That ship has sailed, unless for some reason players backtrack their decision and do nothing to help the AENC win, which I think is unlikely. It'd definitely be an amusing turn around if that were the case.
I love the way the Crusader State is characterized. It's leader embodies the general mindset that Crusaders States tended to be built upon. Hell, his comment on Medina and Mecca reminds me of Afonso de Albuquerque, a famous 16th century Portuguese commander who wanted not only to destroy Medina and Mecca, but also steal the body of the Prophet Muhammad. You can also see how most of the settlers have fled from Southern Italy, seeking new land even if it means taking it from the natives, but even they live in fear of their leader, with the exception of those either loyal to him or in the process of being indoctrinated into becoming his loyal holy soldiers. You can see it in the reactions of the few young who agreed with his message. The regime is brutal and monstrous, but it is a very Human monstrosity.
It is unclear what Egypt's future shall be, but the only thing I know for real is that there will be blood. Even an Egypt run by the local Coptic Christians will see no mercy from the Crusaders if they are given the chance to invade Egypt. I look forward to seeing how things develop.
Okay, continuing on to Europe and Africa. Sorry for the delay.
In 1836, Europe had just put down a series of liberal revolutions, especially ones springing from Italy and Germany. The Holy Roman Empire, led by Bohemia, is on the edge of irrelevancy after Bavaria and Austria both had gotten independence a mere decade before, Italy is split once more into multiple states as the liberal revolutionaries and Provencal Valois both begin threatening the balance of power, Scandinavia is eyeing the lands of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth to complete their domination of the Baltics, and the Ottoman Empire is falling to wars and unrest on all sides.
It's also to be noted that DoD did not have any "Concert of Europe" style of event. Rather, that is a thing that triggers as a reaction to any major event that greatly tips the balance of power in Europe, such as the formation of the Danubian or Elbian Federations, the formation of Italy, the formation of Aragon-Italy, etc.
Starting off, the Iberian Peninsula. In 1836, "Kingdom of Spain" is the creation of a union between Portugal and Castille some centuries before rather than Aragon and Castille. Thus, you can tell Spain - or rather the country that used to be named Spain - is the bright red country taking up 2/3rds of the Iberian Peninsula. Its primary concerns at that point are to maintain its empire, which has banded together in a tenuous federation known as "Gran Colombia" to kick it out of the New World. Spain has them on the back-foot, but things can always turn around. As was mentioned here, "Spain" fell to socialist revolutionaries and has adopted a new name (or at least we haven't heard them called Spain yet). It has the opportunity in 1836 to form the Iberian Union that was mentioned to exist here if Aragon falls from grace, but it doesn't appear that this Iberian Union is a union between Aragon and "Spain" since they are shown as separate states despite one holding the name.
In 1836, Navarra still exists as a puppet, though here it appears the general geographic area has been annexed into the former Dual Monarchy of England and France (also fallen to socialists but I don't know their name). They couldn't really do much beyond gaining independence and expanding into Occitania so they should be pretty irrelevant here given they aren't even sovereign anymore. Just noting them for historical purposes.
The orange being in the east of Iberia is obviously the Kingdom ofAragon. It kept its historical hold on Sicily and Southern Italy here for centuries, maintaining a careful balance of power in the northern half to ensure no Italian state could grow to threaten it. Beyond engaging in colonialism in Africa or forming the Iberian Union, its general narrative is about defending its empire from upstart pan-nationalists and resurgent Provencal Valois in Italy. Once this is done, it can work to gain the rest of Italy under its direct control, proclaiming the Kingdom of Aragon-Italy and eventually warring with the Dual Monarchy (or its successor states(s)) to annex Occitania and turn the Mediterranean into an Aragonese lake. That obviously did not happen here and Aragon has instead fallen in the face of a Valois resurgence in Italy and instead sought to preserve its remaining influence through other means.
Above the Iberian Peninsula is the state formely known as the Dual Monarchy of England and France, now overrun by socialist revolutionaries. As you might have been able to guess by the previous informational post having a colonial state called "Plantagenia," this state was formed when the English Plantagenets managed to win the Hundreds Year War. This is one of the four main PoDs of this timeline (with it having four disconnected PoDs done for the sake of being interesting). In 1836, the Dual Monarchy is the preeminent power in the world, holding multiple colonies, dominating every sector that's relevant to world politics, and basically dictating the rules of the world. Its narrative is defined around its competition with Burgundy, its competing rival in most spheres, and its attempts to find a unifying identity so that its multicultural empire does not split at the seams. You see, after so many centuries of being one, a unique fusion-culture between the English and French began to form in the urban areas of southern England and northern France called "Anglois." This has to be a rallying point, because the Plantagenets need to balance the interests of France and England to prevent a civil war. 99% of the time, they do break out in to a civil war, with the worst case scenario even having Brittany, Wales, Ireland, and Occitania breaking free and the entire thing being dissolved with no hope of restoration. The Anglois managed to prevail here and keep their empire from ripping on national lines here as this new socialist state still holds both halves of the empire.
