many of the most seasoned members of the Knight Houses intelligence branch and even some of their high command.
All across the rest of the already desolate Yropan mainland wracked with famine and pestilence, the unnatural storms wreak havoc, tearing through settlements, destroying infrastructure and snatching up unlucky stragglers who couldn't get themselves into safety. In the Kingdom of Malizia, the priestly elite assures the population that the unfathomably huge demonic entity that has come into this world smiles upon them. After all, they know the true gods are on their side for a fact. These storms are merely trials and tribulations the faithful have to endure to enter the gates of Heaven. The widespread destruction and the screaming souls being sucked into the ether are just a way of testing the faithful, they're convinced.
For all others however, it is a time to mourn, a time to weep, a time to fear: a time to pray to gods who cannot deliver them.
At the close of the 22nd year, the storm wanes. The skies clear up, the last lightning fades. The terror is over, the madness subsides. The great Eater from Beyond's hunger is satiated and he retreats to his realm. Only in the distance may one hear the faint laughter of a bloodthirsty god as one basks in the new dawn's light. Only the anguished cries of those whose dreams were shattered and relatives torn away now pierce the silence. It is time for a new beginning.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- AFRIQUE Babylon Shall Conquer
The time has come for the Scarabites to take their proselytization efforts a step further. For the longest time, the fanatical Thirteenth Tribe of Judah has resisted even the most concerted efforts of spreading the Holy Scarab's faith. The Lions of Judah even went so far as to carry out terror bombings against Scarabites occupying the old holy city of Jeruschalajim and killing everyone coming near, as well as blowing up tunnel networks and infrastructure, killing workers, priests and warriors alike. Official statement from the Judah's Council of Faiths is that they will not yield unless the city is in the hands of the Thirteenth Tribe! In the early months of the 21st year, the Scarab's begin their assault. The war begins in a fashion characteristic of the Commonwealth: War-Priests riding giant insect beasts and swarms of warriors burst forth from carefully prepared underground tunnel networks and sinkholes, created, burrowed and reinforced in secret for years in preparation for this day.
The Thirteenth Tribe however has learned from the fatal mistakes others have made when confronting the Commonwealth and trained their troops to adopt new anti-Scarab doctrines, for they knew the day would come sooner or later. At first, the armies of the Thirteenth Tribe prove incredibly adept at countering the Scarab advance. Their defences hold firm against the endless war beast and warrior assaults bursting from the ground. Their soldiers are prepared for the Scarabite tricks and equipped with incendiary bombs and firesticks to smoke out their tunnels and their air force scouts the lands day and night, relentlessly bombarding wherever Scarabite warriors appear from their sinkholes and underground networks, collapsing their tunnels and pushing back the invading forces. Thousands upon thousands of Scarabites die. However, it matters not. To join the Holy Scarab on the astral plane is an honor for them all, and the heathens cannot last forever, for the Scarabite's now what awaits the foolish Christians. In the South, the famed Horns of the M'tetwa Zulu are equally hard-pressed to gain ground against the zealotous resistance of the Mek'abi and the numerous defensive fortifications erected upon the orders of the Council of the Faiths.
For months, the war makes no progress except for stacking more and more bodies on all sides. That is, until...
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Scarab's Tongue
Deep beneath the hot desert sands of the Northafrique wastes, a terrible presence stirs, a presence called into being by the dedication of its millions of faithful and the tireless workings of the Priest-Caste. The clarion calls of the true believers marching to war in endless numbers have manifested its presence in the mortal realms. To the sound of great war drums, it awakes. With the sacrifice of a hundred billion insects, it stirs in its underground cradle. To offerings of sacred metal, it coils to the surface, heeding the call of its people. With the death of the great Arch-Priest ascending to the astral planes, it reveals itself as the holy golem incarnate to all existence, bursting upon the world stage with a thunderclap.
The Scarab's Great Tongue lashes out, and devours whole the entire palace-complex in which His Majesty Emperor Tafari Janhoy and his entire high command and staff reside. The WYRM is born, and all who cross the Holy Scarab or his flock shall find their end in his great and mighty maw.
In the face of their capital city and leadership being devoured by an monster like this, the resistance of the Thirteenth Tribe soon melts away and the territories are split between the Zulu and the Commonweahtl. Citizens undergo extensive conversion efforts and the grand, palatial churches of the Thirteenth Tribe of Judah are razed to the ground, their wasteful, gaudy furnishing and icons of gold and silver melted down to be redistributed to the people or used in for future rituals.
Later, the remaining scattered enclaves of Christians will see this destruction of the last bastion of Christendom and the ultimate victory of Babylon, habitation of devils and hold of every foul spirit, over Christendom as the cause for the great cataclysm, which they explain as the emergence of Lucifer from the bottomless pit to punish the world for having strayed from the Lord's path. The great Wyrm, of course, is dubbed "Satan's Tongue".
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Cataclysm "And in those days shall men seek death, and shall not find it; and shall desire to die, and death shall flee from them."
Revelation 9:6
The unholy storm scours the deserts, the lush and fertile landscapes and oases and the sprawling cities of Afrique all the same. To the backdrop of a crimson sky, the screams of the lost and the damned resound all across the continent as spirits and spectres of the days long past come back to haunt the living, the ordinary people cowing in terror before the mighty presence and seeking the salvation of their gods, their ancestral spirits or their worldly authorities to save them from the horrors.
In the Commonwealth of the Holy Scarab, the impact is felt the strongest. With the emergence of the terrifying presence from beyond, the spiritual connection of the people to their Holy Scarab god is severed. For the first time in their history, their prayers are not answered, leading to a massive nation-wide trauma, with massive riots from disillusioned and despairing Scarabites soon follow. Scarabite hive spires are toppled, farms abandoned, oil fields burned to the ground and even Colombian guest workers are killed before the situation can be brought under control again by the swift action of the Scarabite priesthood, who call for a grand convent or communion of all Scarabites to restore their spiritual and worldly unity.
In the Mtetwa Zulu empire, cataclysmic storms and natural disasters following in their wake cause widespread devastation and even lead to people questioning the previously undisputed authority of the King and Queen-Mother. In the aftermath, the authority of the Zulu King is severely damaged and the catastrophe even causes a rift between the Zulu and the Commonwealth as the Zulu citizens begin blaming the alien faith, strange traditions and devastating wyrm-summoning for the calamity.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- AYGIA & OSEANIA Turmoil in the Republic
At the eve of the 21st year, the Democratic Republic of Aygia is the largest land power in the world, but it is built on a foundation of sand. Several member states such as Kovkasia, parts of former Muscowy territory, Bactria and Sibirsk chafe under its overbearing rule, unhappy with the increased centralization, reduced autonomy, increased taxes and the constant warfare of the Khanate.
The Khanate... takes decisive action immediately. In service of pacifying the Rus-populated regions from anti-DRoA elements, cowing secessionist and anti-Republic sentiments and making way for settlers from the Aygian heartland, the Khanate carries out massive, near-genocidal purges of the Rus territories conquered from Muscowy. Over one million innocent men, women and children are herded into overcrowded, disease-infested labor camps for the crime of being on the losing side of a war where they work under the watchful eyes of cruel overseers. As the official statement of the Democratic Republic of Aygia states, they were complicit with their government to attack and cause harm to the DRoA and must do their duty to the Republic to prove their loyalty and dedication. Anti-Khanate agitators must be rooted out for they endanger the greatest humanitarian project the world has ever seen.
Let it never be said that the Khanate takes half-measures.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Cataclysm "These have power to shut heaven, that it rain not in the days of their prophecy: and have power over waters to turn them to blood, and to smite the earth with all plagues, as often as they will. And when they shall have finished their testimony, the beast that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit shall make war against them, and shall overcome them, and kill them. And their dead bodies shall lie in the street of the great city..."
Revelation 11:6-8
The vast Aygian continent too is tormented by the otherworldly storms that follow in the wake of the Great Eater's appearance from the tear in reality that has rent asunder the heavens, spilling forth lightning, tempest and hellish visions of torment and anguish.
The Great Khan witnesses the tear in reality and the coming storm with anticipation and with great fear: he knows that as a supremely magical being, his mass of souls must be shining like a beacon to this... thing from the abyss. Soon enough, the entity turns its leery eyes on the undead and begins to drain him of all his arcane essence. One by one, the souls are sucked into the ether screaming until only a single, weak soul remains, the Khan having lost all his supernatural power.
Using the Khanate's supposed worsening condition and the chaos caused by the storm, numerous member states of the Democratic Republic of Aygia plead for secession. Publically, the Republic puts on a benevolent facade, stating that any one member state may secede from the great union if they so desire. Undercover, the Domestic Intelligence Agency and propaganda machine of the Khanate goes into overdrive and countless false narratives are thrown into the public consciousness to eschew public discourse and discredit secessionist viewpoints. As encouraged by the Khanate, the first state to take a vote and secede is a small territory near the Muscowy borders. Due to the Khanate's covert sabotage however, the poor, depopulated state quickly turns into a failed one, being subsumed by what's left of Muscowy. Few other states dare to secede. Only Bactria, some tribes in Sibirsk and small territories in the Kovkasos split off, while the main body of the Khanate stays as one, more unified than ever befroe.
After the storm clears, it is discovered that all of the over one million Rus inmates in the Khanate's concentration camps are dead. As the official statement of the Democratic Republic of Aygia reads, during the magical storm supply lines broke down, leading to mass starvation and the Muscovite inmates rebelling, which resulted in overzealous soldiers on site putting down the rebellion to the point of slaughtering every man, woman and child. These soldiers have been arrested and tried in internal courts and the Republic suspects the influence of the storm to have affected them. Rumor has it however that these people were massacred on purpose. Fear shall keep them in line...
No other nation is hit as hard by the storm as the New Phoenix Islands. It is not the crashing tsunami wave or the lighting scouring the earth however that devastate the New Phoenix Islands, no, it is something much, much more devious and sinister. The Eater from Beyond has been beckoned to this world for one specific purpose:
Deicide.
Pele, Volcano Goddess of the New Phoenix Islands is the target. For days, Pele struggles, her mournful cries ringing out from the sacred volcano and her fight for survival rocking the entire island, but she stands no chance. The priests and oracles attempt to stop the process at any cost, but there is no help for Pele. Her essence is consumed whole by the beast from the abyss, and with her, her entire island is dragged under the sea. For the first time, the prayers of the Polynesians go unanswered and their magic fades from the realm for good. A trauma that the Island nation will never be able to recover from. National mourning is announced and the New Phoenix Islands swear to find and kill whoever was responsible for this.
Pele and the Great Khan are not the only powerful entities that arouse the Drakul, greatest of the vampyres, can feel it. The otherworldly presence that someone so foolishly beckoned into this world is here... and it is hungry. Terribly, terribly hungry. This storm grows stronger, and the vampyre gets the distinct impression that his own power will not go unnoticed. Indeed, the presence soon turns its leery eyes on him and siphons away his energy, draining him of his supernatural strenght and power. Drakul is drained in a very literal sense of his essence. The power he wielded now only serves to sustain the unholy, otherdimensional deity that has been so foolishly beckoned to this reality. The supreme CEO feels anemic, feeble, weak.
Meanwhile, many people take to the streets terrified by the cataclysmic happenings and frustrated that their government can't do anything to help them during this chaos. Massive riots sweep the Black Sun, unable to be stopped by the very elite corps of the Empire, causing enormous economic damage. Only weeks after can riots that have been paralyzing the country for weeks be violently and effectively suppressed by the newly mustered Cyber Police Forces. Deaths are in the thousands, and there is no doubt DIO had some hand in stoking these riots.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A Giant Falls
In secret, behind closed doors, a plan is hatched to finally bring down the superpower that has been a thorn in the eye of most nations in the Aygian sphere and even beyond that for years. The New Phoenix Islands enlist the services of half a dozen nations from across the globe to bring down the Yndonesian Bloc and finally claim what's rightfully theirs. Even having survived the cataclysm, the Yndonesian Bloc does not survive concerted covert destabiliztation efforts by half a dozen nations. To satisfy the insatitable hunger for power of a few scheming nations, a prosperous state is torn apart and its citizens subjected to endless suffering as their entire world falls apart.
Over a period of years, guerillas destabilize the nation, propaganda from the outside bears down upon the people's will and makes them yearn for a different government, foreign agents infiltrate even the highest positions, assassinate numerous leaders, pay them off or seduce them and economic sabotage from outside crashes the economy. Once it is set into motion, the collapse happens rather quickly. Among widespread civil unrest, economic downturn due to sabotage, constant assassinations, outside pressure from numerous other nations, important officials turning over to other countries or fleeing, the government breaks down. In the span of a few weeks, the entire oligarchy breaks apart, splitting into different factions different allegiances warring amongst each other. At the same time, Tamil declares independence, marching its troops upon the Lanka territory that had been seized by the Bloc years prior. The entire South-East Aygian Islands Sphere descends into war. The renowned landship fleet that was once feared across the entire Aygian sphere is broken up between oligarchs, ambitious military officers and self-proclaimed dictators vying for supremacy and carelessly attritioned down to nothing in endless civil wars, the great Yakarrtan Arsenal scuttled to prevent it from falling into the wrong people's hands.
The entire region turns into a free-for-all between liberated Tamil, the Empire of the Black Sun, the New Phoenix Islands and the Yndonesian successor states. Certain smaller states join the New Phoenix Islands or Black Sun with varying degrees of enthusiasm, either because they see it as their best possible choice, their leadership was compromised by foreign agents loyal to that state or their people were turned by foreign propaganda and are clamoring for joining those states, while the larger juntas carved out of the Bloc persevere and hold onto their territories.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- NORICA Border Troubles
The militarism and revanchism that plunged the League into civil war just a few years ago couldn't be wiped out entirely. Several nationalist paramilitary groups start levying battalions of soldiers for the stated cause of "reclaiming the homelands". While they swear fealty to the High Council, they explicitly propagate an anti-NLR stance and demand the return of the homelands that were taken from the Riverine League.
The NLR is alarmed at hearing this and but the troubles can be smoothed over in peace talks, promising to deescalate the situation. The High Council keeps an eye on them through their intelligence network and tries to slowly siphon them into the proper military in a dispersed manner so they do not have a concentration of fanaticism in any one unit and their urges tempered by bootcamp. In the meantime, organizers that espouse too openly jingoistic views are paid visits by the High Council's secret police and... neutralized.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Cataclysm "And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy."
Revelation 13:1
The Norican continent is of course not spared widespread devastation and due to the cataclysm, though overall its nations are hit less hard due to a variety of factors, such as largely making use of technology instead of magic. Still, during the cataclysm the people of Norica live in constant terror of the smiting lightning and the horrifying faces, contorted in anguish that one can make out in the storm. Some report being able to make out dead friends and relatives calling out for them when looking at the faces for long enough.
At the Eastern shores of Norica, the tides rise at frightening speeds at our shores, the massive waves whipped up by the unrelenting storm. On the ocean, hundred feet high waves are crashing down upon the sea. Both the Riverine League of Norica and the Norican Legionary Republic are hit by natural disasters in the form of massives tsunamis, gigantic waves crashing down upon the Eastern coastlines of both nations and causing massive destruction in their wake. Most people were able to be evacuated, but catastrophe turns tens of thousands homeless and the infrastructure and economic damage is substantial. It takes years until these coastal cities, towns and ports can be built up again to their fomer size.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- SURICA
The Argentium Crisis
A foolish invasion plan almost leads the world to another world-wide war... At the dawn of Year 21, a massive fleet of warships sets sail from the Brittannian Isles, first traveling to Riverine League ports to receive reinforcements and refuel, then heading down south into the Alantik, keeping near the Afrique coast to not enter Gran Colombian waters. UNRC spy sats and orbital assets monitor this worrying concentration of military assets and immediatelly, several allies are notified, which leads to considerable turmoil on the world stage.
Many contradictory statements from the Knight Houses of Knowledge and Grand Albion Empire come to light and speculations run rampant, some claiming that this is an invasion attempt against the Black Sun or Gran Colombia or a public display of force. Publically stated purpose is to have a joint military exercise in neutral waters, but it soon becomes contradictory as the fleet turns around and heads west when it is level with the Cape of Good Hope. Now, it becomes obvious the plan, at least at this point is to stage an invasion of a Surican country, and diplomatic negotations go into overdrive, now turning more and more hostile. Open condemnations from governments around the world are issued.
Gran Colombia especially is immediately alarmed, condemning this brazen display of jingoism and threatening military action should the war fleet move into any Surican waters, as all of Surica is officially considered under Colombian protection. Pre-emptively, warning messages are sent to the other Surican powers.
After hours of tense negotiation, it becomes apparent the fleet is attempting to to invade Argentium via the Falklands, as they come closer and closer to it. Gran Colombia officially announces that whoever goes to war with Argentium will be attacked. About a hundred miles off the coast of the Falklands, the war fleet receives the following message.
+++
This is a message from the Supreme Directive Council of the People's Republic of Argentium: We know of your fleet movements and doomed invasion plans. Turn around and leave Argentian waters immediately or we shall see this as a declaration of war, a war we will pursue to the last man and the last Peso. If you land on Argentian shores, be assured that every Argentian will take up arms to defend the homeland. The ten million army shall be mobilized.
+++
A couple of tense minutes pass. First, it looks like neither side will blink. UNRC ships in orbit move into position for bombardment, the Tropican navy is readied to leave the harbor - last minute however, the Britannian and their Gaelic and Norican allies back off.
That day, the world came within a hair's breadth of being plunged into a cataclysmic, intercontinental war, but cooler heads prevailed this time.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Cataclysm "The fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death."
Revelation 21:8
Surica, compared to its nothern counterpart is hit harder, with the normally harmless magical ley-lines that criss-cross the entire continent and previously facilitated communication now becoming an incredible hazard.
As a byproduct of the incredible amounts of arcane power unleashed into the world, the magical ley-lines that stretch through many of Gran Colombia's towns and cities and connect their temple-complexes begin glowing blue and then erupting with a furious and terrifying force. The great temples crumble! Even by the standards of the cataclysm, the devastation is enormous as entire towns are swallowed by the tears in the earth. Tens of thousands die theirs first death and many more their second, and the priests fear the ley-lines will be unusable in the future with many of the temple-complexes in rubble. While the response is well-coordinated as local and federal first responders are drafted to perform relief work and the creation of civilian volunteer teams is authorized, bolstered by the Cuerpo de Construcción to bolster their manpower, it is still the worst tragedy to have ever befallen Gran Colombia. And found amidst the rubble are the corpses of Gaelic agents...
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Overall Rank: Regional Power (53) Map Colour: Dark Blue Geographic Location: The Moon, Earth orbit, Gibraltar, parts of the Iberian Peninsula, northern Morocco Culture Groups: Chinese, American, Russian (Predominantly). Many other smaller groups of pre-apocalypse cultures. Government Type: Ostensibly democratic, military dictatorship in actuality. Characters of Note:
President Sydney Beauclair (C5, Charismatic, Stubborn, Desires: to reconquer Earth)
Head Scientist John Semple (C1, Innovative, Egotistical, Desires: to prove that Praetorian is the greatest AI in the world)
General Mikhail Gagarin (C4, Logistician, Arrogant, Desires: establishment of secure supply routes from earth to the moon) Stats: Size 2, Military 17, Intelligence 7, Resources 7, Diplomacy 2, Cohesion 3 Special Features:[NEW] Mediocre Command AI (2), Advanced AI (2), Old World Treasures (1), Culmite Secrets (1), Widespread Automation (2), Orbital Drop (2), Moonbase (0), Ancient Caches of Knowledge (1), Orbital Debris (1), Rods from God (1), Star Wars (2), Starfleet (1), Strait of Gibraltar (2), Low Population (-1), Alien Cultural Values (-2), Physical Atrophy (-2) Military Assets: Navy 2 (Bellerophon), Infantry 2, Aircraft 6 (UNAS Muninn, UNAS Phoenix), Defenses (1), UNSS Liberty (3), UN Peacekeepers (1), Robot Army (2) Resource Assets: Uranium (2), Industry (2), Elenium (3) Intelligence Assets: OIS (2), OTC (5) Relations: Enemy (Scandia), Rival (Albion), Trade Agreements (Gran Colombia, Empire of the Black Sun, New Phoenix Islands), Uneasy Alliance (Muscowy) Issues: Small size, low cohesion, very low manpower
- Dr. Marcus Device's suprising death by overdose sends ripples through the science wing of the UNRC and throws many projects spiraling into disarray. A new one is soon appointed, but his competency leaves things to be desired... (Dr. Marcus Device dies).
- Newly appointed Head Scientist Semple's incompetence inhibits the creation of the Praetorian project severaly, as he fires competent researchers on a whim, messes up important calculations and coding sequences and refuses to listen to the advice of his co-scientists. At the end of it, the Praetorian AI is quite a bit less capable than expected, while also being a larger resource drain than was planned for (Gains Mediocre Commander AI, -1 Industry, -1 Base Metals).
- An entire allied nation's five-year oil output is synthesized into the hardy, newly discovered Elenium Material, much of which is promptly expended to create a small army of durable combat robots. (+2 Elenium, +2 Robot Army)
- As with every other entity on the planet, the arrival of the Eater from Beyond is merciless to the UNRC. The unworldly storm inflicts major damage on the USS Liberty, the pride of the UNRC's navy. Entire fleets of transports are swallowed up by the otherworldly presence while crew members of the orbital sattelites are dragged screaming into hell (Loses Defense Sattelites, -2 USS Liberty)
- Even after the storm has subsided, the resulting resource shortages cause a minor crisis both on the moon as well as the earth until supply lines can be reestablished. (-2 Cohesion)
Overall Rank: Regional Power (43) Map Colour: Bright Orange Geographic Location: All of Polynesia, Australia and NZ, Hawaii + scattered Pacific Islands Culture Groups: Polynesian, Hawaiian, Yndonesian, Osstralian, Kiwi Government Type: Presidential Democracy Characters of Note: Phoenix Lord Kamalani Keona (C7, Highly Intelligent, Culturally Stagnant, Desires: to reestablish Maritime South-East Aygia) High Priestess Ihe Kaipo (C5, Incredibly Wise, Speaks in Riddles, Desires: to spread the faith of Pele) General Kahelemeakua Kana (C3, Confident, Widely Disliked, Desires: to stay in this cushy position no matter what) Stats: Size 7, Military 10, Intelligence 6, Resources 13, Diplomacy 5, Cohesion 2 Special Features: Island Nation (2), Blasted Wasteland (-2) Military Assets: Navy (3), Infantry (3), Air Force (2), Capital Ship (1), Defenses (1) Resource Assets: Base Metal Reservoirs in Osstralia (3), Oil (3), Industry (3), Food (1), Culmite (1), Treasury (2) Intelligence Assets: Propaganda Machine (3), Popular Movement (1), Domestic Intelligence Agency (2) Relations: Uneasy Friendship (Yndonesian Bloc, Empire of the Black Sun), Trade Agreement (United Nations Reclamation Corps) Issues: Mighty jingoist neighbours, small air force, low cohesion, no monies
- A new general is appointed after the previous one bit the dust. General Kahelemeakua Kana is sworn in as the new High Commander of the NPI military in a grand ceremony. Many however doubt his capabilities and word on the street is that his appointment was pure nepotism and not based on talent at all (Gains Kahelemeakua Kana).
- Planned spell research is disrupted completely by the tear in reality called the cataclyms, never to be pursued again since magic would soon vanish completely from the New Phoenix Islands.
- While the arrival of He Who Feasts terrorizes the entire planet, there is not a single nation in the world hit harder by it than the New Phoenix Islands. The entity wreaks havoc across the entire world, but He, or rather It has been beckoned to this world for one specific purpose: Deicide. And Pele is the target.
For days, Pele struggles, her mournful cries ringing out from the sacred volcano and her fight for survival rocking the entire island, but she stands no chance. Her essence is consumed whole by the beast from the abyss, and with her, her entire island is dragged under the sea. For the first time, the prayers of the Polynesians go unanswered and their magic fades from the realm for good. A trauma that the Island nation will never be able to recover from. National mourning is announced and the New Phoenix Islands swear to find and kill whoever was responsible for this (Loses Tattoo Magic, -3 Cohesion, -1 Industry, -1 Food).
- The massive, concerted campaign of sabotage against the Yndonesian Bloc in which half a dozen nations are called to participate succeeds in breaking apart Yndonesia, but by the time some of the successor states "choose" to join the New Phoenix Islands or are forcefully incorporated their resources and industrial capacities are drained massively and their renowned navy squandered in bloody civil wars (+1 Industry, +1 Infantry, +1 Air Force, +1 Treasury).