To its east is the Kingdom of Burgundy, another one of the four PoDs of the timeline being that their guy doesn't die heirless and leave the place to Austria. They are the second-most powerful country in the world in 1836, having colonies world-wide (with an ongoing conflict in South Africa). Unlike most important European countries, they don't really have an overarching coded for them in the mod proper. They have events and content in the form of various contests for influence, but no true narrative. The closest thing is that it's part of their backstory that Burgundy itself is becoming increasingly archaic despite its prominence. In an age of nationalism and liberalism, it is an ancient institution that derives its legitimacy from an even older institution doomed to die within 10 years of game start (and technically not even being an official feudal kingdom, as it is legally only a duchy). It lacks any kind of actual identity, legal or cultural and is instead a wild mishmash of cultures and identities under one "Burgundian" domain. Its narrative is supposed to be about it reorientating itself to be sustainable in this strange new world, though we will see how much that will play into Fission's version of Burgundy.
The white-grey blob east of Burgundy is the German Republic. One of four potential large countries capable of being formed in 1836 (and the end-result of 2/3 of the others), this is typically the result of Bavaria or Austria gaining enough influence to dominate the German statelets and undo Bohemia and Burgundy's own power over them. Everything that could happen in its narrative pretty much did happen in Fission's informational so there's not much to add. The other formables besides the Danubian Confederation (which happened here) and Germany are the Elbian Federation and the Holy Roman Empire. The Holy Roman Empire can be formed by the Holy Roman Emperor in Bohemia in the first decade of gameplay of 1836-1846. It is his personal pet project that is ultimately doomed by waves of renewed liberalism and pan-nationalism that break out in the latter half of the 1840s. The Elbian Federation is Bohemia's attempt to salvage its influence once liberalism dooms the now-defunct HRE to irrelevance should its might not be restored by 1846. The Elbian Federation can also form Germany should it manage to take back de jure German territory held by Burgundy and Scandinavia, s you saw in the Danubian Confederation's backstory.
The brown bit east of Germany is what's left of Bohemia. In explaining Germany above, I pretty much told you all its backstory so there's not much to say. It dominated as Holy Roman Emperor for some time due to the lack of Hapsburgs gaining prominence. Not much more to say other than it being an antiquated state past its prime at 1836, though it has since modernized in Fission's continuation and stands formidable despite being one of this timeline's "losers."
Occupying the Italian Peninsula is the Valois-led Kingdom of Italy. In 1836, the Valois have been pushed back to a rump state, having lost the Crown of France long ago and slowly lost more titles as the centuries went on. At one point, they had even inherited the duchies of Tuscany and Sienna, but the Pope, Dual-Monarchy, and Aragon all felt that was upsetting the balance of power and kicked them back to Provence. These Italian claims, however, are what can lead them to unify Italy at all (which is what happened here). It doesn't happen in a coalition like mentioned in the backstory, but they can annex or otherwise puppet Northern Italy and go to war with the Pope and Aragon for complete dominance over Italy. They can then push even further to war for Occitania and France to regain their lost throne and form a dual monarchy of their own. That last part hasn't happened (yet), but just telling you the complete narrative. They can also push to annex Venice into Italy, which is something we could potentially see in this timeframe given how weak Venice currently is.
Related to Italy is the other major unifier of Italy, the Etrurian Republic. They likely won't come up directly since this is a Valois timeline, but their legacy could still be felt given Italy has socialist and liberal revolutionaries both on their borders. The Etrurian Republic is a product of the first liberal revolutions that swept Europe and can come back during the second wave. They can aim to create a pan-nationalist Republic of Italy. As I said, their legacy could inspire future socialist and liberal revolutionaries that wish to overthrow the monarchy should an event like that happen during the quest.
To Italy's immediate east is the Republic of Venice. They are, in fact, the same Venice that has existed for centuries, not some state that merely took up the merchant republic's legacy. In 1836, they are a medium power in Europe, holding a colony over Achaea (southern peninsula of Greece), Illyria, southeastern Arcadia (North America), all of the islands around the Aegean Sea, and West Africa. Of these, they still hold the colony in West Africa and have lost much in this quest's backstory. Their narrative in 1836 is about reinforcing their hold over Greece and related holdings. Greece holds a congress near game start, you see, and can choose to stay with Venice, go independent as a republic, or go independent as a monarchy led by a war-hero general or by the King of Macedonia.
To the far-north is Scandinavia, a product of a lasting Kalmar Union and one of the four PoDs of the timeline. It also owns Scotland if you're curious about the blue part north of England. Their main aims are to establish dominance over the Baltics for both geopolitical reasons and because they just need fertile, warm lands to expand their population. They are the weakest of the great powers, having a tiny population relative to its size and fewer wealthy lands. They are a great naval power, however. In this timeline, they appear to have been beaten back on their ambitions, but are not yet out of the game.
The red-brown blob east of Italy is the Kingdom of Hungary. They don't have much of a narrative beyond annexing parts of Serbia from the collapsing Ottoman Empire. That said, a player-led Hungary is quite capable of annexing Illyria as happened in this timeline, though I also held Transylvania, annexed all of Serbia, and kept Wallachia and Moldavia from uniting into Romania
The main point being they are more than capable of being a regional power. If we ever need to do anything with the Balkans, do not expect a paper tiger under most circumtances, even with the amount of ethnicities and cultures they hold under their borders.
Moldavia and Wallachia don't have a narrative beyond forming Romania, I think Serbia can form Yugoslavia but doesn't have a narrative, Illyria doesn't have a narrative beyond being a Venetian puppet, and Albania just exists.