Overall Rank: Major Power (51) Map Colour: Emerald Green Geographic Location: Most of Northern Africa, Israel, Jordania, Lebanon Culture Groups: Scarabites Government Type: Incomprehensible to traditional methods of political thought Characters of Note: Arch-Priest Esser'Veemsha'Leeveah (C8, Calm, Stubborn, Mutation: Grey Star, Desires: to make the Holy Scarab's Domain expand over all of Nordafrique) Mantrid Gunvier'Saness'Ehula (C11, Determined, Anxious, Genetic Mutation: Blind, Desires: to uphold the cohesion of her cohorts and communities under her protection) Velsha'Fooheem'Jerrdahneeha (C3 [of course], Gifted Architect, Control Freak, Mutation: Damaged Brain, Desires: To dig tunnel networks under all of Nordafrique) Velsha'Elooheem'Geehzuh (C12, Incredible Organizer, Overprotective, Mutation: Hemochromatosis, Desires: to raise the greatest monuments the world has ever seen in honor of the Holy Scarab) Gunvier'Muushoo'Kyro (C7, Selfless, Naive, Desires: to liberate Nordafrique from the colonial masters of Yropa) Esuhl'Versia'Zuudin (C8 Loyal, Extremist, Mutation: Lung Disease, Desires: to spread the faith of the Scarab by any means necessary) Stats: Size 9, Military 12, Intelligence 6, Resources 8, Diplomacy 7, Cohesion 7 Special Features: Hidden Tunnel Traps (1), Secret Fortified Underground Tunnel Network (2), Sprawling Hivelands (2), Pharao Reborn (2), Leader Enhancements (1), Alien Cultural Values (-2), Deserts and Wastelands (-1), Irradiated Population (-2) Military Assets: War Priests (1), Infantry (3), Colombian Militias (1), War Beasts (2), WYRM (5) Resource Assets: Bugs (3), Treasury (2), Precious Metals (1) Intelligence Assets: Demagogues (1), Moles (2), Hospitaliers (1), Seducers (2) Relations: Trade Agreement (UNRC, Gran Colombia), Uneasy Friendship (Mtetwa Zulu, Westafrique Freemen's Domain) Issues: Uninhabitable wastelands, mutated and irradiated population, vast empire that can be attacked from all sides, few resources
- With the food shipments from the New Phoenix Islands, farming efforts are redoubled (+3 Bugs).
- Irrigation projects are further continued. With the influx of enhanced fresh water, the unforgiving desert is nourished and infused with the Nile's healing waters (+1 Wastelands).
- Some of the Fleshaper Moles are transitioned to a new role. They are to be sent to the front lines of foreign conflicts, where they shall attempt to render aid and comfort to soldier and civilian of either side alike (though preferring the defender's side), healing wounds and attempting to provide leadership to those lost and afraid while planting the seeds of the Scarab's Faith (-1 Moles, +1 Hospitaliers).
- Being attacked from all sides, the soldiers of the Thirteenth Tribe of Judah fight like raging lions and resort to every trick in the book, having studied the Commonwealth's ways of waging war extensively. Their defences hold firm against Scarab assaults, their warriors are equipped with incendiary bombs and firesticks to smoke out Scarab tunnels and their air force scouts the lands and relentlessly bombards wherever Scarabite warriors appear from the underground, collapsing their underground networks and pushing back the invading forces. Even with the help of the Zulu pushing in from the South, an end of the war is not in sight, until... (-1 War Priests, -2 Infantry, -1 War Beasts).
- The Scarab's mighty, lashing tongue has been called into this realm. The imperious wyrm-beast stands incarnate, and all the peoples of the world shall bow their heads before it (-5 Bugs, -2 Diplomacy, -1 Gold, Esser'Veemsha'Leveeah dies, gains WYRM).
- During the integration of what is left of the Thirteenth Tribe of Judah, some of the former wealth of the Church is appropriated and redistributed while their false idols are torn down and their gaudy places of worship razed to the ground (+1 Treasury, +1 Precious Metals, +1 Cohesion).
- While the Scarabite people themselves get off lightly during the unholy cataclysm, their spiritual connection with the Holy Scarab is temporarily severed, leading to a massive nation-wide trauma, with massive riots from disillusioned and despairing Scarabites soon follow. Spires are toppled, farms abandoned, oil fields burned to the ground and even Colombian guest workers are killed before the situation can be brought under control again (-3 Cohesion, -2 Oil)
- Following the birth of the Wyrm and the cataclysm, many in the Azarid Empire begin scapegoating the Scarabs for their problems and widespread pogroms soon start, encouraged by the Azarid government that now pursues a more heavy-handed policy of religious conversion. Thousands of those following the faith of the Scarab in the Azarid territories are stoned, burned at the stake or driven out of the nation, even agents of the Scarab are exposed and executed. The persecution of Scarabites ceases for the time being after the Commonwealth makes it overtly clear that the Wyrm shall be unleashed if more followers of the Scarab suffer at the hands of close-minded Azarid citizens (-1 Seducers, -1 Demagogues).
Overall Rank: Major Power (52) Map Colour: Bright Yellow Geographic Location: Gran Colombia + Chiapas & Carribean Culture Groups: Grenadan, Genízaro (descendants of indigenous slaves), Tropicano (islanders), Aztla, Chiapa, undead equivalents of all of the above. Government Type: Constitutional Republic w/out term limits (Granada), Participatory Democracy (Aztlan), Illiberal Democracy w/ dominant party (Tropico) Characters of Note: El Libertador (C11, Brilliant, Arrogant, Desires: consolidating the entire continent into Gran Colombia, ensuring the stability of the federation after his death) El Capuleque (C10, Passionate, Stubborn, Desires: Redistribution of all Colombian land back to the Campesinos, full autonomy for Chiapa communities in Aztla and Granada) El Presidente (C5, Persuasive, Impatient, Desires: Building Tropico into the global centre of sea trade and replacing Granada as political centre of power in Colombia) Stats: Size 9, Military 15, Intelligence 3, Resources 14, Diplomacy 4, Cohesion 4 Special Features: Project Cloudburst (2), Bermuda & Galapagos Naval Outposts (1), Pyramids of the Dead (2), Granama Canal (3), Meritocracy (1), Founding Father (-2), (Un)Aging Population (-4) Military Assets: Navy (5), Infantry (1), Vehicles (1), Irregulars (2), Defences (1), Hatun Runas (3), Wings of Apu Qatiql (2) Resource Assets: Oil (3), Cash Crops (4), Gold (3), Base Metals (1), Industry (3) Intelligence Assets: Three Letter Agency (Domestic 2), Demagogues (1) Relations: HATED YANQUI (Riverine League of Norica), Working Relationship (Westafrique Freemen, Empire of the Black Sun), Trusted Comrades (Lost Legion, UNRC, Commonwealth of the Holy Scarab), Rival (Grand Albion Empire, Knight Houses of Knowledge, Democratic Republic of Aygia) Issues: Rivals across the ocean, diverse member states, cataclysmic devastation, looming overpopulation crisis
- Immediately at the dawn of the twentieth year, the Great Khan performs an action that would earn him the ire of the Colombians forevermore: he diplomatically recognizes the almost shattered traditionalist rebels, which reinvigorates them. Tensions flare up immediately and fighting breaks out that wrecks many of the efforts of Gran Colombian to rebuild the Inkan nation.
- A new fleet of Grand Carriers is commissioned to bolster the already impressive fleet of Tropico (+1 Navy).
- The great cataclysm devastates Gran Colombia as the magically loaded ley lines tear through the earth, swallowing tens of thousands and laying waste to entire cities and temple-complexes. The catastrophe however does at least bind together the normally disunited and quarreling member states as they all work together side by side to surmount this catastrophic disaster (-3 Oil, -2 Base Metals, -1 Gold, -1 Domestic Agent, -1 Irregulars, Loses Ley Lines, +1 Cohesion).
- After fifteen years, the Rik'chaq Suyu Inka finally formally joins the Federacion in a festive ceremony. There are a plethora of tensions and transitional difficulties of economic, cultural and political nature and the Inkas' power is diminished from their glory days, but overall it is a significant boon to the power and influence of the Federacion of Gran Colombia (-3 Cohesion, +3 Hatun Runas, +2 Wings of Apu Qatiql, +2 Gold, +1 Cash Crops, +1 Industry, +1 Domestic Agents, +1 Size).
Overall Rank: World Power (70) Map Colour: Dark Grey Geographic Location: Japan, Korea, Parts of Eastern Russia Culture Groups: Ypanese, Joseon, Rus, Ballkhanik Government Type: Corporate Nobility Characters of Note: CEO Drakul Vladimir (C15, Ruthless, Ancient Wisdom, Desires: to ensure his peoples survive and thrive) CEO Dio (C3, Charismatic, Megalomaniac, Desires: to rule the nation) CEO Diavolo (C11, Mastermind, Paranoid, Desires: to rule the nation) Shogun Murata, Shogun of the Cyberhematic Samurai (C5, Loyal, Stubborn, Desires: Keep the military strong) Penumbral Artificial Intelligence (C7, Genius, Obsessive, Desires: to know everything) Stats: Size 6, Military 25, Intelligence 9, Resources 20, Diplomacy 2, Cohesion 7 Special Features: Vassal (Westafrique Freemens' Domain) (3), Susanoo Array (2), Maritime Empire (1), Corporate Meritocracy (1), Empire of the Fallen Sun (1), Vampyrism (-1), Pretender (-2), Incompetent Character (-1), Contested Succession (-2), Widely Disliked (-1) Military Assets: B.S. Impaler Fleet (3), Cyberhematic Samurai (2), Rail Walker Nosferatu (1), Air Force (3), Pophyric Magi (2), Navy (4), Defenses (2), Unholy Ones (2), Militarized Cyber-Police (1), Blood Moon (5) Resource Assets: Treasury (8), Industry (7), Base Metals (3), Rare Metals (2) Intelligence Assets: Black Cloaks (Domestic 4), In Midnight Clad (Foreign 3), Seducers (1), Pirates (1) Relations: Uneasy friendship (UNRC, New Phoenix Islands), Rivalry (Yndonesian Bloc, Guanqi Order, Sibirsk Tribes) Issues: Strong position as world power will draw attention, disparate and scattered territories, purely elite units, widely despised
- The Empire's moles dig up vital information in missions abroad and are subsequently executed as not to compromise the operations (-1 Mole).
- Just like the fate that befell the Great Khan of the Democratic Republic of Aygia, CEO Drakul is drained of all his strength by the insatiable, incomprehensibly powerful entity from beyond the veil (Loses Black Sun).
- During the cataclysm, following the unholy storms and the news that CEO Drakul was incapacitated, riots and uprisings sweep the Black Sun, causing massive damage to the Black Sun infrastructure and major disruptions to economic functioning. Behind the scenes, the riots are stoked by none other than Dio himself, seeking to cause chaos now that Drakul is weakened. It takes months for the riots to be fully suppressed and the economic damage is substantial, however, the Black Sun at least manages to muster a standing militarized police force that could effectively deal with troubles such as these in the future (-2 Treasury, -1 Industry, -1 Cohesion, -1 Defenses, +1 Militarized Cyber-Police).
- Large scale cultural operations are conducted to increase cultural cohesion in the lands - with the bugs imported from the Scarabite lands, exotic cafes and exhibits are opened while much of the Empire's monetary funds are allocated to lining the pockets of the biggest coporations to stop them from stepping out of line again (+2 Cohesion).
- The great troubles following the cataclysm throw military production and trade completely into disarray, so that none of the planned war walkers are finished as assets are frantically redirected to the more important Blood Moon project instead.
- Penumbra hatches a plan to get rid of both Brahm Staker and Dio in one fell swoop, but Brahm Staker smells trouble and instead absconds with Dio, the two slipping into obscurity again for now (Loses Brahm Staker).
- As per the treaty of Afrique, another third of the Afrique territories are ceded to the Zulu, including unfortunately the crown jewel Yamassoukro itself,, which means the loss of the prized cultural prestige the grand cities bring (Loses Cultural Icon of Afrique).
- During the fall of the Yndonesian Bloc, the nation splits into bickering warlord states and juntas warring amongst each other, which rapidly drains the mighty resources of the former oligarchy down to almost nothing, which had already been hollowed out by economic sabotage from outside. Some small pockets headed by admirals or officials compromised by Black Sun agents "decide" to join the Black Sun (more or less) voluntarily, but in the chaos most of the successor states of Yndonesia to stay independent or join the Phoenix Islands instead, since the Empire is not willing to outright march troops in to "pacify" these lands and the NPI seems like the more palatable option (+1 Navy, 1 Treasury, +1 Pirates).
- The grand Blood Moon Project is finally finished at the eve of Year 25, and all creation shall tremble before it. For now, it is kept an absolute state secret, a secret jealously guarded by the most efficient agents on the planet, but in time, it shall be unleashed upon the unsuspecting world (Loses Blood Moon under Construction, Gains Blood Moon)
Overall Rank: Regional Power (41) Map Colour: Light Red Geographic Location: The Alpine Region Culture Groups: Svizzera, Jermani, Itani, Rus Government Type: Theocratic Monarchy Characters of Note: Grand Priest Byleth (C12, Dutiful, Orderly, (Perfect Being), Desires: to lay waste to the heretical city of Ilios in dedication to the fallen Malizians and the gods from beyond) High Commander Beleth (C6, Clever, Merciless, Desires: to spread the Malizian belief across the world) High Consecrator Ziminiar (C7, Reliant, Hedonistic, Desires: To dominate the Yropan continent) Grand Priest Amaymon (C9, Charismatic, Patient, Desires: to CONSUME AND FEAST) Stats: Size 7, Military 8, Intelligence 5, Resources 10, Diplomacy 1, Cohesion 4 Special Features: Otherworldly Lore (3), Hannibal (2), Perfect Being (2), Competent Character (1), Demon Council (1), Fanatic Purifiers (-3) Military Assets: Wall of Gehenna (1), Andras' Legion (1), Freeman Militia (2), Byrath's Legions (1), Navy (2), Kheshigg (1) Resource Assets: Gold (2), Iron Shafts (3), Industry (3), Hydro-Electric Dams (1), Treasury (1) Intelligence Assets: Silent Watchers (3), Missionaries of Astaroth (2) Relations: - Issues: Isolated on the world stage, coming off an apocalyptic war, surrounded by powerful enemies, dangerously low cohesion
- Grand Priest Amaymon is back, meaner than ever, turning up at the palace gates to demand his birthright back. Only with great effort from High Consecrator Ziminiar and the Palace Guard can Amaymon, or the beast that has taken his form be banished to the otherworld again. In the domestic propaganda, the entire affair is spinned as an Ilian curse (-1 Apollyon's Chosen, Grand Priest Amaymon comes back, Grand Priest Amaymon dies).
- In an effort to raise the national coherence, food is widely distributed and malcontents as well as agitators are forcibly relocated to the Graecian territories, which are then promptly gifted to the Azarid Empire. Let them deal with the trouble-makers... (+1 Cohesion).
- Great industrial buildup projects are initiated to at least return some semblance of the Malizian pre-war industry and rebuild a lot of the infrastructure that was destroyed in those terrible days of blood and fire (+1 Iron, +1 Industry).
- To the surprise of absolutely no one, the demonic cataclysm hits the worshipers of hell less hard than almost everyone else, though the "blessings" of the awe-inspiring entity from beyond manifest as further trials and tribulations for the reverent worshipers of Malizia. Massive storms wreck infrastructure and particularly faithful Malizians' souls are dragged into the otherworld screaming. Surely just another blessing... (-1 Cohesion, -1 Byrath's Legions, -1 Industry, High Consecrator Ziminiar "dies").
- The Malizian faith thrives in Muscowy, or what is left of it. The forlorn people there, the few still left alive after the massive purges carried out by the Khanate, are desperate for salvation, and the religious preachers of Malizia offer it. The new arrivals bolster the Malizian Kingdom's extremely depleted manpower and bring the Malizian cities back to life, now bustling with activity again, almost like in the blissful days before the Ilian nation attacked (+1 Cohesion, +1 Freeman Militia).
Overall Rank: Regional Power (44) Map Colour: Red Geographic Location: Great Britain Culture Groups: Albion Government Type: Constitutional Monarchy Characters of Note: Cyber-Queen Elizabeth II (C4, Knowledge Of The Ancient Ways, Relic Of A Bygone Age, Desires: to ensure the safety of Britain) Arthur Pendragon (C10, Courageous, Prideful, Desires: to return Albion to its glory days) Admiral Belson (C10, Cunning, Brutal, Desires: to increase the size of the British Navy) Merchant Prince Susilo Ibrahim (C7, Savvy Haggler, Greedy, Desires: to enrich himself over all else) Stats: Size 6, Military 8, Intelligence 4, Resources 11, Diplomacy 5, Cohesion 4 Special Features: Rudimentary Space Tech (1), Cloning Tech Blueprints (2), Naval Outpost Madagasikara (1), Rule Britannia (2) Military Assets: Air Force (1), Royal Navy (1), HMS Unsinkable (3), Royal Grenadiers (1), Extensive Anti-Air Defenses (2) Resource Assets: Coal & Oil (3), Industry (3), Royal Treasury (3), Uranium (1), Base Metals (2) Intelligence Assets: The Squaddies (2), Domestic Intelligence Agency (2) Relations: Hated Enemy (Muscowy), Good Relations (Westafrique Freemens' Domain), Uneasy Friendship (Guanqi Order, Democratic Republic of Aygia), Formerly at War (New Phoenix Islands, Empire of the Black Sun, Gran Colombia, Empire of the Black Sun), North Sea Alliance (Scandia, Nordnorica, Knight Houses) Issues: Mortal enemy of Muscowy, vulnerable to infiltration, ruler of below average competency, weakened by war
- The headlong, ill-planned offensive against Argentium involving the entire Royal Navy leaves the Albion mainlands undefended. Down south, the raiders of the Westafrique Freemen's Domain sense an opportunity, beginning to plunder and pillage the coasts. The Black Sun order them to back off, but plenty of damage has been done (-1 Treasury, -1 Cohesion).
- The massive waves whipped up into a frenzy by the storms following in the wake of the emergence of the Great Eater crash upon the Western coastlines of Albion with the force of an enraged god's fist
destroying everything in their path and dragging thousands into the hungry sea screaming, swallowing them to never be seen again. The destruction in the coastal areas is enormous: ports are wrecked, oil drilling platforms toppled, industrial centers flooded (-1 Cohesion, -1 Industry, -2 Oil & Coal)
- The Tempelhof Empire officially declares war on the Grand Albion Empire and sweeps across their Francian territories without the , but to their surprise they find that the Kingdom of Malizia marches into the Tempelhof Empire, smashing their conscripted armies in the fields with ease and plundering the lands. Soon after, the Tempelhof Empire is integrated into the Britannian holdings on the , and thus is the last remnant of the mighty CYC snuffed out (+1 Industry)
- Groundwork for a potential North Sea alliance is laid, strengthening economic, political and military ties between the Grand Albionic Empire, the Scandian Tsardom, the Nordnorica Alliance and the Knight Houses of Knowledge. In the future, this could boost trade across all those nations and facilitate coordinated joint military operations.
- Knowing that the days of the Yndonesian Bloc are numbered, the Albion engage in perfidious economic sabotage. They offer cheap loans, subsidies, and other economic advantages to any Yndonesian economic elite in the country and encourage them to flee the country to Britannia, then flood Yndonesia with Oil, hurting their market heavily. Concurrently, Scandian Spies begin massive corporate espionage and other such tricks to hurt the market and drive companies out of business. British shell companies will be prepared and waiting to buy up and ship out their industry at extremely low prices. Capable researchers are also stolen away with generous grants, funding, and great lab conditions to work on secret projects. The costly operation is an overall success and serves to siphon wealth from the failing Yndonesian state and deny the NPI and the EotBS valuable resources and personnel when it finally collapses (+2 Treasury, +1 Industry, adds Merchant Prince Susilo Ibrahim).
- Recruitment of a bataillon of the elite Royal Grenadiers Corps is completed, though due to the devastation and resource shortage caused by the cataclysm the overall number of recruited and equipped Grenadiers falls tragically short of the goal as assets are redirected to more important projects (+1 Royal Grenadiers).
- Having learned from the harsh lessons in the First Intercontinental War, massive Anti-Air defenses are erected all along the major cities and military bases of the Grand Albion Empire, including large batteries of SAM missile launchers, anti-air missiles mounted on mobile platforms and gun batteries built to engage targets at every altitude (+2 Anti-Air Defenses)
Overall Rank: Regional Power (37) Map Colour: Azure Blue Geographic Location: Ireland + holdings in Central West Africa Culture Groups: Gaelic, Scot, some Anglo-Saxon, Zentralafrique Natives Government Type: House-Based Representative Oligarchy Characters of Note: House Regent Shamus Jaxx (C9, Great Warrior, Stressed and Overworked, Desires: to see more nations band together in acquiring knowledge and science) Jonwards Bastila (C7, Hero of the People, Scarred by the Civil War, Desires: to see the Knight Houses get a chance to make things right in the world) Felios Shehaan (C10, Master of Gun and Blade, Hotheaded Straight Shooter, Desires: to improve the houses' military at all costs) Command Director of Subhouse Dominithica (C4, Tidy, Reclusive, Desires: to assure total stability in the Knight Houses, whatever the cost) Madison Paige (C5, Loyal, Cursed, Desires: to see peace on earth and cure her disease) Stats: Size 6, Military 8, Intelligence 4, Resources 7, Diplomacy 7, Cohesion 6 Special Features: Rudimentary Space Tech (1), Secret Military Base (2), Old World Treasures (1), Boons of Knowledge (1), Advanced Culmite Secrets (1), Contested Succession (-2), God-King (-2), Tundra (-2) Military Assets: Knights 4, Navy 1, Air Force 1, Defenses 1, Irregulars 1 Resource Assets: Culmite 2, Treasury 2, Gold 1, Base Metals 1 Intelligence Assets: Subhouse Dominithica (Foreign 0), Subhouse Invinicabalia (Domestic 1), False Front (1), Moles (2) Relations: Uneasy Friendship (Grand Albion Empire, Democratic Republic of Aygia, Tsardom of Scandia), Rival (UNRC) Issues: Coming off a civil war, small core territory, militaristic neighbours, in danger of breaking apart
- The headlong, ill-planned offensive against Argentium involving the entire Knight Houses Military and Navy leaves the mainlands undefended. Down south, the raiders of the Westafrique Freemen's Domain sense an opportunity, beginning to raid the undefended ports and coastal towns, destroy their yards, bomb their buildings and kidnapping their people to sell into slavery. The Black Sun order them to back off, but plenty of damage has been done (-1 Treasury, -1 Cohesion).
- Jonwards Bastila, hero of the civil war is appointed as head of the intelligence because of pressure exerted by the people (Adds Jonwards Bastila).
- Extensive resources are dedicated to revising and refitting the Culmite formula as to make it less vulnerable to its previous weaknesses, since the formula has by now spread to many nations (+1 Culmite Secrets)
- The battered Knights units are reinforced with freshly trained and equipped recruits as well as auxiliaries from the Knight Houses' numerous colonies (+1 Knights, +1 Irregulars)
- The cataclysm does not spare the Knight Houses. All arcanely gifted men and women in the entire realm are suddenly struck with a mysterious illness, and overnight the devastating sickness kills off the best magic users in all the Knight Houses territory overnight, with nothing that can be done to save them. Much of the knowledge the Knight Houses have painstakingly gathered dies with these experts of the arcane (-1 Foreign, -1 Domestic, -1 Cohesion, -1 Knowledge, Archana Minos dies)
- The last agents of Subhouse Dominithica are killed by the arcane cataclysm that scours Gran Colombia while on a mission to assassinate El Libertador, swallowed by the earth or buried under hundreds of tons of rubble. It will take great efforts to rebuild the once mighty agency (-1 Foreign).
- As per the Afrique treaty, yet more colonized lands in Westafrique are ceded to the Zulu (-1 Gold).
Overall Rank: Major Power (61) Map Colour: Maroon Geographic Location: Almost all of Central Asia and parts of Russia and Siberia Culture Groups: Mangled Men Government Type: Representative Democratic Communal State with a Monarchy Characters of Note: The Great Khan (C14, Persuasive, Military Genius, Desires: To protect all the weak and helpless people of the broken world under his aegis ) Senior Barkowitz (C7, Diplomatic, Warhawk, Desires: To take the land of Zhongguo, Norica and Rus as a form of payback against the Great Powers) Science Officer Romanov Heissen (C9, Diplomatic, Warhawk, Desires: To take the land of Zhongguo, Norica and Rus as a form of payback against the Great Powers) Stats: Size 9, Military 7, Intelligence 9, Resources 18, Diplomacy 9, Cohesion 8 Special Features: Geo-Engineering (1), Cloudburst Prototype (1), Vassal: Muscowy (2), Secret Knowledge (3), Vassal: Paxisteni (3), Assembly of Clans (2), Large Scale Bunker Network (1), Ideals of the Republic (2), Irradiated Population (-3), Mutations (-2), Deserts (-2), God-King (-2), The Khanate Will Not Falter (-2), Contested Succession (-2) Military Assets: Khanate Legions (3), Air Craft (4) Resource Assets: Smuggler Network (2), Industry (7), Food (2), Base Metals (3), Oil (2), Treasury (2) Intelligence Assets: False Front (1), Demagogues (2), Propaganda Machine (2), Domestic Agency (3) Relations: Uneasy Alliance (Grand Albion Empire, Knight Houses of Knowledge), Rival (Muscowy, Azarid Empire, Guanqi Order, Manzhourian Wastes), Defensive Pact (Sibirsk Tribes) Issues: World power status will draw attention, surrounded by enemies, vast swathes of land almost impossible to defend, lacking in military strength
- In service of pacifying the regions from anti-DRoA elements and making way for settlers from the Aygian heartland, the Khanate carries out massive, near-genocidal purges of the Rus territories conquered from Muscowy. Millions are herded into overcrowded, disease-infested labor camps where they work under the watchful eyes of cruel overseers. As the official statement of the Democratic Republic of Aygia states, during the magical storm supply lines broke down, leading to mass starvation. Word on the street however is that these people were killed on purpose. Fear shall keep them in line... (+1 Cohesion)
- Using its diplomatic leverage, the DRoA signs a mutual defense pact against the Black Sun with the Sibirsk Tribes.
- Old Barkowitz too dies without ever seeing the great work completed, another one of the countless victims of the rad-plague (Barkowitz dies)
- Once more, the offer of integration is rejected by the High King and the Council of the Paxisteni vassal, who are appaled and frightened by the atrocities carried out in the Rus territories. They are, however, for the moment unable to declare their independence for they fear the wrath of the Khan, but at the first sign of weakness..
- The Great Khan loses all his supernatural power to the insatiable hunger of the Great Eater from Beyond (Loses The Great Khan feature)
- Using the chaos and confusion caused by the unholy storm and the supposed worsening condition of the great Khan, some already unhappy member states officially announce their intention of seceding from the Khanate. Due to the Khanate's underhanded methods', only few states secede, but it still worsens the supply situation in the vast, underdeveloped and poverty-stricken wastelands that make up most of the Khanate further (-2 Food, -1 Industry, -1 Oil)
- Huge military buildup is commenced to bring the Khanate's air force back up to a strength that could rival that of the Black Sun. Belching factory-cities churn out aircraft after aircraft as a significant part of the massive nation's output is dedicated to the war forge. At the end of year 25, a massive fleet of relatively short-range interceptor craft is ready, developed for the achievement of regional air superiority. Unable to fly intercontinental ranges, this craft's advantages are in conflicts against neighbouring powers or fighting a defensive air war (+3 Aircraft).
- Efforts are made to reverse-engineer the devastating Cloudburst chemical agent, but the resources allocated to it aren't sufficient. Only a prototype can be mustered (Gains Cloudburst Prototype)
- Small geo-engineering machines using templates and advisors from the Norican are finished. They can't compare in scope to the massive engines of terraforming that the NLR uses, but they are still technological marvels (Gains Geo-Engineering).
Overall Rank: Regional Power (37) Map Colour: Dark Slate Blue Geographic Location: United States, parts of Canada Culture Groups: Mezclan, Native Norican, Glakian, Quebecois, Southern, Plains Norican Government Type: Council Dictatorship Characters of Note: President of New Merlons Jen Alami (C4: Inspirational, Vindictive, Desires: Destruction of all magic users in the world for the continuing ruin brought upon the Norican people) Minister of the Mezclan River Collective Valerio Quintares (C10: Good economist, Harsh on workers, Desires: Reclaim Mezclan!) Speaker of the Erie Federation Anastasia Lyne ( C7: Shrewd Negotiator, Anxiety, Desires: Bringing in outside sources to help fix the devastation wrought upon most of the Norican continent and stabilize the political situation in favor of the smaller constituents of the League) Stats: Size 6, Military 6, Intelligence 5, Resources 6, Diplomacy 4, Cohesion 4 Special Features: Mutant GMO Samples (1), Artifacts from a Forgotten Age (1), Secret Knowledge (1), Ace in the Hole (3), Deserts (-1), Natural Disasters (-1), Wasteland, Baby! (-2), East Coast (3), US Interstate System (1) Military Assets: Air Force (1), Navy (1), High Council Guard (1), Ballistic Missiles (1), Space Fighters (1), Militia (1) Resource Assets: Base Metals (1), Treasury (1), Industry (1), Smugglers & Blockade Runners (1), Rare Earth Elements (1), Food (1) Intelligence Assets: Propaganda Machine (2), Three Letter Agency (Foreign 2, Domestic 1) Relations: Hated Enemy (Norican Legionary Republic), Rivals (Gran Colombia, Nordalantik), Friendly (Scandian Tsardom, Yndonesian Bloc) Issues: Hated enemy at the border (Norican Legionary Republic), military in shambles, recent civil war, rump state, resources exhausted
- The militarism and revanchism that plunged the League into civil war just a few years ago couldn't be wiped out entirely. Several nationalist paramilitary groups start levying battalions of soldiers for the stated cause of "reclaiming the homelands". While they swear fealty to the High Council, but The High Council decides to keep an eye on them through the intelligence network and slowly siphons them into the proper military in a dispersed manner while getting rid of more fanatical organizers and deescalating the situation in talks with the NLR (+1 Militia).
- Efforts are made to break down the barriers between the various city-states and sub-states, aiming to incorporate all constituent parts of the Riverine League into a singular nation rather than having some nominal independence as is currently the practice. Bureaucratic, diplomatic, and military structure are further centralized around the High Council and key industries such as power, military production, and rare metal extraction nationalized. The Riverine League further moves towards a centralized, totalitarian dictatorship, something the other powers on the continent do not like to see (+1 Cohesion, +1 Industry, -1 Diplomacy).
- The mutant GMOs imported from the Zulu are studied extensively, and soon certain GMO strains are approved for trial runs in the agricultural sector, boosting the farming capacities of the Riverine League enormously (+2 Food).
- Of the Norican nations, the Riverine League suffers especially hard during the cataclysm as a tsunami of massive proportions lays waste to their vital East coast regions. With the force of an enraged god's fist, the tsunami crashes upon the East Coast, destroying everything in its path and dragging thousands with it screaming, swallowing them to never be seen again. A lot of Riverine Navy ships that were in the region are hit as well, swept away to shatter on the rocky coasts of New England or thrown on the shores as the rivers they patrol are flooded (-1 Navy, - 1 Industry, -1 Cohesion, -1 Food).
- Using captured tech, a small wing of space-capable multi-role fighters is completed, the first time any power on earth since the UNRC's arrival is clearly making overtures to conquer the void of space (+1 Space Fighters).
Overall Rank: Major Power (55) Map Colour: Burgundy Geographic Location: Most of Mexico Culture Groups: Vaquero, Mezclan, Albreetan, Midwestern, Texan, American Southlander Government Type: Representative Republic Characters of Note: President Jack Taylor (C4, Charismatic, Paranoid, Desires: To see the lost legion's territory establish a stable civilian government again) Engineer James McKinley (C7, Brilliant Inventor, Cybernetic Mastery, Frail, Desires: to see the utilisation of his cybernetics and geoscaping technology on a mass scale) General Jose de la Huerta (C4, Skilled Maneuverer General, Violent Temper, Desires: to reclaim his homeland in Northern Mexic) Philomenes of Thrakia (C5, Reliable, Perverted, Desires: to get all vampyres out of Hellas) Stats: Size 7, Military 12, Intelligence 5, Resources 12, Diplomacy 3, Cohesion 6 Special Features: Culmite Knowledge (1), Competent Character (1), Geo-Restoration Technology (3), Cybernetically Enhanced Population (2), West Coast (3) Military Assets: Infantry (2), Battle Suits (4), Special Forces (2), Home Defence Force (2), Air Force (2) Resource Assets: Nanoil (2), Industry (2), Rare Earth Elements (2), Uranium (2), Treasury (3), Base Metals (1) Intelligence Assets: Legion Int-Sec Force (Domestic 3, Foreign 2) Relations: Enemy (Riverine League of Norica), Uneasy Friendship (Gran Colombia, Yndonesian Bloc) Issues: Hated enemy at the borders (Riverine League), recently integrated territory, maritime trade blockaded
- At the dawn of Year 21, a strong earthquake strikes the Mezclan territories around Veracruz, clearly not of natural origin as it's a region not commonly known for having earthquakes. Hundreds die and much of the infrastructure there is in ruins, and substantial resources have to be redirected to assist with the rebuilding (-1 Industry, Treasury).
- A project is begun to integrate the newly conquered overseas regions in Castilia, but largely thrown into disarray as raider warbands composed of traumatized survivors such as veterans and war orphans from the surrounding regions and even from within Castilia plunder, pillage and lay waste to the lands. Times are hard for the Castilians even with the medical services, food and shelter the NLR provides to them.
- Massive military buildup is commenced across the entire Norican Legionary Republic as to prepare for the coming wars. Battle suit designs are upgraded and refitted, dozens of new fighter planes are churned out from the belching factories of Western Mezclan and men and women from the newly integrated territories are pressed into infantry service. Some of it is disrupted by the numerous natural disasters that strike the NLR in these years, but overall the NLR's military experiences massive growth, becoming the second-largest in the entire Western hemisphere (+1 Air Force, +1 Battle Suits, +1 Infantry, +1 Home Defence Force).
- In the newly cleared regions of Brasil, detailed surveys are carried out to find signs of valuable mineral deposits. Several mineral resources are found and settlement operations aided by the geo-restoration are soon initiated, allowing for the setting-up of small extraction operations and the funneling of new settlers to the frontiers (+1 Base Metals).
- With the aid of the UNRC, the NLR begins expanding and modernizing its Int-Sec Force, making moderate progress (+1 Int-Sec Foreign).
- Shady deals in foreign regions backed up my massive amounts of dark money are a success and allow the NLR to grow their capital and influence in certain far-away nations significantly (+1 Diplomacy, +2 Treasury).
- While the NLR's East coast regions aren't vital to their functioning, the massive tsunami that follows in the wake of does hit their coastal regions hard and brings back to the NLR citizens the trauma and anguish the bombing raids of the Riverine League inflicted upon them. (-1 Industry, -1 Cohesion, -1 Nanoil, -1 Coastal Defences).
Afrique Westafrique Freemens’ Domain Overall Rank: Regional Power (37) Picture/Banner/Emblem: Map Colour: Dark Yellow Description: A loose conclave of outcasts raiding and terrorizing the Atlantic Ocean. Barely a state, as it has no constitution or anything, more a loose collection of towns ...
Following the revelation that special agents from the Knight Houses of Knowledge disguised as NLR service members were present in the temple cities destroyed by the Aztlan Lines explosion, the Knight Houses were given an ultimatum between accepting a full international investigation into their foreign intelligence affairs in Surica and their imperialist adventures in West Afrique.
At home, inspectors from our national intelligence agencies shall: 1) be thoroughly searching the scenes of the destruction for more evidence of Knight House presence 2) be performing a thorough autopsy of the dead Knight House agents, followed by a reading of the bodies performed by our Priest Cadres to interrogate the dead. 3) coordinate with NLR military intelligence to determine where the stolen uniforms came from, as well as helping them investigate for potential security breaches or agents infiltrating their armed forces. 4) similarly coordinate with the Riq'chaq Suyu Inka to investigate Hibernian intelligence activities in their borders, as well as going through documents recovered from the current insurgency during the Civil War to highlight foreign connections.
Abroad, they will: 1) muster a full investigation party supplied with a warrant from this international court for the investigation of Hibernian intelligence operations pertaining to Surica and Afrique. If the Knight Houses refuse to allow us access or we find any evidence of evidence destruction we'll call the investigation off and add an additional charge of obstructing an investigation to the list. We understand the Knight Houses want to keep some covert intelligence secret, so we will not bother asking after any records not pertaining to these two regions without probable connection (say we find a document saying the Knight Houses trafficked weapons from Ostralia to the Inkan rebels--then we'd get a warrant for Oceanian operational intelligence records.) In a minor concession, Colombian inspectors will consent to be blindfolded en route to the headquarters of the Irish foreign intelligence agency. 2) be sending a group of inspectors and adequate protection (preferably the UNRC's Blue Helmets) to the Irish's African colonies with a warrant for all records of the colonial government there. Similarly, obfuscation or destruction of evidence will result in adding additional charges. Beyond investigating the government, our inspectors will seek out survivors and refugees of the ongoing occupational war to interview, and will perform forensic investigations of former battlefields, internment camps, prisons, and military bases for evidence of human rights abuses. 3)shall additionally send a delegation to assist the investigation of Irish actions in recent South-Europan Wars, though as this is chiefly the concern of Malizia, we understand that they will head this particular area of investigation themselves. As Malizan has suspended its involvement in the trials, this step is no longer necessary.
If Argentium wishes to perform its own investigation, that is their prerogative, but we understand their reluctance to allow foreign government agents into their borders, especially in light of recent failed invasion and assassination attempts and the foreign support of terrorists in the neighbouring Inkan Empire. We offer our help in their investigation, but we do not insist or expect that they accept it.
Similarly, if Argentium wishes to abstain from sending a judge to this trial or pursuing legal action against the Irish, that is also their decision to make. They are a sovereign nation, unlike the currently occupied and subordinated Afrique holdings, and therefore, do not need us to press charges on their behalf.
Following this period of investigation, an international trial will be held in Palma, the capital of a Meditteranean island territory currently held by ourselves but in the process of transfer to the UNRC. At the trial, one judge from each of the following states will be present adjudicating:
The Republic of Granada
The Republic of Tropico
The Aztlan Confederacy
The Rik'chaq Suyu Inka
The Norican Legionary Republic
A representative judge from the Knight Houses' Afrique holdings, preferably a legal scholar of the former Mali bloc
The Kingdom of Malizan Withdrawn from the trial. Their seat will be left empty and placed next to Aygia's to remind them who pushed for their inclusion in the first place. Argentium can have it instead if they want it.
The Democratic Aygian Republic
A guilty verdict on any charge will result in a mandate from the international court that those leaders responsible be arrested on penalty of international sanction and possible military action.
A guilty verdict on any charge involving mass killings not allowed under general codes of warfare (collective punishment, genocide, unacceptable degrees of collateral civilian death) will result in the court not only mandating the arrest of those responsible, but the restructuring of the Knight House system to some form of representative republican government, the immediate release of all Afrique colonies, to be reorganized into an autonomous state, and an additional referendum held in all territories outside of Eire proper (eg: Wales) whether they would prefer to remain a subject of the Knight Houses or break away and either form their own nation or petition to join an existing one, held at least once every 15 years.
XX05, Cork. Knight Training Facilities, Outpost 07
---------------
"So this is the new batch..." Godwyn grumbled to himself.
In front of him, thirty men and women. All in Squire training uniform, with steel swords at their hip and an unloaded ceremonial blunderbuss on their back. Godwyn started to walk through them, and they stood still. Silent. Ready.
"Leon, of Cork!" 1 name.
"Afton, of Riverbear!" 2 names.
Ailsa, of Amrock!" 3 names.
"Meers, of Limerick!" 4 names.
"Aine, of Radiance!" 5 names.
"Cian, of Limerick!" 6 names.
"Conor, of Cork!" 7 names.
"Niall, of Amrock!" 8 names.
"Aoife, of Dublin!" 9 names.
"Finn, of Dublin!" 10 names.
"Saoire, of Dublin!" 11 names.
"Seasmus, of Pyre!" 12 names.
"Joshua, of Dublin!" 13 names.
"Concobhar, of Riverbear!" 14 names.
Concobhar turned his head to face Afton, themselves brothers. But what he received was a cold backhand, throwing Concobhar to the ground and giving him a fractured jaw. "You are not to move, Concobhar! I have not finished!" Godwyn yelled, kicking Concobhar in the chest, shattering his ribcage. "Dismissed!" He ordered, and Concobhar dragged himself out of the room, blood leaking from his mouth. As he left the room, Godwyn walked out and picked him up. "You will return tomorrow," he told him as soldiers came to take him away to the medical bay.
Godwyn entered the room, and looked at Afton. He was silent. He was still.
"Sean, of Pyre!" 15 names.
"Donall, of Waterford!" 16 names.
"Helkai, of Dublin!" 17 names.
"Elizabeth, of Limerick!" 18 names.
"Jack, of Dublin!" 19 names.
"Olivia, of Cork!" 20 names.
"Howl, of Cork!" 21 names.
"Einstein, of Pyre!" 22 names.
"Winter, of Amrock!" 23 names.
"Joseph, of Dublin!" 24 names.
"Donrall, of Amrock!" 25 names.
"Smith, of Pyre!" 26 names.
"Miles, of Galway!" 27 names.
"Petyr, of Kilkenny!" 28 names.
"Komer, of Galway!" 29 names.
"Amelia, of Cork!" 30 names.
"Seas don todhchaí! Seas don am atá caite! Seas le haghaidh eolais! Seas do Thiarna Regent!" Godwyn shouted, and the recruits shouted back, "Tá, máistir!"
Godwyn nodded, a small smile under his scarred helm. "Good...get onto the transport, it is time to go to the Winter's Veil."
The End of the Democratic Republic of Aygia started in the way all great revolutionary changes start by, with a loaf of bread and a lot of hungry peasants.
It was the 22nd of Marechi in the 23 Year of the Edon Period. The day had started out like any other for the commune of Nur-Sultana with ashen snow coating the city with a poison haze, a mild dusting akin to a clean summer's breeze compared to the poisonous deluges that came seasonally but a few years prior. The People loved the Khan for this, the Sainted Chagatai's burial mound already becoming a site of mass pilgrimage for the throngs of slightly wealthier peasants able to afford the trip. The People loved the Khan and that was the problem, for the Khan had been brought low and the highs of wealth and luxury they had been accustomed to, the Cura Annonae of the Khan, had lessened dramatically.
The people did not believe, however, that the Mazhourian Conquests have lessened in fecundness as the Overseer Class claimed. The people were fed propaganda night and day, patriotic drivel that neither filled stomachs nor conferred love. Weary labourers continued to trudge on to work while women endured the bing cold and poisoned snow for hours each day in the ration lines. And it is the story of one of such women which was to set in motion a chaos many had within the Khanate would battle to control, some having stoked the flames while others sought to control it.
No one in the upper echelons even attempted to avert the crisis. The Khanate was a feral beast, a spiteful creature borne of war and destruction. When the Khan was struck down many of the most troublesome nobles were tricked into action, overestimating the fragility of the Republic with the harm struck to its architect. They had carved out fiefs smaller than intended, left with less riches and wealth but their assumption was not unfounded. The Nobles believed the Khanate would falter and that was why they were removed.
The Khan's Revolution began with a loaf of bread.
Alyona Uanakeno chewed the inside of her mouth as the acrid snow ate at exposed skin not covered by her rags. The queue to the food depots stretched on and one and to pass the time, Alyona took out her faltering data slate and wrote. She wrote of her struggles and worries, how the medicae had estimated she had four more years until the tumour within her heart completely blocked her bloodpaths. She wrote as her mother did and her mother did before her, lamenting to the deities how she regretted what would become of her child without her, adding just a little more to the painful saga of the Uanakeno recorded in the faltering dataslate. She wrote about how she continued to mourn her brother, Pyotr who died a noble death in battle during the Muscowy Campaign, slain as he attended to his Legionnaire Master. At this point the tears began to fall and Alyona mustered a small smile, thinking of the presence of the Legionnaire who had come all the way to converse to a sickly peon and had even granted them their blessing!
The gaunt 23 year old typed on the pad chipperly to the envy of others in the line, it was not the data slate that originated the envious looks but rather the smile. Happiness was a commodity rarer than unshaky leg but the next couple of hours would cause this animosity to evolve to mourning and then anger and then finally something greater - martydom.
Eventually the line moved forward that Alyona could see the dour faces of those who walked away from the depot, hands filled with a meagre pittance of black bread and soggy cabbage which could not even be compared to the bountiful three loaves of fresh bread and smorgasbord of vegetables that the Khan delivered just years prior.
The depot's store was warm. She had not been allowed within it but nevertheless the sickened mother shuffled as close as she could to savour the debauched, splendorous warmth of a hearth. The Depot-Lord was a hard man, an revered elder of 35 who had been blessed to have access to all the medicines and good food that a second son of a lesser noble could have. Grabbing her ration card, Alexander Hamilton gave the woman a greasy smile. "Well then, can't do much without this ration card eh?" granting the woman a small loaf of hard bread and neglected even to give Alyona the scrass of cabbage she had seen others 'blessed' with.
Alyona looked stunned. What she had seen other with was already too little to sustain the life of her and her child but now she was left with even less. In her shock she stood unable to move and was promptly shoved out of the way by the man behind her. An unnamed man who would react far more violently than Alyona would to the more-than-meagre rations he would be given.
"Hey! How can you give us this and say this enough to live on?" The wizened man looked to be nineteen, half his face covered with wicked burns with a wooden leg. It was a surprise to see such a fit man not drafted into the military but upon seeing the shellshocked look in his eye Alyona knew. Mental Tolerances broken. This was a veteran.
"Hey, what the-" The Noble shouted out in alarm, cut off by the shellshocked man grabbing the noble's fancy plastic tunic.
"Sawdust." The veteran literally spat out at the arrogant noble."You think we don't know you have the good things back there? Some of us have to work, not sit in the warmth with all the food. You bastard!"
The middle-aged man forced his way past the decadently old man, the aching joints of the noble being no match to the furious animalistic strength of a man pushing past the limit of his frail body for food. "Stop you thief. We all must suffer in the name of the Khan! You pathetic mongrel bastard. Get away from there."
Another woman pushed past, a striking refugee woman with kohl lining her eyes and a naturally healthy physique that would've made Alyona jealous were it not for the shivering body laden with heavy radiation burns, the price of flesh untainted by the land's wicked touch. "If you suffer then you have same bread, no?" It was broken common yet the words prompted cheers across the line and even Alyona herself forgot her meekness and joined in the assault on the storeroom. The warmth emboldened her spirit and Alyona was first to see the dozens of good white loaves, sacks of potato and rice filling the room..
It was a stampede, Alyona ran out with several loaves of bread and a sack of potatoes, her spindly arms shook with tremendous pain as she pushed her ailing body to get the food to her child.
"Hold it, I said. Damn you!" Alyona heard a man's voice and then a womanly scream, shortly afterwards gravity claimed a hold over her weakened limbs and she fell hard to the ground. She turned her body, of course, not wishing to allow the sacred relic of her family to end with her and as her body hit the ground her eyes lost focus from the impact. The ringing in her ears finally abated and Alyona remembered hearing a loud bang before she fell. Then she felt the crimson liquid booling beneath her, the warmth of her own blood providing a comforting feeling to a girl who had lived so long in the cold.
Alyona's last thoughts were about her child though. Her child alone.
In the coming months that dataslate would be played across the entire realm, a rallying cry of the suffering that countless generations that the Khanate had endured. It became a call of arms, a banner and future historians would talk about the Uanakeno Sagas and their role as a tool in the game between Romanov Heissen and Anastasia [cba to finish the rest of her name] Barkowitz.
The chamber was dark and wet, hastily constructed in the Intermediate Period. Robed figures shuffled through the barely illuminated hallways, as rubber wires and wooden planks kept the network of tunnels from collapsing. Water dripping and the hungry flickering of candlelight added ambiance to the scholar's grand work.
A rumble shook the tunnel, and a dozen men prayed for the wood to hold, even as the foundations of the underground fort complained back audibly. A few men stood at the chamber door, their armor pieced together from a dozen origins and their guns, rusty and old. Only one was larger than a handgun, and even then all of the weapons were basic. But in this brutal age, all weapons bore a chance at murder for there were no armors or protective auras. There were no heroes of battle, no champions of man.
This chamber was no fortification, but a monument to knowledge. The first cults of purpose had once toiled away here, their efforts to record and write history as it stood. Now, the Fachtnains sought to burn it all; the warlords pronouncing death to Ciana, even as they broke down the cellar door. Rooms away, guarded by more wardens, the scholars and the medicos toiled away at their savior. Gone to the pyres the gods of man were, legends of deities who claimed mighty mountains as their throne over the realm of Earth. Even the Hamabhric religion which the priests nearby called to was dying as the plague of terror and destruction swept away hope and faith. The new gods were those with the gun, those with the armies.
In the eyes of the common man, was that not impossible? If they were lucky, they had crudely crafted swords, more likely but shovels and rakes to fend off the predators both animal and man of the world. But the one who had a metallic steed with a cannon to smite whole scrapshack villages in but two or three shots...that was godhood.
The reign of Ciana was coming to a close, and the Fachtnains were on the rise. If they did not move quickly, the warlords would rule the lands with an iron fist, creating a realm of ignorance and tyranny far beyond the initial kings they wished to dethrone. The common man bowed to gods, as they always had. But with the pounding of metal, the pumping of chemical cocktails and mastery of arcane arts thought lost to time and developed by the cults of purpose in this very room, man would have a new god.
The first door burst clear, its ancient hinges coming undone with the slamming of an oak trunk against its mass. In marched freed gladiators and conscripted peasants. "Hurry, dammit!" one of the defenders shouted, as if it would make any difference. The lead Fachtnain warrior drew his sword and his primitive pistol. The flint struck the steel as the coil depressed, and with a burst of sparks the first defender fell, his metal plate failing to stop the lead projectile from piercing his lung. The rest fell to sword and axe; effective but primitive tools of war since the age when war advanced any.