The purplish-blue power controlling most of Megali Idea Greece and Bulgaria is the Kingdom of Macedonia. They actually have an extensive narrative and two paths. In 1836, they are at war with the Ottoman Empire to gain territory. After winning, they can decide whether they wish to view themselves as Slavic or Greek. The Slavic path sees them going on to form a Greater Yugoslavia containing most of the Balkans, while the Greek path has them attempt to rebuild Alexander's empire in its entirety. The Alexander path is what they went in this timeline.
The giant pink blob in Eastern Europe is the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. Due to the PoDs, it ended up surviving to 1836, albeit in a decentralized and stagnant state. Its narrative is about pushing back Scandinavian incursions into the Baltic and to centralize its commonwealth to become a truly modern state which is has clearly done in this timeline. It actually wields a significant amount of power if integrated properly, so I would expect them to also hold quite a bit of influence even as a republic now.
Beyond that, the European powers start struggling over South Africa in 1836. That is about the full extent of countries with content beyond just existing or having no-story formables. If you want to know the possible names of some other states, feel free to ask. Otherwise, I shall just leave this here. I hope this helped you!
Okay, continuing on to Europe and Africa. Sorry for the delay.
In 1836, Europe had just put down a series of liberal revolutions, especially ones springing from Italy and Germany. The Holy Roman Empire, led by Bohemia, is on the edge of irrelevancy after Bavaria and Austria both had gotten independence a mere decade before, Italy is split once more into multiple states as the liberal revolutionaries and Provencal Valois both begin threatening the balance of power, Scandinavia is eyeing the lands of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth to complete their domination of the Baltics, and the Ottoman Empire is falling to wars and unrest on all sides.
It's also to be noted that DoD did not have any "Concert of Europe" style of event. Rather, that is a thing that triggers as a reaction to any major event that greatly tips the balance of power in Europe, such as the formation of the Danubian or Elbian Federations, the formation of Italy, the formation of Aragon-Italy, etc.
Starting off, the Iberian Peninsula. In 1836, "Kingdom of Spain" is the creation of a union between Portugal and Castille some centuries before rather than Aragon and Castille. Thus, you can tell Spain - or rather the country that used to be named Spain - is the bright red country taking up 2/3rds of the Iberian Peninsula. Its primary concerns at that point are to maintain its empire, which has banded together in a tenuous federation known as "Gran Colombia" to kick it out of the New World. Spain has them on the back-foot, but things can always turn around. As was mentioned here, "Spain" fell to socialist revolutionaries and has adopted a new name (or at least we haven't heard them called Spain yet). It has the opportunity in 1836 to form the Iberian Union that was mentioned to exist here if Aragon falls from grace, but it doesn't appear that this Iberian Union is a union between Aragon and "Spain" since they are shown as separate states despite one holding the name.
In 1836, Navarra still exists as a puppet, though here it appears the general geographic area has been annexed into the former Dual Monarchy of England and France (also fallen to socialists but I don't know their name). They couldn't really do much beyond gaining independence and expanding into Occitania so they should be pretty irrelevant here given they aren't even sovereign anymore. Just noting them for historical purposes.
The orange being in the east of Iberia is obviously the Kingdom ofAragon. It kept its historical hold on Sicily and Southern Italy here for centuries, maintaining a careful balance of power in the northern half to ensure no Italian state could grow to threaten it. Beyond engaging in colonialism in Africa or forming the Iberian Union, its general narrative is about defending its empire from upstart pan-nationalists and resurgent Provencal Valois in Italy. Once this is done, it can work to gain the rest of Italy under its direct control, proclaiming the Kingdom of Aragon-Italy and eventually warring with the Dual Monarchy (or its successor states(s)) to annex Occitania and turn the Mediterranean into an Aragonese lake. That obviously did not happen here and Aragon has instead fallen in the face of a Valois resurgence in Italy and instead sought to preserve its remaining influence through other means.
Above the Iberian Peninsula is the state formely known as the Dual Monarchy of England and France, now overrun by socialist revolutionaries. As you might have been able to guess by the previous informational post having a colonial state called "Plantagenia," this state was formed when the English Plantagenets managed to win the Hundreds Year War. This is one of the four main PoDs of this timeline (with it having four disconnected PoDs done for the sake of being interesting). In 1836, the Dual Monarchy is the preeminent power in the world, holding multiple colonies, dominating every sector that's relevant to world politics, and basically dictating the rules of the world. Its narrative is defined around its competition with Burgundy, its competing rival in most spheres, and its attempts to find a unifying identity so that its multicultural empire does not split at the seams. You see, after so many centuries of being one, a unique fusion-culture between the English and French began to form in the urban areas of southern England and northern France called "Anglois." This has to be a rallying point, because the Plantagenets need to balance the interests of France and England to prevent a civil war. 99% of the time, they do break out in to a civil war, with the worst case scenario even having Brittany, Wales, Ireland, and Occitania breaking free and the entire thing being dissolved with no hope of restoration. The Anglois managed to prevail here and keep their empire from ripping on national lines here as this new socialist state still holds both halves of the empire.
To its east is the Kingdom of Burgundy, another one of the four PoDs of the timeline being that their guy doesn't die heirless and leave the place to Austria. They are the second-most powerful country in the world in 1836, having colonies world-wide (with an ongoing conflict in South Africa). Unlike most important European countries, they don't really have an overarching coded for them in the mod proper. They have events and content in the form of various contests for influence, but no true narrative. The closest thing is that it's part of their backstory that Burgundy itself is becoming increasingly archaic despite its prominence. In an age of nationalism and liberalism, it is an ancient institution that derives its legitimacy from an even older institution doomed to die within 10 years of game start (and technically not even being an official feudal kingdom, as it is legally only a duchy). It lacks any kind of actual identity, legal or cultural and is instead a wild mishmash of cultures and identities under one "Burgundian" domain. Its narrative is supposed to be about it reorientating itself to be sustainable in this strange new world, though we will see how much that will play into Fission's version of Burgundy.
The white-grey blob east of Burgundy is the German Republic. One of four potential large countries capable of being formed in 1836 (and the end-result of 2/3 of the others), this is typically the result of Bavaria or Austria gaining enough influence to dominate the German statelets and undo Bohemia and Burgundy's own power over them. Everything that could happen in its narrative pretty much did happen in Fission's informational so there's not much to add. The other formables besides the Danubian Confederation (which happened here) and Germany are the Elbian Federation and the Holy Roman Empire. The Holy Roman Empire can be formed by the Holy Roman Emperor in Bohemia in the first decade of gameplay of 1836-1846. It is his personal pet project that is ultimately doomed by waves of renewed liberalism and pan-nationalism that break out in the latter half of the 1840s. The Elbian Federation is Bohemia's attempt to salvage its influence once liberalism dooms the now-defunct HRE to irrelevance should its might not be restored by 1846. The Elbian Federation can also form Germany should it manage to take back de jure German territory held by Burgundy and Scandinavia, s you saw in the Danubian Confederation's backstory.
The brown bit east of Germany is what's left of Bohemia. In explaining Germany above, I pretty much told you all its backstory so there's not much to say. It dominated as Holy Roman Emperor for some time due to the lack of Hapsburgs gaining prominence. Not much more to say other than it being an antiquated state past its prime, moreso in this time period.
Occupying the Italian Peninsula is the Valois-led Kingdom of Italy. In 1836, the Valois have been pushed back to a rump state, having lost the Crown of France long ago and slowly lost more titles as the centuries went on. At one point, they had even inherited the duchies of Tuscany and Sienna, but the Pope, Dual-Monarchy, and Aragon all felt that was upsetting the balance of power and kicked them back to Provence. These Italian claims, however, are what can lead them to unify Italy at all (which is what happened here). It doesn't happen in a coalition like mentioned in the backstory, but they can annex or otherwise puppet Northern Italy and go to war with the Pope and Aragon for complete dominance over Italy. They can then push even further to war for Occitania and France to regain their lost throne and form a dual monarchy of their own. That last part hasn't happened (yet), but just telling you the complete narrative. They can also push to annex Venice into Italy, which is something we could potentially see in this timeframe given how weak Venice currently is.
Related to Italy is the other major unifier of Italy, the Etrurian Republic. They likely won't come up directly since this is a Valois timeline, but their legacy could still be felt given Italy has socialist and liberal revolutionaries both on their borders. The Etrurian Republic is a product of the first liberal revolutions that swept Europe and can come back during the second wave. They can aim to create a pan-nationalist Republic of Italy. As I said, their legacy could inspire future socialist and liberal revolutionaries that wish to overthrow the monarchy should an event like that happen during the quest.
To Italy's immediate east is the Republic of Venice. They are, in fact, the same Venice that has existed for centuries, not some state that merely took up the merchant republic's legacy. In 1836, they are a medium power in Europe, holding a colony over Achaea (southern peninsula of Greece), Illyria, southeastern Arcadia (North America), all of the islands around the Aegean Sea, and West Africa. Of these, they still hold the colony in West Africa and have lost much in this quest's backstory. Their narrative in 1836 is about reinforcing their hold over Greece and related holdings. Greece holds a congress near game start, you see, and can choose to stay with Venice, go independent as a republic, or go independent as a monarchy led by a war-hero general or by the King of Macedonia.
To the far-north is Scandinavia, a product of a lasting Kalmar Union and one of the four PoDs of the timeline. It also owns Scotland if you're curious about the blue part north of England. Their main aims are to establish dominance over the Baltics for both geopolitical reasons and because they just need fertile, warm lands to expand their population. They are the weakest of the great powers, having a tiny population relative to its size and fewer wealthy lands. They are a great naval power, however. In this timeline, they appear to have been beaten back on their ambitions, but are not yet out of the game.
The red-brown blob east of Italy is the Kingdom of Hungary. They don't have much of a narrative beyond annexing parts of Serbia from the collapsing Ottoman Empire. That said, a player-led Hungary is quite capable of annexing Illyria as happened in this timeline, though I also held Transylvania, annexed all of Serbia, and kept Wallachia and Moldavia from uniting into Romania
The main point being they are more than capable of being a regional power. If we ever need to do anything with the Balkans, do not expect a paper tiger under most circumtances, even with the amount of ethnicities and cultures they hold under their borders.
Moldavia and Wallachia don't have a narrative beyond forming Romania, I think Serbia can form Yugoslavia but doesn't have a narrative, Illyria doesn't have a narrative beyond being a Venetian puppet, and Albania just exists.