The next door became besieged, and the defenders and attackers exchanged frantic verbal abuse before the door succumbed to assault. The Cianan guards were stabbed, bitten, and worse. The last defender had managed to raise his weapon in time and with the crackle of gunpowder buckshot was launched forth from its ancient form and struck down the lead warrior. The Cianan had died, thinking he made a difference against the oncoming tide, but not a moment after his eyes closed forever another Fachtain swiped the handgun from the dead warrior and proclaimed himself new leader of the pack.
The Fachtnain party shouted quick ritualistic chants in butchered Gaelic and English, and progressed to the next door. It was the entrance to the gene-forges, where the last hope of the common man laid. As the last chamber door was battered and hammered with ever increasing ferocity, the medicos and scholars finished their work. The archameters had as well, their newly discovered manufacturing precept providing the former man on the slab before them mighty unbreakable armor.
The common man had suffered enough, to the Fachtnains, to the Cianans, to the horrors of the new world and the leftovers of the old deciding who and what was god. The common man was to be gifted a new god, and soon, a new pantheon of protectors, and the autarchs and petty warlords who claimed what was once Ireland as their own would tremble. They were wardens of knowledge, which by the decree of Augstelius Jaxx would be the foundations of the next Great Empire. They were the New Gods, to give the people hope and cheer whenever they marched to war.
The man on the slab rose, and discovered he was more than man now. He inspected his once-human form, and felt the power beneath his skin rage to be unleashed. The door slammed once more. "Please, my lord, allow us to clad you so you may face the foes of Ciana."
"Not Ciana," the post-human told the medico, and he bowed in response. "Of course. All of mankind deserves your protection. But please...?"
He complied with the medico's wishes, and moved to the archameter. She opened the suit of protective plating, large enough to fit two smaller men inside, but the post-human fit perfectly within the recently forged wargear. He stepped forth once the suit had re-encapsulated him, watching as information and knowledge raced past his vision as the armor's proceiutair awoke in front of him. She placed a rifle in his hands, and while the outside had been upscaled for his larger frame, it was obviously still truly built for a mortal man. "My apologies, my lord, it was all I could scrounge from the royal armories in Corkland, and I could pattern no better in such little time." The post-human nodded and approached the door, leveling the firearm to his waist.
The barbarians burst in, and not a moment later did he open fire. Conscript and willing warrior alike fell dead, their blood and innards coating the walls. One of them still lived long enough to raise the leader-warrior's blessed smite-machine, and though the flint struck steel and sparks burst like before, there was no indication it had even fired, save the harmless lead ball falling to the ground. He died as the Cianan demi-god of war passed him, confused and fearful.
More Fachtians burst into the chamber, seeking to engulf the chamber's knowledge in flame and ignorance. They passed the corpses of the Cianan guard, but halted as a form emerged from the dark corridors ahead. Potentate Felastor himself had come to burn down one of the final remnants of the Cianans, for he believed the war would be over soon and that the Cianans had been disarmed with the fall of their legions and cities save Corkland itself. "What are you?" Felastor growled as the old wood and packed dirt underneath the figure's feet cracked and whined.
"I am the new god, salvation and damnation at once..." the post-human told Felastor, his voice modulated by aux-boosters within the helm of his armor. He stepped forth, into the light, and drew his sword. It was the weapon of an old Cianan legionnaire, but the wielder made the weapon seem the size of but a long knife. His grey and steel armor reflected the pale moonlight which creeped in from the fallen doorway. "...I am Domitius Athlam, first of the Knights of Ireland. I am beyond you now, though I was once man. From the dying gasps of Ciana do I breathe and the warring flames of Fachtina does my heart beat."
"You are not of Ciana?" the Potentate asked, his head tilting and his hands easing. "I am," Domitius replied. "But I bring you choice. Mutual surrendering to the House of Jaxx, or I shall unleash such terrible vengeance upon your fledgling fiefdom that no life will ever incept the thought to settle it again. Your sons shall remain unborn, your brides shall remain unfound, and your dreams of ruling Ireland shall be shattered into shards so small you will be fortunate for an archivist to catalogue your folly."
Felastor stared at Domitius's eye slits, and Domitius returned the gaze. For a moment, the Fachtian Potentate considered his options, before throwing his own blade before him. His holster unclipped from his hip, and the firearm within slid out barely. "M'liege--" one of his men protested, before Felastor shot him a glare that would otherwise doom a man to the fate of disappearing or public execution. The Potentate returned his attention to Domitius. "Is Ciana aware of your plan, new god?"
"Indeed they are," Domitius explained. "You've left few of worthy power to argue with Housemaster Augstelius. Soon, he is to become Regent of Ciana, but I doubt that title shall stay."
"You wish to claim the title of Regent from him, sir Athlam? And what do you mean by mutual surrender?" the Potentate asked, and Domitius shook his head. "I have no intention to steal what is the Housemaster's. He wants peace for us all, he is like a man of Al-Tiodan's descent. He wishes to seek an agreement of mutual power with you, like Houses without an overhead king. His plans are...vast. But achievable. History will be written about this moment, Potentate. The future of the Earthrealm rests in your hands. I implore you to accept his offer, Potentate Felastor."
"Shall it just be us two in power? What will happen to my people? Will you shaft us with politics, or will you respect our military might?" Felastor shouted, and Domitius saw a side to the man he'd only relegated to propaganda and biased mouths. Felastor cared for the future of his men, of his cause. He was a warlord, yes. Brutal, cunning, evil some might say -- but caring for his warband's own. "In fact, Potentate, I believe he intends for your House to be the ruling one on the military," Domitius said, and a look of shock could be seen even underneath Felastor's bone skull mask.
"The Housemaster would trust us so? I find that difficult to believe, sir Athlam..." Felastor said with a hint of laughter and surprise, but Domitius nodded at it. "Trust is the basis of all good unions. Help us, Potentate Felastor, to step out of the shadows. Join under the Housemaster's plan, and with science, military might and sorcery may the Irish Houses grow from feuding fiefdoms to something that will matter. First, with your acceptance, we will unite Ireland, and then we shall rekindle our link with the Sasannlions over the canals between us. And then..."
"You and the Housemaster are bold, dreamers even..." Felastor growled, and Domitius sighed.
"To dream is better than to die here amidst the harsh realities of carnage. Let us have the initiative and discover them first. At the very least, let our people be united once more. Give yourself to the union of Ireland, and the arcane secrets which empower me will be shared to you and your army. Upon our unity may the plagues of Earthrealm recoil and fear us. Let knowledge be our shield and our martial ability our sword. Join us, Felastor...the brave New Era awaits."
A press conference is called by the Phoenix Islands government, to be held at one of the hotels that have yet to be hit by the utter turmoil that consumes the nation following the Storm and the terrorist strikes. Open invitations have been sent out, allowing all nations to have press on the site should they want to. The invitations mentioned something about "grand revelations", so there is extensive media coverage.
As the clock counts down to the start of the conference, Phoenix Lord Kamalani Keona takes the stage, and motions for the crowd to quiet down. A technician counts down, and he is live.
"Polynesians, Phoenicians, friends, esteemed guests. I have invited you here today to announce the results of several investigations regarding the state of this world. As you know, for a few years now we have had to endure much hardship, from having the forbidden weapon stolen from our custody to the Storm devastating the heart of our culture and nation. Even worse, someone has let loose terrorist bombers upon our populace, causing the violent and needless loss of civilian life. However, we have not sat still under all this. No, we set to learn, to reason. And as the reports trickled in, one by one, we realized that there are certain nations that present a clear threat to our stability, and the stability of the world in general. My friends, I have invited you here to denounce them and declare war on them." He clears his throat as a large screen comes to life behind him.
"First, let us start with the matter of the forbidden weapon. As you know, we had been honoured to hold the Dark Matter Warhead, ancient technology, until it could be safely detonated in outer space. Alas, as preparations were nearing completion, a hidden foe struck out and assaulted the complex we held the weapon at, killing our men and stealing it from under us. They thought they had escaped without evidence. They were wrong."
The screen shows blurred images of human beings.
"On the few corpses of the raiders left behind, we found clothing of Albionese origin. Even more so, we captured several of them. They cooperated after they realized how hopeless their situation was: their government could not ask for their release lest they reveal themselves as being behind this heinous act. We have blurred their faces and voices per their own request, citing fear of retaliation against their families and loved ones."
The figures speak of their orders, of their raid and of the fact that the warhead has still escaped.
"Therefore, for the unprovoked attack on Phoenician soil, the loss of Phoenician life and the theft of a forbidden weapon, we officially denounce the Grand Albion Empire. We shall declare war two hours after the end of the presentation to allow any civilians within our borders to escape peacefully."
The screen shifts, showing the results of the mass bombings in the NPI cities.
"Next, we have the bombings, assassinations and assorted terrorist attacks. Rapid responses resulted in capturing several Scandian agents, with clear evidence of more planned sabotage. This includes more bombs and plans. Further interrogation yielded surprising results: They had been hired by foreign powers, ones they identified as belonging to the Undying Khanate.
As such, we officially denounce the Undying Khanate for facilitating terrorism and will declare war two hours after the end of the presentation to allow any civilians within our borders to escape peacefully."
The screen shifts again, showing videos of military complexes of RLN design.
"Now, as you know, the Lost Legion had, during the efforts to cleanse the hostile jungles, accidentally rediscovered a ancient pattern of mass extinction device, which they named 'Cloudburst'. They took steps to destroy it, but apparently the plans and schematics had escaped their grasp as now, several years later, bunkers captured from the Riverine League are full of the stuff. It is also public knowledge that the Khanate has been working on producing a prototype. As such, we denounce the Undying Khanate for the creation and distribution of mass extinction devices and will declare war on them two hours after the end of the presentation to allow any civilians within our borders to escape peacefully."
The screen shifts one final time, showing dark clouds swirling above the volcano on the central Phoenician island.
"And finally, the most egregious crime of all, we have disturbing news regarding the Storm."
As he speaks, a shockwave passes through the frames and the volcano erupts, sending debris raining down on the densely populated surroundings.
"A site has been found inside they territory of the Undying Khanate, one emanating energy very familiar to us. Upon closer investigation, located at that site was the metaphysical corpse of our Lady, our Goddess, Pele. Furthermore, the site was riddled with markings of Malizian origin and the stench of their magic, as confirmed by our very own High Priestess who has since visited the site."
A video plays, of Phoenician soldiers gearing up for combat in a UNRC dropship, as well as the High Priestess and two of her accolades geared up in prototype armour very reminiscent of Knight Houses armour. The scene shifts, showing a site surrounded by craters from orbital bombardment, but leaving the middle intact. The dropship moves in. Next scene: soldiers fighting and clearing the base, slowly securing it so that the High Priestess can examine it. One of the other priests gets shot and collapses. Next scene: clear shots of Malizian markings and dead Khanate soldiers strewn about a central location. The High priestess gasps and tears start flowing down her elderly, wrinkled face as the pain of her goddess' death overwhelms her.
"For this heinous strike against our very beings," speaks the Phoenix Lord, "We denounce the Malizian Kingdom and the Undying Khanate, and dedicate ourselves to their total obliteration. We will declare war on them two hours after the end of the presentation to allow any civilians within our borders to escape peacefully. After those two hours, the manhunts will start."
The screen shuts down, and the Phoenix Lord grasps his wooden stand so hard it cracks under his grip.
"I hope any officials that watch this broadcast will do what is right and stand with us against this blatant display of hostility and callous disregard for the lives of men and women alike, for I know the Storm reached far more than just us Phoenicians. Friends, the time for peace has passed. No, it has been violently murdered in the shadows by the actions of those driven by power, greed and disregard for morals and life. And when there cannot be peace… There will be war."
The Phoenix King turns, his cape billowing at the sudden movement, and marches off-stage.
23 W.N.E, Ireland
-----------------------
The firing of the guns was matched only by the greed of the crewmen as shells struck the shoreline of Ireland, their ill-fated attempt on the wellbeing of Gran Colombia leaving their defense to token garrison troops and the pre-built defenses of Dublin. Return fire from shoreside autocannons peppered the sides of Freemen raider ships, sinking but a handful of small sloops while the larger ships mocked and laughed off the pitiful defenses. Reports came in that smaller, less defended villages and even the industrial hellscape of once fallen Albion were faring even worse than they.
The rifles and pistols of policemen and quickly put together and small citizen's militia groups downed a handful of the oncoming Afriquan raiders as their troop carriers hit shore, but nothing could halt the waves of bloodthirsty raiders at the beckon call of the Black Sun. The stampede of looters and demented thieves trampled the puny and few soldiers put in defense of the city, leaving them cut from a dozen places and without teeth and eyes, their pockets turned out as well.
Despite the call to arms against the Surican enemy of the Confoederatio Quattuor Continentis, Jonwards Bastilla had stayed on the mainland due to his possible shifting of positions and morale assignments to keep the recovering lands of Ireland cohesive. His lighter tour of duty had placed him in Dublin, in its very city square in front of the Embassy of Progress. It was here where the raiders went, its proximity to the coast and the tales of its storages attracting the devilish mercenaries. As civilians ran for their lives, with many not being as lucky as hoped, a wave of common man and House officer alike ran to the Embassy. Its gun emplacements and token twenty Knights were curious to the sight, before Bastilla realized the implications.
Ever since the first shots, he had been confident in the Houses' intelligence, hoping they had kept at least a handful of frigates or a cruiser in defense of the heartland, but once he saw the droves of distraught citizens fleeing into the safe pearl walls of the Embassy of Progress, he knew that Felios' over eagerness had damned the people of the Knight Houses to a terrible and bloody raid. The disgruntled wave of citizens was quenched, and for a moment, there was still and false peace. Embassy security waited inside or manned the guns on all four corners, heavy anti-infantry pieces suited to murdering larger or more impressive infantry, designed and emplaced during the dark days of the Second War for Ireland.
Jonwards gripped his sword hilt and pistol grip, and on a moment's notice he would unsheathe his weapons of war. His brothers-in-arms had their rifles retrieved already, aiming where the war cries of Drakul's deniable butchers telegraphed. Once the raiders came in the hundreds and were identified as not their own, the HI-EX rifles, battle spells of the Knights and magic projectiles of more arcane weaponry barreled towards their foes, cutting down plenty in the front. Yet the weapons could not hope to quell the tides, as another seventy flanked them from the right, and another set of war cries implied the same on the opposite.
The emplaced guns belched out large caliber fire, decimating an enemy trooper at a time, but such overkill wasn't fast enough. It wasn't long until the first Knight's shields failed, and was covered in bodies trying uselessly to penetrate his culmite armor with their polished knives and blades. Jonwards engaged his attackers, moving like the harsh winds of the northern tundra winter, claiming the lives of his assailants with such precision and speed that it could be very well deemed supernatural. Starting his service in the strikes against the Afriquan warlords as but a young private barely of service age, the matured and experienced Bastilla was more than a match for his attackers, and the other Knights exemplified this as well.
A handful of civilians came out of the Embassy, brandishing carbines and revolvers not relevant in Ireland since the days before the Treaty of Corkland, they cried out their allegiances to their respective families and chosen House. Either honorably brave and terribly foolish, high society noblemen, Afrique immigrant and the struggling workers of Dublin aimed and fired in defense of the unity they had all suffered to maintain. Buildings crumbled to coastal bombardment, deep guttural growls came from both raider captain and Knight as they dueled, but the defense of the Embassy lasted a full six hours. Half the Knights were dead and a further half were wounded, and the civilians had faced similar odds. But at the tug of the leash by their dark masters, the Freemen took their loot back to their sloops contently and sailed back to their own friendly shores.
Dublin's coast was still alight in burning fires, families were forever torn apart and the people of Ireland would never forget the grisly and terrible raids by the Westafrique Freemens' Domain. As unsuccessful troops and ships reached the torn-apart dockyards of Dublin, Corkland and more, they were met by crowds of citizens brutally disappointed by their military. Yet the situation was saved by Jonwards, hero of the Civil War and now hero of the Embassy was appointed to command of Irish Intelligence after the worse still botched assassination of a foreign ruler.
YEARS TWENTY-SIX TO TWENTY-SEVEN - LIVE BY THE SWORD, DIE BY THE SWORD
YEARS TWENTY-SIX TO TWENTY-SEVEN - LIVE BY THE SWORD, DIE BY THE SWORD "Unutterable are the things we fear, but our fears will soon be exceeded."
YROPA The Scandian Coronation
Tsarina Jekaterina "The Vengeful" Komarov, the feared Queen of the Frost, last of the successors of Fyodorovich, is on her deathbed. Age is finally taking its toll and doing what no general or warlord was capable of doing: killing her. Obviously, for her there is no question that her successor must be her beloved daughter, the princess and Tsarina-in-waiting Valeriya. However, succession is always a risky and volatile business. Already, the political maneuvering for her throne begins, and the Scandian court soon breaks up into various factions. Due to the marriage of Sir Pendragon to the Princess, the Albion have a foot in the door in terms of succession, and plan to exploit it to the fullest. On the 15th of May, the feared Tsarina takes her last breath, surrounded by her weeping daughter, confidantes, and attendants. Quickly, the Bretons move for the vacant throne. Skeptical officials and nobles are bribed with cash and promises of glory and prestigious for-life positions. With his sharp erudition and rhetorical skill, Regent Pendragon manages to convince his wife to relent.
On the 22nd of May, the Coronation of the couple as Tsar and Tsarina, King and Queen of united Albion and Scandia goes off without a hitch and is celebrated with feasts and jubilation. The massive palatial ceremony officially joins both monarchies together in an unbreakable pact, into one polity, the North Seas Dual Monarchy under the prudent guidance of King-Tsar Uther Komarov-Pendragon and Queen-Tsarina Valeriya Komarov-Pendragon, equals in power. A new superpower has emerged in Yropa.
Coins are immediately minted and circulated showing the couple embracing each other, labeled as "CAESAR & CAESARIS YROPAE BOREALIS", a new flag is designed combining elements of both nations, a new national anthem with stanzas in Aenglish, Rus and the Scandic languages (the new official languages) is composed, a new "Day of Unity" nationwide holiday is introduced, scholars begin publicly extolling the shared ancestry of the Albion, Rus and Scandian people and propaganda against the shared enemy of the UNRC is intensified. It cannot be denied however that all these efforts are of course intended to paper over the fact that this newly christened nation is divided, and that this opportunistic power grab by segments of the Albion and Scandic elites has left a bitter taste not just in the mouths of the more traditional or self-interested Scandian-Rus noble upper class and the people, but also caused unhappiness in the ranks of Breton elites and even the populace who now share a homeland with people who are, though stalwart allies in the past, still alien and foreign to them.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
AFRIQUE Nshaka's Last Stand
Nshaka Zulu's traditionally unquestionable authority as Zulu King had already been on shaky grounds after the devastation wrought by the Great Cataclysm had called his righteousness into question, especially as many began blaming the strange and alien Scarabite neighbours, who Nshaka Zulu had always been close to, for the terrifying and destructive psychic outburst. Now, his authority erodes by the day, and suspicion and paranoia take hold of the proud Kingdom of the Zulu. The Scarabites themselves are of course, not innocent: day by day, their agents corrode, subvert and undermine the very fabric of the state, ferment unrest and paranoia, and step by step coopt access to the King and his court for themselves. Soon, Nshaka Zulu himself becomes convinced that he is the target of a grand conspiracy against his person and surrounds himself exclusively with Scarabites and Scarabite yes-men who share his opinion.
Towards November of Year 26, tensions boil over as Zulu military-men attempt to stage a palace coup against the illegitimate, delirious ruler, but that is merely the justification the Scarabites had been waiting for: Scarab forces quickly evacuate the King and his closest associates to safety and repel the assault alongside loyalist forces, now taking up the task of ridding the kingdom of dangerous "subversives" and quelling the "insurrection" in the name of Nshaka Zulu as hordes of Scarabites march across the border, and the King believes the Scarab ambassadors fully. Immediately when most of the nation secedes from the King's authority and gears up for a civil war, another player enters the stage: The Knight Houses of Knowledge, thirsting for revenge for the humiliating treaty they were strong-armed into accepting, had been planning an invasion of the Zulu for years. Now finally, they could set their plans in motion.
Supported by powerful naval assets of the Dual Monarchy and bombardment and strafing runs by space-capable fighters, Knight elite units in speedboats make landfall on the western coast and quickly advance into Zulu territory, while other detachments approach from Gaelic territory in the North and complete the encirclement. The speedy, light troops of the Zulu, brave and powerful as they are, have little to offer in the face of heavy artillery and disciplined super-soldiers who crush skulls like grapes and whose armor requires anti-tank rifles to reliably score a kill, and quickly melt away.
Soon, the Kingdom is in a state of desperate, full-scale war, as the Scarabs march into the heartlands of the Zulu while the Knight Houses roll up the flanks. Entire battalions of Zulu units are swallowed up by the sands and disappear, never to be seen again, while others are wiped out in battles against terrifying war-beasts bursting forth from the ground at a moment's notice. Meanwhile, the shores are besieged by Albion vessels, the navy sunk, fishing villages captured and bombarded, ensuring that the nation is cut off completely from any water-based goods or help from the outside. Even with individual displays of bravery, such as a dug-in "Loins" light artillery regiment that holds off the onslaught of advancing Knights battalions near Pelindaba for more than 12 hours with only 2:1 numerical superiority while under heavy bombardment from the air, blowing up many of the cocky elite soldiers with targeted precision grenades, it is a lost cause. All resistance is quickly crushed. The campaign is merciless: any sign of organized opposition is quickly wiped out with air strikes, Scarab agents or Knight patrols. On November the 29th, the last Zulu holdout surrenders.
Thus, the formerly proud nation of the Zulu is dismembered and portioned out between the victors, with the far-reaching coastlands being assigned to the overlordship of the Knight Houses, while the heartlands go to the Commonwealth of the Holy Scarab. Nshaka Zulu for his part is happy, for the dangerous insurgency was quelled and order restored in his lands. Truly, the Holy Scarab protects.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Divine Jubilation
Following the induction of the Mtetwa Zulu into the fold, the Commonwealth enters a new era of Afriquean dominance, and the Scarabite Priesthood plans a suitable ritual to commemorate and celebrate this enormous event: The Divine Jubilation.
Where a Grand Jubilation is a once in a generation event, a Divine Jubilation is once in a lifetime. Similar in set up, it is a much larger event that has to this day only been 'theorized' by the Arch-Priest Caste. Before the ritual, a Grand Edifice must be constructed, a spiritual site to amplify the power generated by the ritual. First, the materials are procured. Several hundred tons of shining gold and many thousand tons of all manner of assorted precious metals, leftovers from Scarabite expansion, in essence the entire ten-year output of an industrial nation, are collected from all corners of the Scarab realm and brought to the ritual site through tunnel networks and across the rivers. Velsha'Elooheem'Geezuh, the great organizer with dizzying visions of a Scarab future, directs the construction of the Grand Edifice. Tirelessly, tens of thousands of workers toil day and night under the watchful auspices of their guiding priests, erecting a monumental statue of a winged Scarab in Central Afrique.
At the tail end of the 22nd year, the construction is completed, and the ritual underway. It is a ritual targeted not only across the Commonwealth, but across all of Central and South Afrique as well; a measure not merely to unify, but to revivify the faith as more powerful than ever in the face of the recent calamity. It will be a holy revitalization of everyone's Inner Scarab; of the Scarab Within All, and it is a gift the Scarabites are keen to share with the people of Central and Southern Afrique most prominently, as they seek to bring them into the fold. Beginning at sunrise, Priest Esuhl'Versia'Zuudin meditates at great length and intensity at the foot of the Grand Edifice and focuses his psionic energy during the ritual, and right when the sun is at its zenith, millions upon millions of bugs are unleashed, a swarm that forms a maelstrom around the gigantic monument.
With one titanic burst of energy, all the insects drop dead instantly and Esuhl'Versia'Zuudin's mortal soul is consumed, as a massive psychic wave sweeps across Afrique and even into Yropa and Aygia, but it is felt even across the oceans. Everywhere, people experience a spiritual awakening, like something within them beckoning them to follow the call of their innermost desires. Within Afrique, the people begin feeling an intense love for the Holy Scarab and his flock, the community they are a proud member of. Sects, cults and movements dedicated to the holy Scarab spring up across Eurasia, spiritually linked to their kin in the heart of Afrique. Especially in war-torn, devastated Yropa, the disaffected populace proves receptive to the teachings of the Holy Scarab: even more so than the Scarabites may have initially hoped.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
AYGIA & OSEANIA The Phoenix Plucks Its Own Feathers
The last years had left the New Phoenix Islands reeling, divided and traumatized. Following in the wake of the utter catastrophe that befell them during the Great Cataclysm, including the disappearance of their volcanic goddess, the official doctrine of the NPI state church changes to claim that Pele is now a goddess of the underworld, effectively turning the state religion into a cult of death, which finds its share of devout adherents. The people sacrifice to Pele in the hope that she will alleviate their suffering and that her eternal journey through the underworld will be eased. Death gains great importance in cultural and religious symbolism, and memento mori become increasingly common in liturgy and art. The New Phoenix Islands are a lot dourer and gloomier of a place than five years ago, but at least the people find a new spiritualism to cling to. However, a sizeable minority of the citizens, among them the distinguished former High Priestess Ihe Kaipo condemn this development of the faith as pure heresy. An exodus from the official state church ensues, and a new separate cult is founded whose followers call themselves 'Pele's Illuminated Children' and maintain that Pele is not dead, but rather has punished the Polynesians for their sins by leaving this mortal plane and abandoning them until such a time that they correct their sinful behavior. Over time, as a response from church and government fails to materialize, tensions worsen, and the schism deepens. Soon, Pele's Illuminated Children brutalize state church officials and violent clashes between adherents of the different faiths become a daily occurrence, as the religious unity of the isles threatens to become irreconcilably broken.