The purplish-blue power controlling most of Megali Idea Greece and Bulgaria is the Kingdom of Macedonia. They actually have an extensive narrative and two paths. In 1836, they are at war with the Ottoman Empire to gain territory. After winning, they can decide whether they wish to view themselves as Slavic or Greek. The Slavic path sees them going on to form a Greater Yugoslavia containing most of the Balkans, while the Greek path has them attempt to rebuild Alexander's empire in its entirety. The Alexander path is what they went in this timeline.
The giant pink blob in Eastern Europe is the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. Due to the PoDs, it ended up surviving to 1836, albeit in a decentralized and stagnant state. Its narrative is about pushing back Scandinavian incursions into the Baltic and to centralize its commonwealth to become a truly modern state which is has clearly done in this timeline. It actually wields a significant amount of power if integrated properly, so I would expect them to also hold quite a bit of influence even as a republic now.
Beyond that, the European powers start struggling over South Africa in 1836. That is about the full extent of countries with content beyond just existing or having no-story formables. If you want to know the possible names of some other states, feel free to ask. Otherwise, I shall just leave this here. I hope this helped you!
I would like to point out that while Burgundy is boring to play, it's a bit dismissive to claim they're decrepit and lack a concrete identity. They're one of the few nation states in Europe at the start of the game. Burgundian is that branch of French expanding and solidifying as a distinct dialect, with a touch of influence from Dutch and Rhenish German. The colour used for Burgundian culture is the same as Wallonian in the base gmae, but it's clear that it's quite different from Belgium. In most games I see them body the Dual Monarchy and Germany hard, despite being sandwiched on two fronts.
Here the monarchy did fall here shortly after the Second German Revolution in the 50s, and the Burgundian Republic's been a bastion for nationalism and liberalism in Europe. That isn't a good thing given its trying to occupy a similar position to Britain did in real life, presenting itself as a progressive empire while looting entire continents to feed their GDP. Since WW1 they've been building up South Africa as a possible fall back point for the empire in the event that Burgundy proper gets overrun by Germany and the USR. By 1916, South Africa is growing as one of the largest industrial centers in the world, on nearly on par with the Ruhr or Sheffield. If WW2 comes, Burgundy is prepared to fight for every inch in Europe, and then continue the fight across the globe. The paranoia could be sliding towards fascism, if the thoughts were better articulated and fermented, but it's not there yet. They don't want war, given the think they'd stand to lose a lot, but are preparing to fight one to the bitter end if pushed.
I'd also say that Bohemia isn't antiquated either. It's political structure is more in line with the German Empire in real life. The king is a strong executive with a weak but functioning parliament beneath him. That aside it's still one of the major industrial powers in Europe, holding Saxony, Silesia, and Bohemia as core territories. All of them major population centers with large deposits of high quality coal and iron, and centuries of relative stability building them up. It fought Germany to a stand still for a reason, so it shouldn't be considered a backwater.
Spain is called the Iberian Union in order to towards a more inclusive country name. While the Dual Monarchy is called the United Socialist Republics, shortened to USR. They, along with Gran Colombia, are the leading powers of the Comintern, which is very strong given the circumstances.
The situation behind Provence Italy was partially inspired by a playthrough I did as them. I took over Tuscany and then pressed that one city state into submitting itself. That almost always results in war, but this time it accepted and war was averted. I prestige spammed into great power, grab Nigeria using Genoa as a springboard, sphered the Northern Italian states, and eventually turned them into an alliance to fight off Aragon when it tried to assert control over Italy. It was a fun change of pace, so something similar happened here.
That means the resulting Kingdom of Italy is much more federal in its make up, with the pre-existing boundaries between petty kingdoms and city states still existing within Italy. Southern Italy and Corsica are treated as colonies though. Families that backed Aragon are stripped of their land where its sold off to northern industrialists and common land broken up, much like how it went down in real life. Hence the exodus of poor farmers leaving the Peninsula. Venice was considered separate from Italy, given its own extensive empire elsewhere and its lack of connection to Provence, but with its recent loses there is a growing trend within Venice that perhaps joining Italy would be for the best. Others however wish to avoid getting dragged into the dynastic dispute over Southern France. Just take the loss and try to retain what little empire they have left.
Yugoslavia is the bright green state. It was formed by Montenegro, Illyria, and Serbia banding together for mutual protection in the wake of Hungary's expansion. It's more equal than Yugoslavia in real life, since Serbia doesn't dominate it. Albania is vibing. It's having a great time. It got that land when it left the Ottoman Empire and managed to hold onto it.
It wasn't a hard decision to make once Marcato thought it over. The Macedonians would not be handed Egypt on a silver platter, not if he had anything to do with it. He would not suffer the indignity of captivity within his own palace, not any longer. While he was indeed stuck in a gilded cage, it had remained that way because he had yet to truly test the bars. He was certain that they were looser than his captors thought, believing him to be content. Were he another man, then perhaps they would have been right, but Marcato had gotten his position because of his drive and ambition.
There was the question of how he would go about making contact with the AENC? He had options, not many, but not none either. The Macedonians had sought to curate a new staff around the governor, recommending people for him to appoint to vacant posts once occupied by his allies who had since returned home. The upper echelons of the administration and military had been gutted by forced recalls during the war and retirement afterwards. The Macedonians had been eager to fill them, yet troubles elsewhere had forced them to redirect their attention. Thus leaving their own attempt to take over a half-hearted one at best, hampered by priorities elsewhere.