Tensions are further heightened by political events all around. Integration of the new territories isn't always easy or without its own problems. While the invasion of the weakened state of Tamil is successful, achieves its goals and the casualties are light in relation to other military campaigns, Tamil is then turned over to the widely hated regime calling itself the Democratic Republic of Aygia, as per a secret agreement, which causes an uproar among the peoples of the Isles, for many of whom the DRoA is the very embodiment of the murderous tyranny and despicable evil so common on the mainland of Aygia. The idea of having spent the lives of brave Polynesian men and women to further the goals of the despotic great Khan is outrageous and unacceptable to many.
As the great war breaks out and makes its waves, the New Phoenix Islands initially commit to neutrality to tend to their own problems, but as the war gets more and more existential and casualties on both sides mount, allies call on the NPI to do their part, which the government agrees to. However, the cumulative shocks of the last years and the idea of entering a costly war again are too much for the shattered nation to bear, even with a massive propaganda campaign aimed at fostering unity between the peoples of the isles. As tensions worsen and worsen, they spill over into violence on a large scale, and soon, the Islands effectively fall into civil war, paralyzing the nation's military and economic capacities and rendering any hope of providing military aid to its allies moot as brother rises against brother. The Illuminated Children of Pele are the first to formally secede, as the legitimate government loses ground by the day.
Hedging his bets, the incompetent and fundamentally self-interested General Kahelemeakua Kana stages a coup against reigning Phoenix Lord Kamalani Keona and deposes him, instituting a military dictatorship centralized around his person and frantically attempting to stabilize the situation with his limited means, but the situation is barely salvageable. By the end of Year 27, the New Phoenix Islands have become a patchwork of feuding independence movements, religious cults, and warlord states, thrown into complete anarchy and utterly paralyzed in their foreign policy.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NORICA At Last United
As the first missiles impact on Aygian soil and the world is plunged once more into chaos, the government of the Legionary Republic uses this as an opportunity to finish what was started long ago and finally unite Norica under one banner. The presence of the illegitimate and tyrannical regime on the border that is still keeping fellow Noricans in its iron grip cannot be tolerated. On June 22, 27, Operation "Thunderbird" is a go, seeking to resolve the necessary war as fast as possible with few casualties.
Using the intelligence network built up by expert infiltrators and LIF/EIS aassets inside the League in the prior years, the way for the invasion is cleared. Many of the missile launch platforms of the League are taken over in a quick coordinated strike before they could release their deadly payload and appropriated for LRN use or disabled. It is discovered that their warheads were laced with Cloudburst, potential casualties likely immense.
Using the Legion's by now refined rapid warfare doctrines, battlesuit detachments sweep through Riverine territory at lighting speed at many different points, the shocked and overwhelmed Riverine militias completely unable to halt their advance in any meaningful way, often surrendering without a fight. Casualties low. The League's own airforce, augmented by strangely advanced space-capable fighters gives a brave fight and shoots down an entire wing of the Legion's air force, establishing aerial supremacy for a few days, but is forced to to surrender when its airfields are taken over and their supply lines disrupted.
Overall, losses are light and Legion assets advance through League in the direction of major points of interest at a rapid pace. The only reported casualties of note is when an entire company of the EIS is encircled and wiped out in a desperate fight with the Riverine Honor Guard when attempting to strike at the nuclear launch site – they could not be exfiltrated in time. The names of the 98 soldiers now adorn a commemorative stone in the public parks of the Legion's capital.
Realizing their end, many of the Riverine League's leadership flee, go into hiding or surrender, but the most fanatical core of military-men, seething with hatred for the archenemy that trounced them time after time, choose a different course. From deep within its secret silo, the Mk. 01 Skysplitter Nuclear Warhead is launched towards its target to the wail of sirens: the capital of the Legionary Republic. Detecting the missile launch, the UNRCs "Star Wars" Strategic Weapon Interception System attempts to intercept it, shooting the warhead off-course, which lands several kilometers away from its intended target where it detonates in a blinding fireball. Nonetheless, the destruction is immense as thousands of unsuspecting innocents are incinerated in an instant and many thousands more scorched alive by thermal radiation, blown away as the shock wave tears through the city, buried under rubble, blinded or condemned to a slow death by radiation. The last spiteful gasp of dying regime.
By July 6th, the illegitimate government of the Riverine League is finally dissolved, its members having either fled, gone underground, committed suicide, or been arrested. While the Legion has to deal with fanatical insurgents and terrorists for a while longer, by the middle of the month all the major population centers, roads, ports, and industrial hubs are brought under our its firm control.
Thus, the conclusive end to the inglorious story of the Riverine League of Norica: a regime that once had united most of the continent under its leadership, only to subsequently be humiliated in a series of wars, persecute its minorities, fight itself and be reduced to the status of a petty tributary, until the Legion delivered the final deathblow when the League's master was beset elsewhere. A regime that in its death throes callously lashed out against the innocent instead of going into the night proudly. Few people even notice its disappearance outside of the Norican continent, and fewer yet bewail its final passing.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
A New Beginning
Finally, all Norica from East to West is united under the banner of the Legionary Republic, which has consolidated its rule. While other nations march to war, look towards uncertain futures or even stare total annihilation in the face, the Legionary Republic has won a moment of respite, a moment to consolidate. It has accomplished its goals, its archenemy lies vanquished. The decades of hardship and exile, of taming the wilds, of constant martial law, of wars for the homeland are over. In the process of consolidation, the emergency status of military rule and unlimited terms for the president that had been de facto in effect for an entire generation is finally abolished. Perhaps for the first time since the vanished Golden Era, free and democratic elections are held, much to the wonder and amazement of the population.
Four groups constitute themselves as power blocs worthy of mentioning. First, the Unified Republica Coalition, which demands a further centralization of power and doing away with lower levels of the power structure. It stands opposed to any further attempts at foreign conquest and advocates a form of splendid isolation, until the Noricans have gotten their own troubles in order, suitably industrialized and edenized.
Second is the Legionary Compassion Council, whose basic tenets include improving social welfare, carrying out massive reforms in the Norican territory to improve quality of life and support coverage. They are however jingoistic, advocating for expanding into areas with poor quality of life so that the natives can be integrated and uplifted, so that the vision of the Legionary Republic can be carried beyond the borders of Norica.
The Movement for Legionary Strengthening desires further government operated industrial and military growth with the end goal of ensuring total security of Norica. Their support is strong among military members and old West Fed bastions in newly reconquered territory as well as Castilia. Also in favor of a much more hawkish foreign policy.
Last but certainly not least is the Christian Cybernetic Support Nexus, a traditionalist group from the Norican heartland that gained many converts as the nation spread its influence. Now that the Republic finally has so many resources at its disposal to uplift, enhance and improve much of the population, the CCSN advocates for bringing this underway as quickly as possible. Originally a religious movement and still focuses somewhat on the teachings of the first few Cyber Christian martyrs, though nowadays the political faction has no formal affiliation with the religious organization.
A fierce and lively competition ensues, with party affiliates going door to door to collect votes, election posters being put up on every street corner, public podiums, party-organized marches and demonstrations, state-sponsored radio debates between candidates and election programs delivered via mail even into the most remote areas of Norica. In many towns and villages, people must have their right to vote explained to them first, and volunteers offer to explain the basics of the political process. Occasionally, the election spills over into riotous behavior and violence between different political groups and a few deaths regrettably occur as well, but usually NLR police and security forces are quick to intervene, to ensure a peaceful transfer of power, the horrific images of the military coup in the Riverine League still echoing in many people's minds.
On the day of the election, the CCSN narrowly edges out its three main competitors with votes from the newly integrated East Coast territories. Though he has zero political experience or skill and scandal after scandal is publicized about him, the deeply incompetent newcomer Alf Landon (CCSN), former preacher, wins the hearts of many people with his simple populist messages of peace, understanding and cyberware for all and is inaugurated as new President on the 24th of December, Year 27.
While Yropa and Aygia are in flames, while villages are reduced to cinders in the wastes of the great steppes and men sink screaming into watery graves off the shores of Tropico, the citizens of Norica experience a momentary period of peace and tranquil. The first step towards a real new Era has been taken.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SURICA
The Palma Trials
Following in the wake of colonial atrocities by the Gaelic against their Afrique subjects being made public, it is the constituent states of Gran Colombia which spearhead a completely new initiative: an international, public judicial tribunal to indict the leadership of the Knight Houses of Knowledge on the charges of illegal military action, collective punishment, civilian killings, assassination attempts against fellow heads of states and war crimes. It is the greatest international tribunal of the post-Golden Era world, an honest but deeply flawed attempt at dispensing justice in a fundamentally unjust world, at establishing a supranational judicial system and international accountability in a bloody and barbaric world.
Investigations manage to uncover conclusive evidence with corroborating testimonies, data logs, audio recordings and 50,000 pages of digitalized records that the Gaelic were planning on assassinating El Libertador and plunging the federation he founded into chaos. Furthermore, it is revealed in the Afrique investigations that the Irish domestic security apparatus maintained secret black sites in their colonies where they detained those suspected and confirmed as supporting the Afrique independence movement and terrorist activity. "Enhanced interrogation", unlawful detainment of civilians and psychological warfare directed against the greater population were a daily occurrence. With the death of a majority of the Gaelic agents and the successful suppression of the uprising these camps are by now shut down. What happened to those interned there is shady, as all records pertaining to the inmates have been destroyed and most of the agents involved are dead by now. Even the international investigation fails to turn up conclusive final evidence, though it is suggested they have been executed and the bodies burned or dissolved. Additionally, enormous force was used when the guerilla fighters were suppressed and no quarter was given. Civilian collateral damage was quite high, though it is not easy to separate the damage the guerilla fighters did from that the Irish retaliation inflicted. 57 separate incidents of Gaelic military forces killing civilians and destroying Afrique infrastructure were recorded, among those prized structures that had survived the fall of the Great Mali Bloc and the subsequent anarchy.
While the lawsuit itself is carried out with a surprising amount of care and the Knight Houses act cooperatively at first, the proceeds of the trial are mired by boycotts, favoritism and serious accusations of partisan bias and unfair rulings. Many of those among the Knight Houses and their allies see it as nothing but a blatant political maneuver by a hostile power to isolate the Knight Houses on the world stage, a power play rank with hypocrisy. The Democratic Republic of Aygia officially boycotts the trial and leaves its seat vacant in protest, the Malizians do not attend, and thus the trial quickly assumes the character of a farce, as five judges from Gran Colombia and its ally, the Legionary Republic, lambast the Irish representative for the crimes of the Knight Houses and reach a unanimous guilty verdict.
Ultimately, the trial appears to most even as a mere propaganda campaign, as an alliance indicting their enemies to gain legitimacy, and the results go unsung in the cataclysmic turmoils of the World War that follows only shortly after. While the verdict is clear and the Knight Houses pronounced guilty for their crimes, the fact that the results of the trial are rejected across the ocean and mostly go unacknowledged seemingly proves the naysayers correct and causes great dismay all across Gran Colombia. Globally, it presents a challenge to the continued faith in national and international institutions, but it is these sorts of small steps that can lead to a fairer, more just international order based on mutural trust and accountability. Sometimes, even failure can be productive.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
El Lugar Más Feliz de la Tierra
El Presidente has a dream… A dream that with all the fear and pain and suffering and death in the world, there is still room for joy. And still room to profit from it. Within his mind gestates a mad, mad idea… of a massive, sprawling amusement park over a newly cleared, empty land in the Tenentes Republic, a massive economic and cultural undertaking, the greatest amusement park the world has ever seen, to be dubbed "Carnivallland".
The plan is first pitched to La Comandante of the Tenentes Military Government, who is skeptical, but could be convinced of its advantages, given that it would be a boon to the federation not just as a make-work project to generate jobs for the mass of unemployed, but also as a method to bolster the spirits of the troops on the Brasilian front and attract new colonists to settle thanks to the groundswell of economic activity the park would generate. However, El Presidente is, much to his dismay, forced to agree to a shared public-private ownership, but nonetheless immediately goes around to recruit investors, with great success. Investment comes in from all corners of the world, with the UNRC, Granada, the Black Sun, the New Phoenix Islands, the Norican Legionary Republic, Aztlan and even the Inka promising to help fund the park. Final plans for the park's layout include:
A speedboat race course and giant tortoise petting zoo, courtesy of El Presidente's generous donations from his own private menagerie and pleasure fleet.
A model of a typical Aztlan calpulli, complete with cultural showcases of Aztlan harvest ceremonies, ritual celebrations, and sacrifices. Also features a 5 star restaurant of regional Chiapas cuisine with a focus on xocolatl (BORING, says his excellency El Presidente, but the food is good.).
A functional chicha beer brewery and coca tea tasting expo.
A colonial plaza with actors in period dress reenacting the Granadan Revolutionary War which liberated them from Norica. Plus, a dark boat ride based on pirates! People like pirates, right?
A shamelessly self-aggrandizing tribute to the Federation's armed forces and a stadium with monthly airshows. Cool tanks and a kickass flight simulator tho!
A beach resort and waterpark complete with a functional replica of a Hawaiian volcano (minus the lava).
A gothic castle, giant coffin themed roller coaster, and meet & greet with real live vampires (for the kids).
A "Rocket to the Moon" simulation ride, scientific exhibit, and displays of decommissioned lunar landers and shuttles.
A fun fair with costumed performers, games, and carnival (lower case c) rides.
And nightly Carnival parades featuring restored Old World floats from the original Carnaval celebrations (as far as visitors are told)
While the park far from finished at the close of the tumultuous, nightmarish year 27, the foundations are laid for a productive project, scandals concerning embezzled funds notwithstanding. Perhaps one day, people all across the world will come here to find respite from the terrors of the outside world?
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
WORLD WAR
To Split the Heavens Asunder
"On this day, the hand that held the dagger has struck it into the back of its neighbor. A great storm has been unleashed upon the world, and many a nation will be swallowed up by it. The day of judgement is at hand."
While some may have lulled themselves into a false sense of security for fear of contemplating the unthinkable, deep inside everyone always knew that the world could not long suffer two hostile Aygian superpowers. With resentment and malevolence in their hearts, the two powers and their allies eye each other as they arm themselves for the coming storm, waiting for an opportunity to strike. At the close of Year 25, first concrete plans are circulated among the government and high command of the Empire of the Black Sun and the United Nations Reclamation Corps to finally destroy the hated Khanate completely and utterly, to wipe it from history and memory root and branch. But are not the only ones plotting destruction in secret. Over the course of the deceptively quiet Year 26, Operation "Eschaton" is finalized and all concrete steps taken to set the plans into motion, all while the Reclamation Corps itself is subverted from the inside by infiltrators sent by an unlikely enemy. The operation is conceived by the UNRC's Strategic Air and Ground Command in joint planning with the Praetorian AI as a devastating aerial and orbital alpha strike, sudden seaborne artillery bombardment and powerful ground assault with full strength along the entire Aygian border of the Khanate, with support by allied assets from the Pacyfic, Surica and Norica - a devastating surprise assault with overwhelming force that shall leave the Khanate reeling and lead to a quick end of the war. They bargained wrong.
On February 25th of Year 27, at exactly 8:00am, just as most ordinary civilians of the Democratic Republic of Aygia go through their morning routine and prepare for the day's work, Operation Eschaton is commenced: high explosive shells and missiles pierce the clouds, fiery streaks of bright amber against the downcast sky, raining death upon their unsuspecting targets. In an instant, airfields, communications towers, ports and military bases are obliterated as the panicked Khanate forces scramble to respond and the shocked goverment prepares to activate its web of alliances. The grand Susanoo Array with its massive twin begins shelling the Khanate's bunker networks, each projectile shaking the earth, collapsing entire bunker complexes. Hostile fighters and bombers enter Khanate airspace and deliver their deadly payloads to scorch the lands as the navy begins its blockade and artillery bombardment. Soon, great Black Sun troop concentrations advance across the borders to eliminate any sign of resistance, plundering, massacring and burning their way across the Khanate border regions. Soon, the entire border region is bereft of life and engulfed in flames as columns of refugees make their way north- and westwards through the frozen wastes, columns of smoke rising from their homes behind them. This is no conventional war, no war for territory, no war for. It is a war of extermination. In a grand public adress just hours after the invasion, CEO Drakul officially announces to the world that a state of war between the Black Sun and the "Tyrant of Aygia" exists, justifying his war of aggression as preemptive defense, bemoaning its constant imperialistic aggression and the genocide inflicted by the Khanate on its own people, with President Sidney Beauclair of the UNRC, the Phoenix Lord of the New Phoenix Islands and the Gran Colombian heads of state echoing this sentiment and putting their weight behind the Empire.
Immediately, the desperate DRoA, caught on the wrong foot, activates its emergency defense protocols, eager to repel the invaders and drown them in blood if need be. It reaches out to its numerous allies across Yropa and Aygia, and help soon arrives, as the Sibirsk Tribes, the Azarid Empire and the Paxisteni Alchemists join the war on the side of the beleagured giant one after the other. On February 29th, the Dual Monarchy of the North Seas officially releases a statement condemning the Gran Colombian aggression and announcing that it will safeguard the Alantik and Mediterranean against their imperialist overtures. Most crucially, the Malizians, having plotted the downfall of the UNRC, openly move to annihilate their rivals and soon, the the startled Reclamation Corps is plunged into a civil war while armies advance towards their heartlands. Thus, one domino is toppled after another, and the war soon engulfs all continents.
On the Pacyfic Front, the Khanate reels from the initial shock but quickly recovers its capacity to act, gathering its scattered divisions replenished by allied reinforcemens to quickly present a determined united front against the invaders scouring the lands. While much of the air fleet was destroyed in the initial surprise attack, enough planes are relocated into the bunker networks to fly sorties against the hostile air squadrons safe from bombardment. As the Black Sun forces, few in numbers as they are, rapidly advance across the vast territories of the Khanate, they find their front line rapidly stretching thin. Even more shockingly, the Khanate is not content with conventional methods of waging war. Utilizing geoengineering technology and cloadburst, vast streches of Mazhouria are turned into toxic, noxious swamps that dissolve alive any passing through, Black Sun troops and panicked civilians alike, further supplemented by 'ghost division' misdirection efforts. An attempt to bring the war to an end with a great ritual is disrupted by orbital bombardments after the location is leaked, but this does not turn the war. As the Black Sun forces find themselves overextended in foreign territory, being slowly bled out, the Khanate mobilizes its counter-attack with over 100,000 troops total, surrounding and encircling many vampyric detachments, which are, while elite, hopelessly outnumbered. The triumphant trespassers find themselves on the backfoot, forced to defend their gains.
Set against the panorama of bombed-out frameworks of what were once concrete housing blocs or public buildings, among the rancid stench of human rot, a myriad of tragedies unfolds. Troops scurry crouched through the rubble, passing over the rotting corpses of those who fell before them, many awaiting the same fate. Tanks roll across the torn-up streets and pathways crushing skulls under their treads and war walkers stalk the ruins delivering swift death. In the overcast skies above, screeching fighters and bomber planes duel. Desperate Khanate civilians take up arms and form civil defense brigades to slow the enemy's advance, erect redoubts out of wreckage, mine the streets of their own towns or even blow themselves up to take the hated foes out with them. Entire bataillons on the march are turned to dust by targeted orbital strikes. What was planned as a rapid surgical strike soon deteriorates into a grueling war of attrition where sheer tenacity, fanaticism and weight of numbers count more than elite training or material superiority. After two months of fighting, the frontlines are almost back to where they were at the beginning, though losses on both sides are staggering: most of the Eastern border territories of the DRoA have been turned into a desert of ruins, the burnt-out shells of countless Black Sun war machines litter the wastelands, the rotting corpses of tens of thousands of Khanate-aligned troops slowly dissolve into the soil as crows swallow their dead, gazing eyes, and hundreds of thousands of civilians lie dead or flee headlong through the great plains, hoping to find safety there.
While the crippled Democratic Republic of Aygia regains its footing, yet more pressing events in the United Nations Reclamation Corps force their entire attention westward, towards their own home.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hell's Legions Mobilized
"Deep are the wounds caused by civil strife, to plunge so deep takes more than any sword; such gaping wounds belong to civic hands."
Among the Malizian ruling caste, there has long persisted a deep animosity against the United Nations Reclamation Corps, which so boldly assumes that it alone can control the Mediterranean, gateway to the Alantik and link between Afrique and Yropa. To the end of achieving Mediterranean supremacy, the theocratic elites hedge a great plan to topple the arrongant extortionists in Gibraltar and allow Malizia alone to assume the mantle of Lord of the Mediterranean. Supplemented by extensive domestic and foreign funding and a massive personnel extension, the Missionaries of Astaroth, the foreign wing of Malizian intelligence and spearhead of the faith, are set to the task of corroding and subverting the already unstable and divided UNRC to plant the seeds of future treachery. In the name of Moloch, Behemat and Baphomet, the Left Hand Path is spread far and wide, into even the highest echolons of UNRC government. For years, this seed of destruction ferments and gestates deep inside the UNRC, unbeknownst to its high authorities as intelligence efforts are largely directed outwards. Though individual agents are at times detected, they do not incriminate themselves and usually commit suicide instead of leaving themselves open to being questioned. No larger sects or cells are uncovered.
On the eve of Operation Eschaton, on the 24th of February, a high-ranking UNRC official is busted for stealing classified files and interrogated, revealing himself to be an adherent of the Malizian faith. Immediately, the UNRC's intelligence assets, suspecting a spy operation of some sorts, are tasked with restoring the compromised national security, catching quite a few subversives unaware and swiftly delivering summary judgement upon them. But to the astonishment and disbelief of the UN, the roots of the conspiracy go much deeper. As the Malizians' cover is blown, the Malizian Kingdom officially launches its invasion with all mobilized assets while the agents and turncoats within the UNRC's ranks declare their secession from the United Nations, plunging the state into chaos. The crew of the Carrier Muninn launches its ship and begins destroying UNRC military assets and installations with drone swarms and lance strikes. Infantrymen with pentagrams carved into their foreheads storm government buildings and begin executing loyalist officials. Aboard the UNSS Liberty, fights break out among the crew-members which form into factions, paralyzing the capabilities of the warship.
Seeking to invade before the insurrection is brought under control in order to make short work of the fractured UNRC, the Malizians take to the seas with their fleet, banners raised, expecting little resistance. A dire mistake, for not just has the dangerous experimental nuclear submersible carrier UNS Bellerophon been stationed in reserve in the Mediterranean and moves to oppose the fleet, but two mighty Gran Colombian grand carriers are stationed on the Balearic islands as well, keen to defend their ally to the last. Before Menorca battle is joined in the early morning hours, as squadrons of Colombian naval bombers sweep low over the Malizian advance guard and unleash their bombardment, while the Bellerophon empties its missile and torpedo tubes against the shocked invaders. The Malizian navy in turn, largely composed of transport ships and smaller cruisers has little to offer in opposition, only able to damage the Grand Carriers with naval artillery guns. Thousands of eager Malizian recruits fresh out of basic training find instant death on the decks of their bursting ships and many thousands more are hurled screaming into the vast, deep ocean and drink the sea. By the time nightfall approaches and the sun sinks below the horizon, deep blood foams in the water, the waves are choked by clotted gore and crowds of corpses cover the ocean's surface.
The Malizians retreat to lick their wounds and tally the casualties.
It is only a momentary setback, however. The Dual Monarchy of the North Seas, not to let this chance to deal a decisive blow against the archenemy go to waste, had already declared war on the UNRC alongside Malizia, and now their massive war-fleet enters through the Straits of Gibraltar and wipes away the brave but vastly outnumbered resistance alongside Malizian forces, and soon the carriers as well as the submarine find their last rest at the bottom of the ocean. The heartlands of the UNRC are wide open, and the moonmen go from cocky invaders sure of victory, to finding themselves in a forlorn battle for their own survival. Soon after, the combined army groups stage a naval landing upon the shores of the UNRC, tens of thousands of troops with armored and mechanized support spilling from the bellies of naval landing craft, establishing beachheads and pushing inland. As soaring Scandian fighter jets and unholy, screeching winged beasts conquer the skies above the homelands, the stunned UNRC receives a taste of its own medicine. What remains of the loyalist UNRC's defenses, air and ground forces prepares to wage a heroic defensive war.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Higher They Soar, The Higher They Fall
"Each man must face death on his own… alone."