So while they controlled who he could see and where he could go with the innocuous secretary, Marcato retained his own bodyguards. They numbered only a few dozen in number, a remnant of a once formidable garrison he formerly commanded. Discipline and morale had plummeted, most merely collecting pay cheques and remaining for they had nowhere else to go. Their homes in territory lost to Hungary or Macedonia. There was still one among their number that Marcato could count on though, the head of his bodyguard: Lorenzo Lazaro.
That was a man Marcato could trust. If he handed off any orders to Jason which the Greek disagreed with, they would be promptly thrown out, and he knew without a doubt that they read everything he wrote and received. Marcato's mind moved quickly, formulating a simple plot to distract his jailer. He sat at his desk and penned a quick letter to associates back home in Venice, a tripe and meaningless one, yet sincere enough on the surface that it would not arise suspicious. Then he signed several pardons for members of the AENC in jail. Their release would serve as a sign of good will towards the leadership.
Once done, he sent for Jason, who arrived soon afterwards. The stern looking youth glanced at Marcato questioningly then saw the unsealed envelope within the governor's hands. "Run this off for me," he dryly ordered. "I even left it unsealed to spare you the effort of cutting it open."
"Sir, it's impolite to speak of such things so boldly," Jason good naturedly replied, plucking the envelope from Marcato's hand and stuffing it into his pocket. "I'll be sure that it remains in good hands however."
"See that you do."
Jason left, and Marcato counted the minutes, knowing how long it'd take until the Greek had left the current floor of the palace. He then sent for Lorenzo, claiming he wished to speak about his security, and slipped a few coins into the servant's hand to buy his silence. It was more than the Macedonians would offer an Arab, by a fair amount, and the smile he received told Marcato that the message was understood.
It did not take long for the head of his bodyguard to arrive, entering the room with a casual cocksure swagger. Lorenzo was a tall, tough looking man with a scar that marred his cheek. It made the corner of his smile stretch slightly too far, which was often, given his outgoing disposition. He was built and bred for war, lived and breathed it, and found himself at home in Egypt than he had back in Venice or Athens. War was like a game to him, one filled with danger and intrigue, and more so in the colonies, where his anti-insurgency experience as a member of the gendarmerie gave him an edge.
"Sir," Lorenzo said with a crooked smile. He wore a blue-ish grey uniform, the top few buttons undone. It was the usual outfit of Venice's colonial soldiers. "How may I be of service?"
Marcato moved in closer and spoke in a hushed tone. "I have need of your discretion. We are setting a plot in motion, one which will rid us of these damned Hellenes." He held out the bundle of pardons, all sealed and signed. "Gather men you trust to deliver these and ensure they arrive at the prison. Arrange contact with the All Egyptian Nation Congress and establish a line of communication."
Lorenzo's smile grew wider, turning downright feral as he chuckled. There was a glint in his eye, an eager one. There was no love shared for their captors and usurpers. In its time of need, they had betrayed Venice, and then robbed it of its most profitable colony. "How bold, I assume that you don't want Drakos catching wind of this."
The silent glare he received was answer enough. Lorenzo nodded in understanding, taking the envelopes and carefully putting them in his breast pocket. Without another word the man left the office. Lorenzo would slip more coins into the servant's hand, an extra tip to truly pay the man's silence, then he got to work.
While Lorenzo left, Marcato was left to think over his plan and where it would all go. He would not simply retire once he'd helped the AENC get elected, no he was driving at a greater goal than merely throwing a wrench into the Macedonian's plans.
What is Marcato's long term goal? Voting for an option is not locking the quest into backing Marcato over the All Egyptian National Congress.
[ ] Establish a friendly collaborator regime to return Egypt to Venice's sphere
Marcato was confident that the factions within the party could be played against each other, and that with his help the more conservative wing would see reason in time. With his backing they'd form a nominally independent government, one which would rely on Venice's goodwill to function, but otherwise be run by Egyptians.
[ ] Something far grander than a mere governor, aim to become Doge of Egypt
Marcato was struck by a bold idea, a stray thought that would not leave his head once he had it. Using a similar strategy as above, he would back the conservatives and court foreign powers to leverage himself into a position of authority. If he were to succeed, he would accomplish the impossible and become head of an independent Egypt.
===
In Cairo, in an apartment above a café, David and Jabari spoke with other party members, pouring over maps of electoral ridings. They were discussing any possible way to gain an edge that they could. In a word, it was grim. Their prospects were bleak, downright impossible to win anything save for a few seats.
Their voters were limited, as Muslims were barred from voting, and having an officially recognized conversation to gain the vote was a costly affair, if the state official even accepted the claims in the first place. That meant they had to rely on sympathetic Copts and Europeans from working class backgrounds as their main backers. The limited number of communists from Iberia and the USR that'd been allowed in could be counted on. Alongside them were a growing number of Jewish voters who were becoming increasingly concerned over the crusader state.
The impossibility of it all got to one of them, as one of the younger men, a colonel, halted the conversation with an outburst. "Merde, it may be better if we devote our attention elsewhere," Ari Khouri swore in French, glancing up to look around at his fellow party members. He had a frown on his normally friendly face. "We know that it's impossible to win. We can run some candidates here and there, but we should put our resources towards direct action. I assure you that while our forces are lacking in strength they are not lacking in spirit."