By May of Year 27, the stalemate the Khanate had so valiantly established for a short while comes to an end as the balance slowly shifts towards the Black Sun's Coalition once more. Drawing upon its enormous manpower reserves and resources, the united republics of Gran Colombia mobilize for war to the full extent and ramp up conscription programs - the giant awakens. Every single day, many thousands of unwitting recruits, pressed into service by the government are shipped to the desolate wastelands of Aygia to be thrown into the meat grinder, grist for the churning mills of war. Men and women whose most shocking experiences in uniform had been basic training or at most community policing are thrown into the maws of hell, into a tooth-and-nail fight for mere survival. Meanwhile, the Black Sun activates its debt slave program to swell its own ranks: those poverty-stricken masses that are in some way indebted to the corporations or individuals making up the Black Sun are coerced to work off their debts via military service. They receive basic cybernetic implants and fear-suppressing neural training before being shipped to the front line. To make matters worse, Khanate units deplete their strength in meaningless suicide attacks against the defensive emplacements of the B.S. Empire. As the balance shifts, even the entry of the Guanqi Order into the war ends up more of a footnote, and offers little relief. Before the preparation of another great offensive however, a large naval contingent departs East towards the Alantik at full speed in the hopes of relieving the beleaguered UNRC and breaking the iron chokehold of the unholy "Triple-Monarchy" coalition on the Northern Alantik and the Mediterranean.
To save the UNRC, a desperate last gambit is conceived by the Alliance. A united naval formation including Black Sun and Colombian ships is sent eastwards to enter the Alantik through the Granama Canal and intercept and defeat the Dual Monarchy fleets to establish control of the Alantik and allow troop transports. Colombian planes are immediately rebased in the Afrique Petrobras base and fly sorties from there to provide air support to the beleaguered moonmen and try to break North Seas aerial dominance. Flight cadets fresh out of basic training are sent straight into the inferno, to duel seasoned Scandian pilot aces and face off against screaming, infernal abominations who claw at their cockpits and throw themselves head-first into their engines. While the capable men and women piloting the advanced Quetzalcoatl Multiporpose Fighters devote themselves to their task with great success, swatting many of the hostile air-fighters out of the sky, the supplies of Petrobras, which is cut off from outside support, run out, forcing them to retreat to the homelands after two weeks. Plans are made to relocate infantry units into the UNRC via the air but quickly scrapped when it is conclusively acknowledged that are only spaceborn units already equipped and trained for orbital insertion can make use of the UNRC's drop pods. Furthermore, an unlikely ally is called in to help: the Commonwealth of the Holy Scarab, long-standing friends of the UNRC. The flames of war encroach on greater Afrique. The Colombians convince the Scarabites to infest the grand decommissioned transmed pipeline leading into UNRC territory with their warriors, ready to burst forth. Finally, Colombian engineers stationed in Afrique receive the orders to flood the decommissioned transmed pipeline leading into Itania with fuel and ignite it, to cause the maximum amount of chaos and confusion and prepare for the land assault. Just as the Scarabite warriors swarm from their underground hiding place into UNRC territory and descend upon the unsuspecting Albion, Scandian and Malizian troops, the pipeline leading into Itania is blown up, bursting into a sea of flames. Tens of thousands are burned, charred and boiled alive as large stretches of the peninsula are turned into a country-sized funeral-pyre, screaming walls of humanity desintegrating into the hot soil.
As the Coalition navy forces turn East, the invincible armada of the Dual Monarchy turns West, to establish its naval supremacy in the North Alantik and visit destruction upon the lands of Gran Colombia itself, to break the back of Colombian resistance. In the Caribbean, before the shores of Tropico itself, both grand battle-formations meet. The ensuing carnage on the high seas almost defies description in its sheer scale, and both sides fight with the viciousness and relentlessness that characterizes hated arch-rivals. Set to the constant noise of shouted orders and the screams of the wounded, drowning and dying, the steel-wrought colossi of both sides exchange deafening, thunderous salvos of high-caliber artillery shells, missiles and torpedoes against each other upon the crashing seas while swarms of aircraft which cloud the skies like flies duel each other above, attempting to strike against the targets below. Soon, the sea is thronged with the lifeless bodies of the drowned and the maimed. At the end of the days-long struggle, the Royal Navy of the North Seas proves superior and shatters the opposing fleet, which is forced to retreat, though the Royal Navy is not all too much better off. Over the next week, Tropico is bombarded with extreme force, scouring the lands far and wide, razing sugar plantations, reducing towns and villages to rubble and forcing even El Presidente to cower in an underground bunker, until the Royal Navy itself is forced to turn back due to a lack of supplies.
The Scarabite Warriors, lacking any support, quickly lose their element of surprise. Though they fight viciously and fiercely, they are outnumbered and outgunned, and serve only to slow, not stop the Malizian and North Sea Monarchy's push into the devastated UNRC territory. Thus, all the efforts to provide relief to the UNRC ultimately come to naught and the few remaining Reclamation Corps assets are forced to struggle for themselves. The UNRC is forced into a war of attrition it never provisioned for, and cannot hope to win. Air strikes blaze the trail for the legions of the arch-enemy, a strange assortment of surviving Britannian grenadiers, Malizian mechanized infantry, Scandian auxiliaries and Successor Wars-era bataillons who gain ground by the day, blast into rubble the rudimentary automated defense systems to enter into the heartlands, fight themselves through the ruined cities, capture outposts and engage the last lines of defense inside the UNRC, its scattered foot soldiers and robotic drones.
The end draws near.
On the 29th of June 27, as sheer weight of numbers begins to seriously favor the Black Sun's Coalition forces, another massive offensive is launched all along the Aygian front, with more than two-hundred thousand ground troops, including the remnants of the Black Sun's elite troops and war machines, crowds of debt slaves, Inkan mechanized infantry, tens of thousands of levied regulars from Gran Colombia and penal "volunteers" from Argentium, supported by targeted bombardments from the air, low earth orbit and the seas. Due to their own chaos, the New Phoenix Islands find themselves unable to lend assistance, but nonetheless, a war of attrition now plays into the hands of the Coalition, and their advance is as relentless and unstoppable as a steamroller. By early August, all Mazhouria is in the hands of the Coalition, and the scattered, outnumbered and demoralized legions of the Khanate retreat further inland, adopting scorched earth tactics to slow the advance of the invaders. From East to West, the Khanate is slowly and systematically devastated and razed to the ground: each and every potentially economically or militarily valuable asset is either destroyed by the retreating DRoA forces or seized and plundered by the greedy invaders. Every day, more civilians are forced to make the onerous and weary trek eastwards, and thousands succumb daily from the hardships. Supplies run low as the entire economy of the Khanate collapses and regional famines break out. What little food remains is seized by jaded intruders to feed the invading army. The attackers bleed for every stretch of land, but they press on, and new troops arrive every day to take the place of the fallen. Over the following months, the Khanate steadily loses ground, forcing even the Great Khan himself to travel from town to town to personally inspire the citizens to give their all in Aygia's crucible, always pursued by vampyric agents of the Black Sun.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
A Lament for the Stars
"This moment that our forces made planetfall on Earth shall mark a new era. For generations, our ancestors toiled and endured out in the vast, cold endlessness of space, tirelessly keeping the flame of the Golden Age alive. But I say to you assembled men and women, the times of hardship and want are over—now dawns the first year of a millennium of peace, prosperity, and scientific advancement.
(applause and cheers)
May future generations mark this as the day humanity reclaimed its home!"
- Excerpt from President Sidney Beauclair's speech to the General Assembly, January 1st, Year Zero
Whilst scattered Khanate-allied forces fight a desperate war of survival in the wastes of Aygia, the great rival of the UNRC perishes on the other side of the Euraygian landmass, though no one in the DRoA can take encouragment from the fact. City by city, outpost by outpost, bloc by bloc, building by building, the invaders, heady with victory and thirsty for revenge, capture the proud moon-men's base of operations and plunder it to their liking. In those occupied cities left behind, now tranquil, bombed-out ghost towns almost bereft of people, where the survivors stand bewildered in the ruins of what they built, a strange calm descends as the last staccato of gunfire dies down and the roar of fighter-craft engines disappears.
Bit by bit, the pitiful remaining forces, armed UNRC military brass and officials directing a smattering of infantry with deadly pre-Collapse equipment and humanoid combat drones, entrenched in the capital of the Gibraltar spaceport and key military bases for a last stand, are annihilated or surrender. On the evening of the 26th of June, joint Malizian-North Seas assault squadrons storm the bombed-out center of the UNRC government and proudly plant their flags on it, to the jubilant acclaim of many people all across Yropa, while others curse the name of Malizia, Scandia and Albion. The photos are quickly circulated all across the globe, and the governments of the Dual Monarchy and Malizia announce an official end to the war. Resistance elsewhere dies quickly. On the 29th of June of Year 27, 5:21pm, the last radio transmission from an outpost on Earth to mankind's outlying colonies goes out, its contents lost to time, and afterwards, complete silence. Those left behind in the cold, dead void of the orbital stations, moon and its outlying space stations weep for a future lost and look towards a grim, uncertain future.
Was it the moonmens' own arrogance and contempt for the earth-born peoples and their nations that brought the great lunar project to ruin, or the unfair envy and resentment of the earthling population? Or were they merely the victims of making the wrong decisions, of finding themselves on the losing side of the political battle lines, entangled in the grand schemes of others? No matter what, in spite of its strong sense of mission and purpose, the UNRC fell so tragically short of its lofty goals. On the altar of ambition, fanciful goals of progress and enlightenment are willingly and gladly sacrificed.
Thus, the curtains finally close on the United Nations Reclamation Corps, and the very last embers of a world-that-was are extinguished forevermore. Will future generations manage to rekindle them on their own and forge a new world out of bloodshed and chaos, or will the night embrace humanity for the rest of time?
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Graveyard of Dreams
"They've always said you can't destroy the master´s house
with the master´s hammer
I laugh and say, 'I will use any tool I find
to tear down his manor!'"
- The Great Khan in the play 'Petrovich the Tyrant' (Gustav Kornilov), Act III
There was once an ideal. A dream of utopia. The idea of uniting the wretched and downtrodden of the Earth, the poverty-stricken have-nots, the unjustly oppressed and famished, the disease-infested and starving, and to unleash a tidal wave of revenge that would sweep away all the greedy tyrants, the cruel warlords, the arrogant princes and wealthy robber-barons of the world and usher in a better world. Had that dream not already died in the overcrowded, disease-infested prison camps of Muscowy, it certainly dies now.
From Pequin to Ulaanbaatar, the Khan's bountiful possessions are despoilt and made a desolate wasteland. Bled-out and tired, shattered and disorganized, demoralized and starving, the armies of the Khanate that once made all Aygia tremble are driven before the invading forces whose inexorable forward-march appears unstoppable. One by one, the Khanate's allies leave the dying giant to its fate, unwilling to spend so much blood for naught. Individual states or townships secede or yield to the advancing forces in the hope of being spared the worst destruction. In those days, a thousand thousand people impotently stretch out their hands heavenwards with tearful prayers on their lips, begging for the Great Khan to save them. And he answers. Knowing full well the dangers, the Khan personally travels around the remnants of his nation to save what can be saved, agents of the Black Sun on his heels.
In the late November days, the fanatical pursuers finally manage to catch up with their prey and evade the ruthless DRoA counter-intelligence. Just as the Great Khan prepares to adress the community of a central Aygian township, the agents reveal themselves and summarily execute him. It is not recorded with certainty what the Khan's last words were, though some would have us believe that as his frightened flock crowded around him and he was staring certain death in the eye, he uttered the words "I did it all... for them". His body has never been found, nor his place of death clearly determined. In a cruel twist of irony, the man who had consigned so many to a common mass grave was himself hastily buried in an unmarked grave.
After the death of the Great Khan, the grand dominion he had painstakingly united at such great human cost finally fractures and shatters, devastated and ravaged by war, and so does the entire world of many people for whom the Great Khan had been something akin to a messiah, god in the flesh. With him, an era in Aygian history ends, and the shell-shocked survivors are left dazed and distraught as their life's purpose is revealed to have been a cruel farce.
It remains to future generations to judge if the Khan's massive project was a great lesson in how the ends justify the means and how any attempt at revolution will be quashed if it cannot defend itself, or merely demonstrated to all the disastrous folly of pushing humanitarian causes with fire and sword. The only thing that is certain is that there are few who could claim to have left such an imprint on the world, who can claim to have shaped and guided the flow of history's currents on their own to such an extent.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Overall Rank: Regional Power (33) Map Colour: Bright Orange Geographic Location: All of Polynesia, Australia and NZ, Hawaii + scattered Pacific Islands Culture Groups: Polynesian, Hawaiian, Yndonesian, Osstralian, Kiwi Government Type: Military Dictatorship Characters of Note: Phoenix Lord Kamalani Keona (C7, Highly Intelligent, Culturally Stagnant, Desires: to reestablish Maritime South-East Aygia) High Priestess Ihe Kaipo (C5, Incredibly Wise, Speaks in Riddles, Desires: to spread the faith of Pele) General Kahelemeakua Kana (C3, Confident, Widely Disliked, Desires: to stay in this cushy position no matter what) Stats: Size 7, Military 5, Intelligence 3, Resources 10, Diplomacy 5, Cohesion 1 Special Features: Island Nation (2), Blasted Wasteland (-1) Military Assets: Navy (1), Infantry (2), Air Force (1), Capital Ship (1) Resource Assets: Base Metal Reservoirs in Osstralia (2), Oil (1), Industry (2), Food (1), Culmite (1), Treasury (2), Pirates (1) Intelligence Assets: Propaganda Machine (2), Domestic Intelligence Agency (1) Relations: Uneasy Alliance (Empire of the Black Sun, Gran Colombia), At War (Democratic Republic of Aygia, Paxisteni Alchemists, Azarid Empire, Sibirsk Tribes) Issues: Mighty jingoist neighbours, at war, few troops for massive and scattered territories, CIVIL WAR
- In exchange for much-needed planes and soldiers, the territories the Black Sun took from the dismembered Yndonesian Bloc are officially incorporated into the New Phoenix Islands. The popular movements that so long clamored for integration with their Polynesian brethren are finally disbanded. (Loses Popular Movement, +1 Cohesion, +1 Pirates, +1 Treasury, -1 Air Force)
- The New Phoenix Islands gleefully assist Tropico's mad dictator El Presidente in his endeavors to build Carnivallland, contributing shipments of metal and oil. Planned is a beach resort and waterpark complete with a functional replica of a Hawaiian volcano.
- As per a deal struck in secret with the Democratic Republic of Aygia, troops of the New Phoenix Islands launch a large-scale invasion of war-torn Tamil. Though the invasion against the weakened, reorganized government of Tamil is successful, the casualties from the ill-planned invasion still number in the many thousands, and the fact that so many valiant men and women of the NPI sacrificed their lives only to bolster the grandeur of the hated Aygian regime on the mainland leaves an extremely bitter taste in the mouths of many citizens, contributing to the worsening tensions inside the nation. (-1 Cohesion, -2 Navy, -1 Infantry).
- Efforts are made to use the NLR terraforming technology to slowly transform the islands into more liveable places, but the ensuing chaos sadly cuts the efforts short before they can fully come to fruiton. (+1 Blasted Wastelands)
- Following in the wake of the utter catastrophe that befell the New Phoenix Islands during the Great Cataclysm, including the disappearance of their volcanic goddess, the official doctrine of the NPI church changes to claim that Pele is a goddess of the underworld, effectively turning the state religion into a cult of death, which finds many adherents. The people sacrifice to Pele in the hope that she will alleviate their suffering and that her eternal journey through the underworld will be eased. Death gains great importance in cultural and religious symbolism, and memento mori become increasingly common in liturgy and art. The New Phoenix Islands are a lot dourer and gloomier of a place than five years ago, but at least the people have found a new spiritualism to cling to. However, a sizeable minority of the citizens, among them the distinguished former High Priestess Ihe Kaipo condemn this development of the faith as pure heresy. An exodus from the official state church ensues, and a new separate cult is founded whose followers call themselves 'Pele's Illuminated Children' and maintain that Pele is not dead, but rather has punished the Polynesians for their sins by leaving this mortal plane and abandoning them until such a time that they correct their sinful behavior. Over time, as a response from church and government fails to materialize, tensions worsen, and the schism deepens. Violent clashes between adherents of the different faiths become a daily occurrence. (-1 Cohesion, loses High Priestess Ihe Kaipo)
- The New Phoenix Islands initially stay neutral in the great war to tend to their own problems, but as the war gets more and more desperate, allies call on the NPI to do their part. However, the cumulative shocks of these years and the idea of entering a costly war again are too much for the divided, scattered, and traumatized nation to bear, even with a massive propaganda campaign aimed at fostering unity between the peoples of the isles. As tensions worsen and worsen, they spill over into violence on a great scale, and soon, the Islands effectively fall into civil war, paralyzing the nation's military and economic capacities and rendering any hope of providing military aid to its allies moot as brother rises against brother. The Illuminated Children of Pele are the first to secede, and the New Phoenix Islands soon turn into an anarchic patchwork of feuding independence movements, religious cults, and warlord states, with the "legitimate" government that has been overtaken by militarymen losing ground by the day. (-1 Treasury, -1 Industry, -2 Oil, -1 Defenses, -1 Base Metals, -1 Propaganda Machine, -1 Intelligence Agency, Loses President, Becomes Military Dictatorship)
Overall Rank: Major Power (52) Map Colour: Emerald Green Geographic Location: Most of Northern Africa, Israel, Jordania, Lebanon Culture Groups: Scarabites. All are equal under the Holy Scarab's watchful gaze. Government Type: Incomprehensible to traditional methods of political thought Characters of Note: Mantrid Gunvier'Saness'Ehula (C11, Determined, Anxious, Genetic Mutation: Blind, Desires: to uphold the cohesion of her cohorts and communities under her protection) Nshaka Zulu (C10, Cunning, Dependent, Desires: To serve the Holy Scarab) Velsha'Fooheem'Jerrdahneeha (C3 [of course], Gifted Architect, Control Freak, Mutation: Damaged Brain, Desires: To dig tunnel networks under all of Nordafrique) Velsha'Elooheem'Geehzuh (C12, Incredible Organizer, Overprotective, Mutation: Hemochromatosis, Desires: to raise the greatest monuments the world has ever seen in honor of the Holy Scarab) Gunvier'Muushoo'Kyro (C7, Selfless, Naive, Desires: to liberate Nordafrique from the colonial masters of Yropa) Esser'Gorla'Leebah (C5, Gentle, Naive, Desires: to see the Scarab's faith take hold in war-torn Yropa) Esuhl'Versia'Zuudin (C8 Loyal, Extremist, Mutation: Lung Disease, Desires: to spread the faith of the Scarab by any means necessary) Esser'Gumsan'Levahnt (C3,
Eloquent, Egotistical, Desires: to avenge those killed or exiled by the
narrow-minded Azarid tyrants) Stats: Size 10, Military 9, Intelligence 9, Resources 3, Diplomacy 7, Cohesion 9 Special Features: Hidden Tunnel Traps (1), Secret Fortified Underground Tunnel Network (2), Sprawling Hivelands (2), Pharao Reborn (2), Leader Enhancements (1), Alien Cultural Values (-2), Irradiated Population (-2), Spiritual Carapace (1) Military Assets: War Priests (1), Colombian Militias (1), War Beasts (2), WYRM (5) Resource Assets: Precious Metals (1), Treasury (1), Food (1) Intelligence Assets: Demagogues (1), Moles (2), Hospitaliers (1), Seducers (2), Popular Movement (Malizia, Knight Houses, Dual Monarchy) Relations: Friendship (Gran Colombia), At War (Malizian Kingdom, North Seas Dual Monarchy) Issues: Uninhabitable wastelands, mutated and irradiated population, vast empire that can be attacked from all sides, few resources
- Cloudburst samples shipped in by the overseas allies of the NLR and Gran Colombia are studied by teams of priests and flesh-shaper experts of the Commonwealth in order to devise a metaphysical defense against them. First trial runs performed on metamorphosized warriors are successful in warding off at least some of the horrific destruction wrought by the Cloudburst chemical. (Gains Spiritual Carapace)
- The great tongue of the Holy Scarab, the WYRM is put to the task of digging massive channels and widen the Nile Basin even further, sending rivers of healing waters to every corner of Afrique as the irradiated lands are cleansed, irrigating every corner under Scarab control as the fertile soil generated by the Wyrm's consumptions is utilized and the land is tilled to seed new generations of underground farms and clay spire gardens that will yield bountiful cornucopias of life; not only for the consumption and ritual purposes of the Scarabites, but to transform the continent as a whole. At this point, many of the former "great wastes" and atomic deserts of Afrique bear little resemblance to what they were a mere generation ago. The great Scarab hath honored his promises, for he found Afrique a bleak waste of sand and left it a continent alive and flush with flora and fauna. (Loses Deserts and Wastelands, +1 Food)
- With an intense investment of food supplies and enchanted insects across the entire united Commonwealth, the weakened forces of the Commonwealth, depleted in past campaigns, are replenished to prepare the full assimilation of Afrique. (-1 Bugs, -1 Food, +1 Infantry, +1 Warrior Caste).
- Planned well in advance, the takeover of the divided Kingdom of the Zulu, once the terror of all Afrique, is finally commenced during the tail-end of the 26th year, alongside an ally of convenience, the Knight Houses of Knowledge as well as Albion. As the Zulu are plunged into a civil war, the Scarabites interfere on the side of the "converted" king and his court. Fierce as they are, the divided Zulu are unable to stand against the combined assault of three major powers from the land, the sea and the air, from the inside and outside, and their lands are split up, with the coasts being assigned to the overlordship of the Knight Houses, while the heartlands are to fall into Scarabite hands. The wondrous Mutant GMOs of the Zulu are quickly discarded by the Scarabites, who see them as unnatural technology and have no use for them — the modified cows however, are kept, out of respect for the sanctity of all life no matter how unnatural. (-1 Warrior Caste, -1 War Beast, +1 Size, +1 Treasury, +1 Food, gains Nshaka Zulu)
- The massive wave of psychic energy generated by the Divine Jubilation sweeps across Afrique and even beyond. Everywhere, people experience a spiritual awakening, like something within them beckoning them to follow the call of their god. Sects dedicated to the holy Scarab spring up across Eurasia, spiritually linked to their kin in the heart of Afrique. Especially in war-torn, devastated Yropa, the disaffected populace proves receptive to the teachings of the Holy Scarab: even more so than the Scarabites may have expected. (-2 Bugs, -2 Treasury, +3 Cohesion, +3 Popular Movements)
- Encouraged by overseas allies to come to the help of their beleaguered friends, the surprise attack by the Commonwealth on the foolish Yropans begins as a success. However, the promised support does not arrive fast enough: while the ships of Gran Colombia sink to the bottom of the ocean before the shores of Tropico and the UNRC dies a lonely death, the buglike invaders, so confident of their victory, are left to fight on their own. Outnumbered and outgunned, the warrior caste quickly loses the element of surprise, and, while putting up a valiant fight, is surrounded and wiped out almost to a man, which sends a shock through the Scarabite community. The war, however, has only just begun. Beneath the desert sands, something stirs. (-3 Warriors, -1 Cohesion)
Overall Rank: Major Power (48) Map Colour: Bright Yellow Geographic Location: Gran Colombia + Chiapas & Carribean Culture Groups: Grenadan, Genízaro (descendants of indigenous slaves), Tropicano (islanders), Aztla, Chiapa, undead equivalents of all of the above. Government Type: Constitutional Republic w/out term limits (Granada), Participatory Democracy (Aztlan), Illiberal Democracy w/ dominant party (Tropico) Characters of Note: El Libertador (C11, Brilliant, Arrogant, Desires: consolidating the entire continent into Gran Colombia, ensuring the stability of the federation after his death) El Capuleque (C10, Passionate, Stubborn, Desires: Redistribution of all Colombian land back to the Campesinos, full autonomy for Chiapa communities in Aztla and Granada) El Presidente (C5, Persuasive, Impatient, Desires: Building Tropico into the global centre of sea trade and replacing Granada as political centre of power in Colombia) Stats: Size 9, Military 11, Intelligence 3, Resources 13, Diplomacy 5, Cohesion 3 Special Features: Project Cloudburst (2), Bermuda & Galapagos Naval Outposts (1), Pyramids of the Dead (2), Granama Canal (3), Meritocracy (1), Founding Father (-2), (Un)Aging Population (-4), Carnivallland Under Construction (1), Casus Belli on Knight Houses (0) Military Assets: Grand Carriers (1), Infantry (1), Vehicles (1), Irregulars (2), Defences (1), Hatun Runas (2), Wings of Apu Qatiql (1), Quetzcoatal Fighters (1), Levied Infantry (1) Resource Assets: Oil (4), Cash Crops (2), Gold (2), Base Metals (2), Industry (3) Intelligence Assets: Comités de Defensa de la Revolución (Domestic 3) Relations: Working Relationship (Westafrique Freemen, Empire of the Black Sun), Trusted Comrades (LRN, Commonwealth of the Holy Scarab), At War (North Seas Dual Monarchy, Malizian Kingdom, Paxisteni Alchemists, Azarid Empire, Sibirsk Tribes), Rival (Knight Houses of Knowledge) Issues: Transatlantic war, great casualties, diverse member states, devastation, looming overpopulation crisis, dangerously low cohesion
- Gran Colombia has suffered greatly from the event known as "El Cataclismo." Her greatest cities lie in ruin, her industry buried under tons of rubble, and the ancient Aztlan Lines all but a memory. Now, more than ever, Colombia needs her peoples to rally to her. Starting immediately, a Federation wide labour draft is instituted pulling all adult citizens not employed in critical services or attending higher education who are of sound mind and body into the Cuerpo de Construccion or normal military service, a gigantic program that channels the enormous potential of those millions adrift, homeless, unemployed so that it is directed towards public works projects to reconstruct the destroyed cities and not only rebuild but expand on demolished Colombian infrastructure. In taking advantage of Colombia's enormous labour pool, the federation's special body for emergency public works directs repairs to any salvageable structures that were partially destroyed by the cataclysm, and the rapid construction first temporary, and then mass-produced housing to replace what was lost, followed by the restoration of demolished mining and manufacturing industry. In the North, special irrigation projects expand the canals which feed Aztlan's bountiful ejidos and blessings of Tlaloc's First Pitcher are applied to purify and enhance the water's effect on crops. Priest Cadres oversee and ritually enhance the reconstruction of urban centres and industry through great sacrifices to Xipe Totec, god of rebirth and, especially pressing for the reconstruction of the mines, of gold and silversmithing. Though not quite as devastated by their civil war as the rest of Colombia has been by the destruction of the great Temple Cities, the Rikch'aq Suyu Inka are included into the project as well, to further their integration into the Republic as well as fix the damage done by traditionalist uprisings in the past. (+1 Oil, +1 Base Metals, +1 Industry, +1 Cohesion)
- Beyond economic recovery, Colombia decides to embrace air power! Using their air force's functional knowledges of aeronautics, the newly acquired wundermaterial Elenium shipped from the UNRC as well as employing hybridized Inkan-Aztlan ritual magicks incorporating specially prepared Condor and Quetzal feathers into the design, the Aztlan Confederacy designs and builds a force of lightweight, efficient, and deadly Quetzcoatal Class Multipurpose Fighters to be scrambled in defence of the homeland or as an aggressive force deployed from Colombian Great Carriers. (+2 Quetzcoatal Fighters).
- While there were many plans on what should be done with the newly cleared territories that had formerly been swallowed by the gigantic, man-eating Brasil Jungle, surely none came close to the staggering megalomania and sheer absurdity of El Presidente's Carnivallland. But perhaps, it was the kind of insanity that this world needed. Construction of the gigantic amusement park set to become the greatest attraction of the Western hemisphere proceeds apace with only minor interruptions, with funds, personnel and resources from at least half a dozen nations from all over the continents dedicated towards it. Of course, a mere two years are not enough for such a monumental project, and even El Presidente's famous impatience cannot speed the construction up beyond what is humanly possible. (Gains Carnivallland Under Construction)
- With the Palma Trials, the greatest international tribunal of the post-Golden Era world is conducted. It is an honest but deeply flawed attempt at dispensing justice in an unjust world, at establishing a supranational judicial system and international accountability in a bloody and barbaric world. While the lawsuit is carried out with a surprising amount of care, the proceeds of the trial are mired by boycotts, favoritism and serious accusations of partisan bias and unfair rulings. Ultimately, the trial appears as a mere propaganda campaign, as one alliance indicting their enemies to gain legitimacy, and the results go unsung in the cataclysmic turmoils of the World War. While the verdict is clear and the Knight Houses pronounced guilty for their crimes, the fact that the results of the trial are rejected across the ocean and mostly go unacknowledged causes great dismay all across Gran Colombia and presents a challenge to the continued faith in national and international institutions. (+1 Diplomacy, -1 Cohesion, Gains Legitimate Casus Belli on Knight Houses of Knowledge)
- After the last of the overgrown Brasil jungle has been defoliated, the brave men and women of the Cuerpo de Exploración make a startling discovery: they stumble upon the overgrown ruins of an ancient city. Soon, an expedition is launched to find what is hidden within…
- To safeguard the future of the glorious revolution, demagogues and other agitators are folded into the nationalistic Comités de Defensa de la Revolución (CDR). (-1 Demagogues, +1 Domestic Foreign Agency)
- Gran Colombia, formerly a rather neutral power takes center-stage in the cataclysmic war for the planet. Colombian Grand Carriers desperately defend UNRC waters from invaders and are sunk. Unfortunately, attempts to rescue the UNRC from its fate come to naught due to the enormous naval might and tenacity of the invaders. Orbital transport of infantry proves to be impossible with the UNRC space assets, for the mechanism is designed for infantry trained and equipped for orbital insertion, so no reinforcements that could hold the line arrive. Cut off from all supplies via sea, the fighters flying continuous sorties from the Petrobras base find themselves forced to return to the Surican mainland after two weeks of continuous operations. Thus, the UNRC falls, and Gran Colombia is pushed out of the Mediterranean as Malizian troops make landfall on the Balearic Isles and the tiny garrisons surrender. (-2 Grand Carriers, Loses Outposts on Balearics, -1 Quetzcoatal Fighters)
- For the first time in its history, Gran Colombia mobilizes for full-scale warfare, drawing on all the resources of Surica as well as its allies. Over a million men and women are conscripted and well over two-hundred thousand deployed to the Pacyfic theatre, while the rest of the mighty fleet joins up with Black Sun elements, enters the Alantik and faces off against the vessels of the Dual Monarchy encroaching on Colombian seas. The titanic "Battle for the Caribbean" that follows almost defies description. Even with aerial support, the grand armada of the Dual Monarchy shatters the opposing forces and manages to besiege Tropico and its outlying islands, inflicting massive economic damage in its merciless naval artillery shelling and forcing El Presidente to retreat into his personal bunker. The first Battle for the Caribbean is lost, but the Khanate has been shattered, the enemy had to withdraw to resupply and the industrial behemoth that now controls almost all the vast territories of Surica is only just waking up. (+3/-2 Levied Infantry, -1 Hatun Rutas, -2 Grand Carriers, -1 Wings of Apu Qatiql, -1 Gold, -2 Cash Crops, -1 Industry, -1 Cohesion)
Overall Rank: Major Power (59) Map Colour: Dark Grey Geographic Location: Japan, Korea, Parts of Eastern Russia Culture Groups: Ypanese, Joseon, Rus, Ballkhanik Government Type: Corporate Nobility Characters of Note: CEO Drakul Vladimir (C10, Ruthless, Ancient Wisdom, Desires: to ensure his peoples survive and thrive) Shogun Murata, Shogun of the Cyberhematic Samurai (Loyal, Stubborn, Desires: Keep the military strong) Competence 5
CEO Diavolo (C11, Mastermind, Paranoid, Desires: to rule the nation) Penumbral Artificial Intelligence (C7, Genius, Obsessive, Desires: to know everything) Stats: Size 7, Military 16, Intelligence 7, Resources 16, Diplomacy 3, Cohesion 7 Special Features: Susanoo Array (2), Maritime Empire (1), Corporate Meritocracy (1), Empire of the Fallen Sun (1), Black Sun (4), Vampyrism (-1), Pretender (-2), Incompetent Character (-1), Contested Succession (-2), Widely Disliked (-1) Military Assets: B.S. Impaler Fleet (1), Rail Walker Nosferatu (1), Air Force (1), Navy (3), Defenses (3), Militarized Cyber-Police (1), Blood Moon (5), Debt Slaves (1) Resource Assets: Treasury (4), Industry (7), Base Metals (3), Rare Metals (2) Intelligence Assets: Black Cloaks (Domestic 4), In Midnight Clad (Foreign 2), Seducers (1) Relations: Uneasy Alliance (New Phoenix Islands, Gran Colombia), At War (Guanqi Order, Paxisteni Alchemists, Azarid Empire, Sibirsk Tribes) Issues: In a great war, massively weakened, greatest ally has been vanquished, disparate and scattered territories, widely despised
- Turning the churning, smog-spewing moloch that is the industry of the Black Sun the towards his ambitions, CEO Drakul Vladimir commissions a massive armament program that rolls out many of the state-of-the-art Nosferatu Walkers and rebuilds the defenses that had been destroyed in uprisings years prior. (+2 Nosferatu Walkers, +1 Defenses)
- In exchange for conquered lands that once belonged to the Yndonesian Bloc, the Phoenix Islands generously swell the Black Sun's war machine with planes of their own design (+1 Air Force, -1 Pirates, -1 Treasury).
- The Black Sun Empire, never one to let opportunities for profit slide, contributes parts of its own economic power towards the ludicrous plans of Tropico's El Presidente as well, throwing in attractions such as "Meet and Greet with a Real Vampire!", a spooky Gothic castle and "The Blood Moon, the greatest roller coaster in the world!", only for a stake in the profits of course. (Diplomacy +1)
- Utilizing the endless supply of slave labor in the Khanate, several massive industrial conglomerates in the Empire make great investments in the Democratic Republic of Aygia and relocate some of their industry there to take advantage of the extremely cheap labor costs and ramp up their profit margins. Over the course of Year 26, an increasing number of commodities and raw resources are imported from the Khanate and more and more producing there. What profits were gained, the war with the Khanate brought to nought, in fact the Black Sun industry takes a hit from the destruction wrought by both parties, but at least the slave workshops could be exploited as beachheads and hiding places by Black Sun military forces (-1 Industry, -2 Treasury).
- After the Shroud devoured his power, CEO Drakul sank into a mire. His paranoia ramped up greatly to ensure his protection now that he could not strike back himself. His mystical talents he could work on later, however for now, he would try a different approach. Having received the Culmite from Gran Columbia, this powerful new material needs a powerful new purpose. Using technology perfected in the construction of the Blood Moon, Drakul commissions for himself a gigantic combat walker, as well as a secretive, high-tech device. The megalomaniacal project consumes a staggering amount of resources, but for CEO Drakul, no price is too small to pay for absolute power. (-1 Treasury, -1 Base Metal, Drakul (re)gains Black Sun).
- The first invasion of Khanate territory, heralded by a great bombardment, is not the overwhelming, surgical alpha strike that was anticipated, as the Khanate activates its numerous allies and quickly adapts to overwhelm the qualitatively superior but overstretched Black Sun forces with sheer quantity. The war turns into a bloody battle of attrition, in which thousands upon thousands of the most elite Black Sun military members find grisly deaths at the hands of Khanate mongrels and trillions in military spending are wasted. As worse comes to worse, the Guanqi Order exploits the moment of weakness to seize territories once gained from the Four Tigers (-1 Rail Walker Nosferatu, -2 Cyberhematic Samurai, -2 Porphyric Magi, +1/-3 Air Force, -2 Unholy Ones, -1 Treasury, -1 Industry)
- The happenings thousands of miles away in the Alantik affect the Empire as well. As the Freemen of Westafrique find themselves confronted with the overwhelming and are told to yield or die, they switch allegiance, abandoning their vampyric paymasters. A sizeable flotilla of Black Sun ships accompanies the fleet of Gran Colombia as it passes through the Granama canal and is annihilated before the shores Tropico, though not without inflicting heavy losses. The UNRC, formerly the Black Sun Empire's staunchest ally, ceases to exist. (-2 B.S. Impaler Fleet, -1 Navy, Loses Vassal [Westafrique Freemen's Domain])
- As the Khanate fights tooth and nail for its survival, the Black Sun begins activating its debt slave program just to fill its depleted ranks. In reckless, daring missions, the vampiric agents of In Midnight Clad hunt the Great Khan, the greatest nemesis of their state, across Aygia, in turn pursued by the fanatical agents of the DRoA who make short work of any vampyre unlucky enough as to fall into their hands. Ultimately, the gamble proves successful, as the Khan is tracked down, and Khanate beheaded and what remains of his nation thrown into disarray, but casualties among the ranks of the agents are high. The rest of the scattered, desperate defenders are ground down and mopped up by the superior coalition forces in a miserable battle of attrition. What retains at least some economic viability of the destroyed, ravaged territories formerly belonging to the DRoA is integrated into the sphere of the Black Sun, the hinterlands scorched, put to the torch, bombarded to rubble and left to crumble. (+3/-2 Debt Slaves, -1 Nosferatu Rail Walker, +1 Size, -1 Foreign Agency, +2 Industry, +1 Base Metals, +1 Treasury)
Overall Rank: Regional Power (48) Map Colour: Light Red Geographic Location: The Alpine Region Culture Groups: Svizzera, Jermani, Itani, Rus, Government Type: Theocratic Monarchy Characters of Note: Grand Priest Byleth (C12, Dutiful, Orderly, (Perfect Being), Desires: to guide the Malizian people into a new era by casting down into Hell all who oppose them) High Commander Beleth (C6, Clever, Merciless, Desires: to spread the Malizian belief across the world) High Consecrator Belshazzar (C5, Perceptive, Obsessive, Desires: to delve into the infernal secrets of Malizia's great libraries) Stats: Size 7, Military 7, Intelligence 6, Resources 11, Diplomacy 1, Cohesion 6 Special Features: Otherworldly Lore (4), Hannibal (2), Perfect Being (2), Strait of Gibraltar (2), Competent Character (1), Demon Council (1), Ancient Cache of Knowledge (1), Fanatic Purifiers (-3), Depleted Population (-1) Military Assets: Wall of Gehenna (1), Andras' Legion (1), Freeman Militia (2), Byrath's Legions (1), Navy (1), Kheshigg (1) Resource Assets: Gold (1), Iron Shafts (2), Industry (3), Hydro-Electric Dams (1), Treasury (1), Uranium (1), Elenium (2) Intelligence Assets: Silent Watchers (3), Missionaries of Astaroth (2), Popular Movement in the North Seas Dual Monarchy (1) Relations: Alliance of Convenience (North Seas Dual Monarchy), At War (Commonwealth of the Holy Scarab, Gran Colombia) Issues: Isolated on the world stage, at war, devastated territories, low population, surrounded by powerful enemies, low cohesion
- To prepare for what is to come, Malizian industry and foreign industrial aid fully dedicate their productivity to producing wargear and equipment for the kingdom's legions. En masse, the thinned-out ranks of the Malizian people and their converted subjects are conscripted, men and women from 16-45 are hastily pressed into uniform and trained to be deployed on the field of battle. Furthermore, a great naval expansion is commenced. In the desperate struggle soon to arrive, Malizia shall have to give its all. Malizia shall either succeed in its bid for control of the Mediterranean, or not exist at all. (+3 Andras' Legions, +1 Navy, Gains Depleted Population.
- Help sometimes arrives from unlikely places. The Great Khanate, seemingly sharing interests with the Malizian Kingdom, agrees to send their own demonic beasts to Yropa, to augment the infernal ranks of Malizia. (+2 Byrath's Legions)
- Using foreign and domestic investments and treasure reserves, the Missionaries of Astaroth are greatly expanded, their funding massively increased. Inducted by High Commander Beleth, they are set on their task to infiltrate the abodes of the arch-enemy and turn them against each other, so that the weakened enemy will be easy prey for the Malizian legions. (+2 Missionaries of Astaroth)
- The Freeman militia, composed of former Ilian slaves, is set to peacekeep and respond to threats by raiders and outlaws, subjecting any that are caught to summary judgement. Through such draconian punishments, law and order return bit by bit in the war-torn wastes of central Yropa. (+1 Cohesion)
- As a side effect of the massively increased proselytization efforts, the Malizian faith soon takes on a dynamic entirely of its own, supported by the efforts of Grand Priest Byleth, who dedicates funds from his own pocket to missionary work. Especially among the disaffected, starving, suffering peoples of war-torn Yropa, the Malizian faith spreads like wildfire. (+1 Cohesion, Gains Popular Movement in the North Seas Dual Monarchy)
- The newly appointed High Consecrator delves into the forbidden libraries hidden deep in the mountains of Malizia, to continue the research into the occult and arcane where Amaymon once left off. What he will unearth and if his sanity stays intact remains to be seen. (+1 Otherworldly Lore).
- As the conspiracy is uncovered and civil war that tears the UNRC begins, the agents of the Reclamation Corps immediately begin liquidating turncoats, spies, infiltrators and entire Malizian sects with extreme prejudice. Having wormed themselves deep into the networks of the enemy and ventured directly into the lion's den, only few of them are able to escape the ensuing turmoil alive. They have served well and shall forever be remembered for what they did for their nation and the attainment of the earthly paradise. (-2 Missionaries of Astaroth)
- Of course, relief from Dual Monarchy of the North Seas arrives soon and , but this does not bring back the tens of thousands of eager Malizian troops who now rot at the bottom of the ocean, never even having seen an enemy, due to the failure of their commanders. (-2 Andras' Legion, -1 Byrath's Legions, -2 Navy)
- The further war proves not much less bloody, as the tenacious, desperate resistance of the UNRC and its allies is only surmounted bit by bit. From their base in Afrique, fly daily bombing raids to soften up the invading forces and . Colombian workers in Africa ignite the great transcontinental pipelines and Itania is turned into a gigantic pyre that swallows tens of thousands of screaming souls, so that much of what was painstakingly built up and won in the Great Holy War is turned to ash almost in an instant. Still, with the help of their Northern allies, UNRC territory is conquered and integrated bit by bit, until the government collapses completely. Once more, Malizia lies in ruins and dubs it 'victory'. Still, the incorporation of the shattered rests of the UNRC brings in rare treasures unseen anywhere else and also transfers the power of controlling the straits of Gibraltar to the Malizian Kingdom, sealing Malizian Mediterranean domination… for now. (-1 Andras' Legion, -1 Byrath's Legion, -1 Base Metals, -1 Gold, -1/+1 Industry, +1 Uranium, +2 Elenium, Gains Ancient Caches of Knowledge, Gains Strait of Gibraltar)
Overall Rank: Major Power (58) Map Colour: Red Geographic Location: Great Britain Culture Groups: Albion Government Type: Constitutional Monarchy Characters of Note: King-Tsar Arthur Komarov-Pendragon (C10, Courageous, Prideful, Desires: to steer the Dual Monarchy through this time of turmoil) Queen-TsarinaValeriya Komarov-Pendragon (C6, Focused, Ruthless, Desires: to conquer Muscowy, as her mother had always wanted) Cyber-Queen Elizabeth II (C4, Knowledge Of The Ancient Ways, Relic Of A Bygone Age, Desires: to get her power back) Admiral Belson (C10, Cunning, Brutal, Desires: to increase the size of the British Navy) Merchant Prince Susilo Ibrahim (C7, Savvy Haggler, Greedy, Desires: to enrich himself over all else) Stats: Size 7, Military 8, Intelligence 10, Resources 11, Diplomacy 5, Cohesion 3 Special Features: Rudimentary Space Tech (1), Cloning Tech Blueprints (2), Naval Outpost Madagasikara (1), Rule Britannia (2), Divided Court (-2), Rudimentary Cloning Machine (1), Vassal (Westafrique Freemens' Domain) (3) Military Assets: Royal Navy (1), HMS Unsinkable (2), Extensive Anti-Air Defenses (2), Tsarina's Thousand (1), Tsarina's Mermen (1), The Firebolts (1) Resource Assets: Coal & Oil (5), Industry (5), Royal Treasury (2), Uranium (1), Base Metals (4) Intelligence Assets: The Squaddies (4), Domestic Intelligence Agency (3), Ochrana (Foreign 2), Propaganda Machine (1) Relations: Vassal (Westafrique Freemens' Domain), Uneasy Alliance (Guanqi Order, Knight Houses), At War (New Phoenix Islands, Empire of the Black Sun, Gran Colombia), North Sea Alliance (Nordnorica, Knight Houses) Issues: At War, low cohesion, divided court, sprawling territories
- As in so many parts of the world, the Albion are not keen to be left behind in the arms race. The belching industrial furnaces and smoke-spewing furnaces of Britannia work overtime to bolster the Royal Navy with new vessels launched straight off the production line while tens of thousands of lower-class Bretons are pressed into dark blue uniforms and hastily trained to serve as the crews and fill the ranks of the massively expanded navy. Britannia shall once more rule the seas, as she has always done. (+2 Royal Navy)
- Tsarina Komarov, the feared Queen of the Frost sighs out her soul on her deathbed, surrounded by her daughter and all the confidantes of the Tsardom. Age finally took its toll and did what no general or warlord was capable of doing. Obviously, the designated successor is her daughter, the princess and Tsarina-to-be. However, succession is always a risky and volatile business. Due to the marriage of Sir Pendragon to the Princess and the long-standing military and economic alliance between Scandia and Albion, the Tsarina's death presents a very real opportunity to Albion, namely to bring all Scandia under its control. Despite the chaos at the court and the factions that oppose it, shrewd diplomatic maneuvering allows the Britons to seize the opportunity and unite the two kingdoms in a grand ceremony. While this swells the resources of Albion massively, it also means surrendering some autonomy to the Tsarina, who now has an equal stake in the affairs of Albion. Furthermore, the court is divided, and the Queen of England who now only occupies a ceremonial rule is only one of the people who feel sidelined by this agreement. (Adds Divided Court, -1 Cohesion, +1 Size, +7 Military, +2 Industry, +2 Oil, +2 Base Metals, +2 Treasury, +2 Foreign Intelligence, +1 Domestic Intelligence, +1 Propaganda Machine)
- The Albion, never to shy away from imperialistic ventures contribute their naval power to the assault on the Zulu by sea, to assist the Knight Houses and the Scarab Commonwealth in their partition of all Afrique. Sweeping what little remains Zulu navy away, besieging their coasts, capturing their fishing villages, bombarding any resistance, and establishing a beachhead at the southern tip of Afrique is pitifully easy.
- Using blueprints stolen long ago from the Hagens, an experimental cloning facility is developed and established for first trial runs in Britannian territory. (-1 Treasury, Adds Experimental Cloning Facility)
- Massive amounts of foreign and domestic investment is pumped into the elite Squaddie program to replenish their ranks, which had been thinned out by their many high-stakes missions in the past three decades. (+2 Squaddies)
- Eager to seize any opportunity at striking against their hated nemesis that inflicted such a humiliating defeat upon them, Albion and Scandia join forces with the Malizian Kingdom to vanquish the UNRC even if it means (literally) dealing with the devil. The hasty assault of the Malizians right into the artillery barrels of the Colombian and UNRC navy stationed in the Western Mediterranean leads to enormous casualties on their own side, while the Dual Monarchy forces are able to mop up what is left with relative ease. The greater difficulty for the Monarchists comes after making landfall, where the Malizian forces stay back to let the fresh North Sea troops handle the conquest. The Northern troops fight, bleed and die for every inch, blow up automated defense systems, wrestle robotic soldiers and engage the buglike elite warrior relief force to finally plant their flags on top of the United Nations Convent alongside Malizian infantrymen. The great enemy is vanquished, the Earth freed from lunar tyranny, and the victory causes great rejoicing in all the North Sea territories despite the high losses. (-1 Tsarina's Mermen, -2 Hjälptrupper/Medhjælpere/Apujoukot, -1 Air Force, -1 Royal Grenadiers, -1 Tsarina's Thousand, +1 Cohesion)
- After forcing the pesky Westafrique Pirates to finally submit to the true rulers of the Alantik, the mighty armada, invincible Royal Navy advances westwards to break the back of Gran Colombian resistance and besiege the Caribbean. Before the shores of Tropico it meets an equally potent foe in the form of a combined Black Sun and Gran Colombian naval contingent with aerial support, and the ensuing days-long battle chokes the sea with corpses and wrecked ships, but the navy of the Dual Monarchy prevails. After shelling the coasts of Tropico for weeks and transforming much of it into a barren waste, the fleet returns home to resupply and lick its wounds. (Gains Vassal [Westafrique Freemen's Domain], -2 Royal Navy, -2 Tsarina's Mermen, -1 Unsinkable)
Overall Rank: Regional Power (42) Map Colour: Azure Blue Geographic Location: Ireland + holdings in Central West Africa Culture Groups: Gaelic, Scot, some Anglo-Saxon, Zentralafrique Natives Government Type: House-Based Representative Oligarchy Characters of Note: House Regent Shamus Jaxx (C9, Great Warrior, Stressed and Overworked, Desires: to see more nations band together in acquiring knowledge and science) Jonwards Bastila (C7, Hero of the People, Scarred by the Civil War, Desires: to see the Knight Houses get a chance to make things right in the world) Felios Shehaan (C10, Master of Gun and Blade, Hotheaded Straight Shooter, Desires: to improve the houses' military at all costs) Command Director of Subhouse Dominithica (C4, Tidy, Reclusive, Desires: to assure total stability in the Knight Houses, whatever the cost) Madison Paige (C5, Loyal, Cursed, Desires: to see peace on earth and cure her disease) Stats: Size 7, Military 7, Intelligence 4, Resources 8, Diplomacy 5, Cohesion 5 Special Features: Rudimentary Space Tech (1), Secret Military Base (2), Old World Treasures (1), Boons of Knowledge (1), Advanced Culmite Secrets (1), Contested Succession (-2), God-King (-2), Tundra (-2), Ancient Knowledge (1), Mutant GMOs (3), Cultural Icon of Afrique (2) Military Assets: Knights (2), Navy (1), Air Force (1), Defenses (1), Irregulars (1), Starfighters (1) Resource Assets: Culmite (2), Treasury (2), Base Metals (1), Industry (2) Intelligence Assets: Subhouse Dominithica (Foreign 0), Subhouse Invinicabalia (Domestic 1), False Front (1), Moles (2) Relations: Uneasy Alliance (Dual Monarchy), Rivalry (Gran Colombia) Issues: Small core territory ruling over large colonial empire, militaristic neighbours, surrounded by stronger powers
- Modest economic and military buildup is commenced on the Gaelic mainland. A cluster of small factories is erected on Knight House territory, and with the help of existing blueprints and foreign investment, a small fleet of Iolar-Class Mk. I Star Interceptors constructed and readied for takeoff, the first space-capable flying machines of the Knight Houses. The final frontier is crossed. (+1 Industry, +1 Starfighters)
- To finally honor the name and principle the Knight Houses of Knowledge were founded upon, the leadership of the Houses endows a group of scholars, scientists and adventurers with generous funding to collect and preserve scraps of ancient knowledge that are still out there. Over the course of the two years, the existing library is expanded, and the scholars are able to get access to the great library of the Azarids to make transcripts of select texts as well as spelunk in conquered parts of old Mali and collect a sizeable stack of information. (+1 Ancient Knowledge, -1 Treasury)
- The long-planned invasion of the hated Zulu, who just ten years ago forced the Knight Houses into a humiliating peace and to withdraw bit by bit from Afrique is finally commenced in late 26 alongside the North Seas Dual Monarchy as well as a surprising ally of convenience, the Scarabite Commonwealth. In a quick and bloody blitzkrieg assault on the west coast of Afrique with overwhelming force concentrated force, the Zulu forces are mercilessly crushed by the Gaelic forces under the leadership of Felios Shehaan and any resistance bombed to rubble by Iolar-Class Fighters. The divided Zulu are unable to stand up to the combined assault from land, sea and air, and crumble before the brutal invasion. In the ensuing peace deal, the territory of the Mtetwa Zulu is carved up, with the Knight Houses receiving the entire coast of West and South Afrique as well as long stretches of the East coast. This also means that the great cultural center of the City-States of Yamassoukro belongs to Knight Houses jurisdiction, greatly bolstering Gaelic prestige. (-1 Knight, +1 Industry, +1 Size, -1 Cohesion, Adds Mutant GMOs, Adds Cultural Icon of Afrique)
- Venerable Regent Shamus Jaxx, who now approaches his sixties has been getting weaker by the day, more haggard and drained of life. He does not show up much to meetings anymore and has ceased public appearances, and only his closest confidantes and personal physicians have regular contact with him. At the court of the Knight Houses, it is clear that he does not have much longer to live in this world. Everything must be prepared for his eventual demise and a peaceful succession must be arranged, for when the man who united the Knight Houses finally departs from this light, the consequences for the entire empire could be disastrous.