"Tell that to the cruiser sitting outside Alexandria. I'm sure our men would love to gallantly drown to their deaths as the city is leveled," Hanif Issa interrupted, rubbing his eyes. His hands trailed down his face as he sighed and stroked his beard. "The Macedonians are spread thin on the ground, but don't discount the firepower they could bring to bear if so desired."
"And? What of the firepower our allies could bring to bear. We would not be alone," Khouri retorted.
Issa frowned, shaking his head. "I'm sorry to say but for the time being we are. Sudan is unlikely to offer any aid, if they had any to spare, and Maghreb is currently contesting Aragon over the coast. Comintern ships are turned away from even entering port and the few heavy cannons that we can smuggle across the border only have enough shells for… a day of fighting."
"What a day it'd be though!" Khouri said, throwing a hand up into the air. The faux bravado lasted only a moment before he scoffed, falling back into his seat and slumping.
"If we were all eager to kill ourselves we can cut out the middleman and do so right now. I've got some rope stored in the closet," David sardonically remarked, turning his head to draw attention to the aforementioned door. "Khouri, you first. You're the best knot tier here. Show us how it's done."
Jabari lightly smacked his friend's arm with the back of his hand, shaking his head. "Refrain from such remarks until after we call the meeting adjourned."
"It's alright, Nadir, I can take a few jokes," Khouri said, raising a hand. "Besides, I'm more offended that Hakim implies I studied in silly little boats in Bordeaux rather than the art of war in Paris."
"Pardon this old man," David said with the utmost sincerity, gesturing to himself. "My memory fades with age. I had thought you studied in the naval academy given how wet behind the ears you are."
The remark elicited a burst of laughter from the colonel, which proved infectious as the other men around the table shared in it. It relieved some tension, distracting them from their grim political situation, if only for a moment. The mood shifted when there was a knock at the door to the apartment. All men leapt to their feet on instinct, before the voice of their guard came through on the other side, putting them at ease, saying he had news.
"Well come in, don't shout it," Jabari ordered.
The guard entered, shutting the door behind him. In his hand was a telegram. "It's from Alexandria. All party members in the city's prison have been released," he said with utter disbelief.
The four men shared similar looks between each other, before Khouri spoke up. "Can we be sure of this?"
"Yes, they called as well. I was told to pass along this message." The guard held out the piece of paper, which Jabari grabbed from him. He adjusted his glasses as he peered over it, expression turning pensive.
"Do not share this with anyone else. You are dismissed."
The guard left, leaving the four to pour over the telegram. It was a simple message, an offer to establish communication with a 'friend' in the palace named 'The Merchant' along with a location, date, and code word to say.
"Do we know anyone in the palace?" Jabari inquired, looking between the three other men.
"We had an in with a guard before, but he got rotated out. The staff have passed messages along from time to time, but we've never received anything from the palace unprompted," Khouri answered, rubbing his clean shaven chin. "Much less anyone nicknamed The Merchant?"
"The Treasurer post is still open," Issa said, humming in thought. "And the previous one left the country months ago. It's unlikely it's from him."
The discussion carried on for some time as the men attempted to divine the source, until they arrived at the conclusion that its trustworthiness was duplicit at best. They'd have thought it a meaningless message, if not for the sudden pardons for their released party members. It was enough to gain their attention, if only to avoid dismissing it outright. The next day when they heard from their fellow party members over the telephone, and soon saw them arrive by train, the validity of the claim rose. A rough plan of action was agreed upon. Khouri would send a trusted man to the meeting location with several guards in disguise as back up.
===
The day of the meeting would eventually come, and true to the telegram's word, in an old coffee shop tucked away in a back alley, at the table in the corner, sat a man who responded to the code word. A local Arab paid to deliver it, he withdrew a slip of paper with further instructions, and left. The paper gave the address to a hotel, a run down one built when Cairo was the capital, and listed which room to arrive at, which Khouri's men traveled to, separately, until they found their way to the hotel itself.
Inside was the head of the governor's bodyguard, Lorenzo. The crooked faced Venetian, out of his uniform and dressed in casual clothes, lighting up a cigarette. He was alone and unarmed, the agents checked, frisking him for weapons. The room too was checked for any weapons or bombs, and finding none, one left to carry the information back to their boss while the rest kept the Venetian under watch.
They had a simple question for Lorezno. What was he after?
The answer was a simple one. Help them win the election.
After much back and forth though the messenger, it was eventually agreed that Lorezno would be allowed to meet with Jabari face to face. The writer turned politician entered the room, looking over the bodyguard with a critical eye. "So, you are the Merchant?" Jabari asked in Arabic, gauging if the man understood him.
"That I am, my friend, that I am," Lorenzo replied, speaking the language with a slight accent. It was easy enough to understand. "I thought it was a pretty clever nickname."
"You'll have to elucidate me as to its meaning another time," Jabari remarked dismissively, eliciting a shrug from Lorenzo. "I wanted to know this. Why would the governor back us?"
Lorenzo took a drag on his cigarette, turning his head to the side to avoid blowing smoke into Jabari's face. "It should be obvious. We share a common enemy. The Hellenes steal our land, steal our money, stab us in the back-"
Jabari interrupted, "you've done the same to us."
"Yes but now we're both being fucked and if we don't work together the Hellenes will be handed Egypt on a silver platter," Lorenzo matter-of-factly replied. "We have the money, you have the party. Marcato can bend the rules a little bit for you too, if that's what it takes for you to win. Anything you want, name it, and we'll make it happen, and in return you work with us to purge the Hellenes from the government."