- Much to the surprise of many on the world stage, the Knight Houses, previously partisan followers of the Democratic Republic of Aygia as well as Albion actively choose to not involve themselves in the great war that embroils the world. The issue splits the government and seeing their own long-standing ally crumble shakes the faith of many citizens of the Knight Houses, but many others are glad to not have to fight in this cataclysm. Where the Knight Houses were once extremely concerned with the happenings of the larger world, a general mood of isolationism permeates in those days. Furthermore, the results of the Palma Trials, though they go unacknowledged in Knight House territory, decisively damage their legitimacy and standing on the international stage. (-2 Diplomacy)
Overall Rank: Major Power (59) Map Colour: Burgundy Geographic Location: Most of Mexico Culture Groups: Vaquero, Mezclan, Albreetan, Midwestern, Texan, American Southlander Government Type: Representative Republic Characters of Note: President Jack Taylor (C4, Charismatic, Paranoid, Desires: To see the lost legion's territory establish a stable civilian government again) President Alf Landon (C1, Popular, Moron, Desires: to spread the Good News and convert all Norica and Surica to the true faith) Engineer James McKinley (C7, Brilliant Inventor, Cybernetic Mastery, Frail, Desires: to see the utilisation of his cybernetics and geoscaping technology on a mass scale) General Jose de la Huerta (C4, Skilled Maneuverer General, Violent Temper, Desires: to safeguard Norica) Government InvestigatorAlma Valerio (C10, Keen Observer, Obsessive, Desires: to bring to light any and all instances of abuses of power and corruption within the Legionary Republic) Scientist Claus von Morgenthau (C6, Resourceful, Blindly Obedient, Desires: to keep his shady past a secret) Philomenes of Thrakia (C5, Reliable, Perverted, Desires: to get all vampyres out of Hellas) Stats: Size 8, Military 11, Intelligence 5, Resources 14, Diplomacy 3, Cohesion 5 Special Features: Culmite Knowledge (1), Competent Character (1), Geo-Restoration Technology (3), Cybernetically Enhanced Population (2), U.S.N. (3), GMO Blueprints (1), Interstate System (1) Military Assets: Infantry (2), Battle Suits (4), Special Forces (1), Home Defence Force (2), Air Force (1), Ballistic Missiles (1) Resource Assets: Nanoil (2), Industry (3), Rare Earth Elements (2), Uranium (2), Treasury (3), Base Metals (1), Food (1) Intelligence Assets: Legion Int-Sec Force (Domestic 3, Foreign 2) Relations: Rival (Empire of the Black Sun, North Seas Dual Monarchy), Friendship (Gran Colombia) Issues: Recently integrated territory, surrounded by warfare
- Philomenes of Thrakia, always rumored to have perverted sexual leanings, finally experiences his fall from grace. A hidden camera placed by investigative journalists filmed him in a compromising position, with escorts in his room in the parliamentary building, some of them underage. An uproar shakes the Legionary Republic, threatening to shake its foundations. The government acts quickly: a series of EIS raids is launched to arrest any know to be involved in this practice and move them quickly though the court system, publicizing the rescue of victims more than the identity of the perpetrators. The government disavows Philomenos, describing him as a "long term government contractor" but that he is not above the law, and he is soon incarcerated. The journalists who broke the story are invited to a small meeting where are thanked for the commitment they showed to the truth. One of the more talented journalists is in fact hired as an investigator for the government. While admirably handled, the whole ordeal still results in a small legitimacy crisis for the government of the Legionary Republic, but soon, tempers cool down, and other, more pressing events cast their shadows. (-1 Cohesion, gains Investigative Expert Alma Valerio)
- To remedy the enormous amount of damage inflicted by the cataclysm, a great industrial buildup program is commenced under the oversight of the aged Jack Taylor, with almost all of the economic output of the RLN dedicated to this project. Large, state-of-the-art nanoil factories are raised from the ruins and old mines and processing plants rebuilt and reactivated. The huge endeavor also serves to bind together the disparate peoples of the sprawling Norican Empire that the Legion has become. (+2 Industry, +1 Nanoil, +1 Cohesion)
- Now that knowledge of the Zulu GMOs has proliferated beyond the borders of the Zulu state and even the boundaries of Afrique, foreign agents of the LRN seize their chance and acquire blueprints of the technology, which of course await further in-depth study. (Gains GMO blueprints)
- Using the outbreak of general warfare as an opportunity to finish what was started long ago, Legionary forces advance at a rapid pace into what is left of the shattered Riverine League of Norica, the Khanate vassal state. Quickly, all major population centers are captured, with mobilized Riverine militia forces proving completely unable to even slow down the Realizing that their cause is lost, the fanatical military-men of the Riverine League launch their Skysplitter Missile, a final send-off to take revenge on the innocents. The war-head is intercepted and shot off-course by UNRC defense satellites and impacts several kilometers away from its intended target, but still, much of the capital lies in ruins. Yet, it was only the last gasp of a dying regime. Norica now stands united under the Legion banner. (-1 Special Forces, -1 Air Force, -1 Industry, -1 Nanoil, -1 Cohesion, +1 Size, +1 Ballistic Missiles, gain Interstate System, +1 Base Metals, +1 Treasury, +1 Food)
- In the process of consolidation, the emergency status of military rule and unlimited terms for the president that had been de facto in effect for an entire generation is finally abolished, and for the first time in its existence, the Legionary Republic holds democratic elections, much to the acclaim of its population. A fierce competition ensues, in which the CCSN (Christian Cybernetic Support Nexus) narrowly edges out its three main competitors with votes from the newly integrated East Coast territories. Sadly, calling the man they chose to put at the head of the state "dull" would still be immensely charitable. Democracy can be so fickle… (+1 Cohesion, Loses President Jack Taylor, Gains President Alf Landon)
- Due to the ravages of the world war, the Alantik is put under martial law, and the Legionary Republic mostly cut off from its holdings in Yropa and Afrique. Trade and economic activity with the overseas territories mostly cease, and the lands of Castilia and Madagasikara are forced to survive on their own. (-1 Cohesion, -1 Treasury)
Afrique Westafrique Freemens’ Domain Overall Rank: Regional Power (37) Picture/Banner/Emblem: Map Colour: Dark Yellow Description: A loose conclave of outcasts raiding and terrorizing the Atlantic Ocean. Barely a state, as it has no constitution or anything, more a loose collection of towns ...
Regent of Ciana, Shamus Jaxx, sat on his throne, the great twin banners of family house and government house behind him. To his right was his spawn, the heir to the throne. His legacy. To his left, his friend and fellow warrior through thick and thin. "Felios..." he said, his voice shocking even himself. "Has it been done?" the aging Regent asked the military commander of the Houses, Regent of House Fatchna. Felios nodded. "Our allies across the seas have been notified. We will not be idle in such dark times."
Jaxx closed his eyes and bowed his head. "May the spirits of Tara see our lands to victory," he spoke gently. "...and may they forgive us for abandoning our allies in their time of need."
He looked up to the heir, but eighteen now. His face and frame was his, but his eyes and his hair was his mother's. "Iouernius," he said, ushering his son over to him. He was dressed in an officer's uniform, flat and official, yet with the sort of ornamentation expected of nobility. The old regent placed his gauntleted hand on Iournius's shoulder. "The days you will suffer through -- they will be beyond what even I have seen, my child. When my father Augstelius, mother Anu, and uncle Domitius ruled Ciana within our great alliance of houses, what they expected the world to be was what our homeland was -- untamed, frozen, populated with sparse civilization and vicious raiders. Yet what we found was better and worse, and that world is the one you were born into."
Jaxx rose from his throne, and began to walk with his son close behind. Iourenius had seen New Dublin from this perch many times, yet the experience had not grown stale in his myriad of visits. No, the experience had only gotten grander; the city had grown, expanded, becoming more than simply the capital of the Houses but a notable city in the world in its own right. More than any previous empire in Ireland could manage, that was for sure. "This shall be your realm," Jaxx told Iourenius. "And the distant lands in Afrique. Even now is the new House Bevryding ratified, their regent Abiodun-Lancan Zulokpo is excited and pure. You two will have to work together to ensure our holdings in the far off continent are secure and true. I am taking great care in ensuring you will have all you need to rule, my boy. House Ciana and House Jaxx, of which you will be housemaster of both, wield immense power within Ireland. Felios is a good friend and a valued warrior, but he will be replaced before long due to his age. Your mother, Madison Paige, will help usher you in and guide you once I am dead. She will follow me into the afterlife as well, in time. Eolaíocht, our grand scholar, will be a great help in bettering this world. He will look to you for leadership, and I hope you look to him for wisdom."
Iourenius nodded. "I wished that when I became regent, you would guide me," he admitted. "But I knew those two things could never happen together. I will miss you, once you are gone father. All of Ireland will. Even parts of Afrique will lament your passing. Our Sassalion allies, to the northeast. The people will remember you as a hero. Your name will be spoken in tones of grandeur and love, and in time Shamus Jaxx will join the ranks of ancient saints and heroes."
"My legacy is Ireland's," Shamus said. "If it falls, my name...your name...all of us will be remembered as footnotes in the grand scheme of history. For all the Great Khan's atrocities, he will be remembered no matter what. But to live to be known past death is not to live," he said, looking to his son despite the horizons of success and glistening city before him, "Living is to claim victory, and have that victory remembered. Victory, like giving one's offspring a good childhood. Victory, like storming a camp and beating your foe with few losses. Victory, like uniting Afrique under a single banner for the first time in centuries. Victory...like expanding one's influence across the globe, and ensuring the morals of the Houses are not sacrificed along the way. Do not be a tyrant, Iourenius. That was my mistake," he said, and Iourenius grimaced.
"But father, you were no tyrant. You progressed our people, you took Afrique from the warlords and your leadership guided us to better pastures," Iourenius exclaimed. "The Houses still stand because of you."
"Progressed our people towards war, conquered Afrique with force, rule its coasts by working with monsters and war criminals. The Khan deserved to die, and I sat by and watched as he slaughtered so many innocent," Shamus sighed heavily. "We are an empire because of me, and our lot is little better."
"Perhaps. But history will thank you," Iourenius tried to convince his father. Couldn't he see the greatness of his own people? "This is your realm for now, and in truth it forever will be. Grandfather Augstellius founded the Houses but you led it to its golden age. We are a united people, under your vision. In death, we will look to your actions for wisdom. See your faults and your successes. The Khan is dead, and his killer a hero, but you were not the Khan, or the Sassalion Queen, or anybody but Shamus Jaxx, regent of House Ciana and House Jaxx. That is enough for me, father."
Shamus nodded. "So it shall be written," he mused. "But don't...don't become stuck in the past, my boy. Don't look to your forefathers for all the answers, don't look to the Western and Eastern Empires for consul. They are dead, and soon I shall be too. Somethings are new...somethings have to be new. The Houses and much of Ireland is made of scrap. Pieces of the old world that we scavenge and search for. There is merit in this practice. But if all you are is the old world, you'll never see the beauty of the new. I never looked at the wider world with much pride. The wasteland plains of Agyia, the countrysides of Jermani and Franqu, the great deserts of Gaelic and Commonwealth Afrique, the girth of great Scandia, the twin coasts of Norica...it was only Ireland which captured my love. But you? You have a greater sense of this planet than I do, you were born into this new world...do not slip into isolationism. My legacy is yours. But that is not all you are."
As Ignicio Salas picked his way through the sea choked streets of the ruined city he nervously checked the inbuilt GIGER mask nervously. With the devastation at the capitol resources hadn't been able to be devoted to Gamma-Cleanse cities like this yet, much less ones that were still pretty much uninhabited. Still, this was the Eastern end of the Golden interstate, and if he was to prove his theories right this was where he needed to be.
That theory of course was one that had been hotly contested. It had long held that the West had no true capital, and that the Mega-Metropolis in West Kaliphoona, was the closest they'd ever come, but the others were London and some forgotten ruin now filled with simy demons. However records coming back from Brasilia, freshly freed from the Amazon indicated the presence of another. A capital not so impossibly old as that they'd found in Castilia, but impossibly grand. Indeed, the Golden Republic of the American was likely tied into this place, old stories spoke of its breadth and beauty. That it stretched from Sea to Shining Sea, with further references to waves of gold and amber. If the second gate of gold could be found, matching the fixing points of Kaliphoona that would prove it. That they had within their grasp the full extent of the first Golden Republic, and would have captured in their hearts the duty of shepherding Democracy and Freedom that the old empire once carried.
As Salas passed through the final tunnel, toggling the mask as he passed through many flooded sections and straining servos as he pushed aside debris he took a few minutes to stop and examine the preserved infrastructure of a time long ago. The significance of those remaining directions could not be guessed, was the empty Sky Station some emphasis that this place had once held a way beyond the atmosphere into the void beyond? Or was there some other religious significance to it? Perhaps it was home to an old and crumbled air defence battery from before the Ancients began to use voidcraft? Either way, there was little use turning on that mystery when the answer to another was so close at hand.
With one final check he withdrew the Document. It was initially an old folk song, it's origins lost to history but recorded throughout the Federation prior to the loss, and remembered everywhere, though most common North of the Grande. Going thusly.
O beautiful for open skies,
For golden waves of grain,
For ancient mountain majesties
Above the fruited plain!
America! America!
God shed His grace on thee
And crown all thee with brotherhood
From sea to shining sea!
O beautiful for pilgrim feet,
Whose hopeless desperate stress
One nation for freedom beat
Across dead wilderness!
America! America!
We'll mend thine every flaw,
Confirm thy soul in self-control,
Thy liberty in law!
If it weren't for scattered references to the Martyr's faith here, he doubts he'd have even received the funding, but it had proved enough for the grant to bring him here. Across the Golden continent, across one nation, as the teams of Geo-engineers drew up plans to purify it of those scars that remained and newly elected parties squabble only over how to best give the people their liberty. Salas was no theist, but at times like this it felt something had to be rewarding the good. Had to have seen the glorious thing they would create. And the island at the end of this tunnel would be proof of that.
As the final steps were taken Salas' heart sank, the immense star that dominated the island, half drowned amid the waters, was cracked and pitted as expected from the recipient of a nuclear blast. And as he ascended further he saw the immense shapes of green copper observed from outside showed no truer pattern up close. Instead casing the back half of the island in a sheet of melted and resolidified copper, no clung to by lichen and contless salts. The monument that was once beautiful, but now destroyed beyond prior recognition. Still he ascended the fort, to the base of this metallic mess. There he found no roadway leading to the ocean, as the Golden Gate boasted. But still he searched, until he saw a bronze plinth bearing words that had his heart racing beyond regulated limits.
Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame,
With conquering limbs astride from land to land;
Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand
A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame
Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name
Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand
Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command
The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.
"Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!" cries she
With silent lips. "Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"
With that read, he felt his breath leave him, here it was proof for all he had done. Another creed, perhaps the first true law of the Golden Republic recovered and words too of a golden door. This was the Eastern end of the path! This was the Golden door to match the golden gate in majesty. Made breathless by wonder Salas climbed to the top of what remained of the monument whooping his proof to the Skies. Then, as a single cheer was shed in the evening light he turned out Eastward and caught sight of it, something he'd noted on the mainland but which had never had the same effect there. The light catching on a reef of buried towers, glass steel and chrome, ancient paints and pigments catching the sun as it shone back up to show the land. A true shining sea. Golden America was theirs, and now it was their duty to share it's glory and mend every flaw
The smoke of battle drifts over the debris-choked waters of the Straits of Gibraltar as the mighty Dual Monarchies Fleet churns the sea with their wakes. Lifeless bodies floating by the thousand in the meeting points of the Mare Nostrum and the Atlantik slow their progress minutely, as does the hunt for the few survivors of the chaotic slaughter. Chunks of debris clutter the sea's surface, made of strange metals and other supermaterials whose composition is now lost to time. Fuel slicks burn brightly and spread across much of the Straits, and from the sunken corpse of the once-dreaded UNS Bellerophon emits faint but haunting blue light, barely visible on the surface. The combined fleets of the UNRC and her allies had been obliterated, clearing the path. Now, all that was left was for the landings to begin.
---
Lieutenant Sebastian Spencer of the British Grenadiers stooped his head in his landing craft, trying in vain to both see his target and minimize his exposure to the spray generated by the stout little boat chopping into the oncoming waves. He and his platoon of Royal Grenadiers were part of the first wave of troops that were to make landfall in the ancient Albionic territory of Gibraltar, that which was stolen by the perfidious "UNRC." They were embarked but one of the hundreds of small landing craft that were roaring towards the beaches, preparing to storm the enemy's defenses. In front of them lay a black miasma, a cloud of dark smog impenetrable to his eyes. His superiors had told him that it was an effect of their... allies own assault, from the landward side of the peninsula. Whatever it was, it seemed wrong to him, like a wall of evil that he and his comrades were being fed alive to. Nevertheless, orders were orders, and he and his men were British Grenadiers, Her Cyber-Majesty's most elite unit, and they would not let Queen and Country down.
On that thought, he racked his Lee-Enfield 9000 Bolt-Action Assault Rifle, and crouched down to address his men, yelling loudly over the incredible noise. "Listen up, chaps! We'll be landing on the beaches soon, so chipper up and be ready to roll! I want us to secure our objective before the Second Wave finishes up teatime and gets their dainty selves into their barges. Do you hear me, gents!" They hooted and hollered, and he grinned despite himself. He wouldn't let his boys down. He raised himself up again just in time to see the vessels in front of him swallowed by the black cloud as it rushed up to meet them. He grinned grimly. Here we go... he thought.
The press conference was called at the foot of the sacred mountain, where the first adherents to Newmerican christianity - the faith from which Cyber-Christianity was derived - had carved the heads of the four most virtuous president saints. At the head of the table was Alf Landon, president, head of the CCSN and a man famed for faith and for goodness much more than he was for competence, or the making of difficult political decisions. At his right sat Sarah A Madison, who led her faction of the URC into a deal with Landon's government that secured Landon the chance to get legislative support for many of his laws in exchange for several executive positions, the most significant being her own as the Presidential Deputy for the Enforcement of the Peace. At Landon's left was Alma Valerio, once a reporter who rose quickly through the ranks of government to emerge as the Presidential Deputy for the Security of the Government's Service. It was clear that both women were concerned about what was to come, but had made their objections in private, unwilling to publicly undermine the president.
Thus Landon only had to contend with the shouting of the media, and barked orders from his EIS presidential guard as he began his speech, one which went thusly.
"Hello, Good day to all of you, a good day in a good country, in the greatest country on this green earth. I come here today to ensure that as we say that and as we know it to be true, so will our children, and our children's children. For when we ask ourselves, 'What makes this nation the greatest, most benevolent and most just nation?' well we find many answers. Our military makes us great, protects us from chaos or the predations of others, and ensures working men are free to pursue their fortunes in safety, and toppling illegitimate governments that restrict our countrymen. Our common working countrymen, they make this country great, they grow the food that feeds the hungry, rich and poor alike, and they mine the iron and make the goods we all rely on for each act to make this country great. Out geo-restorers make the country beneath our feet great, give us the purest air and water on the planet and thar air and water makes us great, carrying our message throughout this world.
Yet what allows all these things to happen, what ensures they're all invested in making us great rather than making some big man in a rivier city rich, that's our democracy, our traditions of liberty and representation, where no man is made a slave, where we ensure everyone has access to the cybernetics they need to push through whatever's in their way. Democracy is so important. In the ancient times, they knew it just as we know it today. Ask any engineer of the histories and they'll tell you, the Western republic, who goddam damn defined greatness, whose legacy we carry forward today, they were great as long as they kept their democracy, then lost greatness, and everything else just a few years after they let their democracy die.
Even today we see so many failing at the hurdle. When I was young people heard about the tigers, in the east, they were gonna rule the world, restart everything, build it bigger and taller and richer, now their lands are burnt out ruins, because they weren't a proper democracy. The Khanate, it was gonna be a bastion of democracy, uniting all of Asia. Hell we believed in their dream, we let them have our Restoration engines to build a better democracy a state almost as great as the one we have here today, but when they fought the russians, they decided to stop being a democracy and they turned rotten fast, turning our most sacred engines to war and giving cloudburst to our dictators over here.
We can't let that happen people, democracy doesn't stop at our borders, not in a truly great country. But right now, though Castilia and Brasil and Madigaska all get looked after by our troops, driving back the jungle and the vampires and the demons. Well they still vote for president, I still got a lot of votes from Brasil, those beautiful citizens there. But we never gave them the choice of joining our nation, after we re-united it. So, today I'm announcing something new, something important. Hell the Gaels, they see the people fight and fight and fight because they don't want the knights there, but the Gaels just send another batch of their boys over there to kill and burn and do all that crazy stuff. But just because we always treated the Madigaskans and Castilians nicely, just because before we arrived they were suffering doesn't mean we can make them be ruled from the New Capital. Not if that's not what they want.
So we're going to draw up plans, and in some time Castilia and Brasil and Madigaska will be allowed to choose whether they want to stay as our brothers in arms, stay and freely choose to be part of our nation. Or whether they want to be friends, but not to be a part of the nation and instead try to make themselves great on their own terms. And I'll say that any country that isn't willing to do that, isn't willing to let the people choose their own fate. That think they should be in charge because their Princess Valeriya apparently wants the proudest most stuck up boy to go to bed with, not because it's what the ordinary people want, any country that isn't willing to let the people they try to free choose whether things really are better than they used to be, those countries are brutal and they're not doing anyone in the world a single bit of good. So we're gonna be good, we're gonna take anyone who wants us but anyone who doesn't want us shouldn't have to have us, like they say in the good book. Now, have any of you got any questions?"
While the reporters surged forwards, government offices across the world were already reacting to the announcement. It was nearly unprecedented for a nation to do this without pre-existing pressures and rumours circulated whether the NLR was sincere, or whether they merely wanted to prove their right to rule in the hope of quieting opposition. Perhaps it was some sort of diplomatic stunt, to ensure more goodwill from other oppressed groups they'd need to work towards. Or perhaps Landon had been taken in by the simple power of faith, one that often beats all the magic in the world. No matter what, this would prove to be a momentus speech in the history of the NLR.