"So that we can then become dogs on your leash?" Jabari shot back, gesturing to the man with the back of his hand. "Egypt deserves far more than that, much more indeed."
"What you deserve doesn't matter. It's the offer you've got," he inhaled another lungful of smoke, breathing it out with a sigh. "Because if you shoot it down, Marcato will probably invite you to form a government anyway, even when you lose, and that's when we've got a problem. And if you refuse then too, he will wash his hands of this whole country. You have a chance now because the Hellenes want everything to look above board to ensure a smooth transfer of power."
He pointed his fingers at Jabari, cigarette burning between them. "Fuck. That. Do you want Drakos inviting the Macedonian navy to dock in Alexandria or selling the Sinai off to Levant? You hand the country over to him, and he hands it over to his cousin in Salonika. It's as simple as that."
Jabari's face hardened into a grimace. Silence stretched out between them as Lorenzo took another puff on his cigarette. The situation was straightforward.
If the CAP won, Drakos would be sitting in the driver's seat as the true power behind Psoy's government. The fig leaf of Venetian control would be done away with, and with it Egypt would trade one weakened master for the rising star of the region. The Macedonians could still intervene, if they so deserved, but with their attention focused on Turkey invading Egypt would be a drain on resources. They couldn't launch another palace coup like they had done so before.
"Anything we want?" Jabari echoed the offer.
"Anything you want."
"And you think it can work?"
"Of course it can work! I'm Venetian for God's sake!" Lorenzo proudly declared with a flourish of his hand. "I can rig an election!"
Jabari ran a hand through his hair, taking a moment to think it over, before reluctantly sticking out his other hand. The Venetian took it, smiling his crooked smile at Jabari.
Over the next few weeks communication was set up between them, allowing messages to pass between the palace and AENC without the Macedonians catching on. Soon a rough plan was sketched out on actions they could take to ensure their victory over the CAP.
===
Election Meddling Decisions
You can pick as many options as you want. Cost is not an issue, as Marcato has deep pockets and the AENC has the means to utilize the funds. However, picking too many options, or certain types of options, may backfire by causing unrest among the privileged minority of Copts and Europeans. Some options can be safely picked without increasing unrest. If unrest grows too high it may trigger a response from neighbouring powers, for good or ill. Whether that's a problem or not is up to you to decide.
As a reminder, the CAP dominates in cities and coastal areas, but little support elsewhere.
Please vote by plan. There's a 24 hour moratorium on voting. It'll open at 1 PM Pacific Standard Time tomorrow.
Edit: The governor vote is not part of the election plan. It's a stand alone vote.
[ ] Plan Example
-[ ][ACC] Example
-[ ][ACC] Example
-[ ][FRA] Example
-[ ][FRA] Example
-[ ][FRA] Example
-[ ][DIS] Bomb
-[ ][MIS] Example
Access - How to make it easier for the AENC to vote
[ ][ACC] Declare the election a holiday so people have the day off
The election is close enough to Marcato's birthday that he can declare it a long weekend without raising suspicion, conveniently giving many workers a chance to vote they otherwise wouldn't have.
[ ][ACC] Allow mosques to collect early votes and function as polling stations
In many rural areas and small towns there's a lack of polling stations, this fixes that. It also gives allied imams access to ballot boxes, convenient should other options be picked. It can only do so much if you don't have the voters to use them.
[ ][ACC] Provide religious conversion papers to the AENC
Muslims aren't allowed to vote and proving a religious conversation is a costly time consuming affair. Speed up the process with no questions asked for how sincere the conversion truly was and a wave of 'Christians' may vote for the first time.
Franchise - Applies regardless of religion, thus bypassing the religious requirements.
[ ][FRA] Expand voting to landowners
[ ][FRA] Expand voting to business owners
[ ][FRA] Expand voting to state employees
Edit: Someone asked so I'll clarify here, a lot of landowners and businesses already can vote because the economy is dominated by Copts and Europeans. Picking to expand the franchise to landowners and businesses means giving the vote to Arab/Muslim, who otherwise are barred from voting on religious grounds. That includes nobles, yeomen farmers, shopkeepers, etc. While state employees covers everyone from civil servants to soldiers.
Disrupt - Prevent the CAP from voting
[ ][DIS] Close all church polling stations
[ ][DIS] Fund AENC paramilitaries to intimidate voters
[ ][DIS] Arrest CAP members for minor crimes using loyal soldiers
[ ][DIS] Bomb polling stations in Copt neighbourhoods
Miscellaneous - Everything and the kitchen sink
[ ][MIS] Publish stories on Levant atrocities and Macedonia's support for the regime
[ ][MIS] Naturalize all refugees from Levant as citizens
[ ][MIS] Appoint AENC members as ballot counters
[ ][MIS] Find a way to sabotage the Macedonian cruiser in Alexandria
[ ][MIS] Stuff ballot boxes
[ ][MIS] Spy on Iskandar Drakos
[ ][MIS] Spy on Mina Psoy
[X] A Necessary Scam
- [X][ACC] Declare the election a holiday so people have the day off
- [X][ACC] Allow mosques to collect early votes and function as polling stations
- [X][ACC] Provide religious conversion papers to the AENC
- [X][FRA] Expand voting to business owners
- [X][FRA] Expand voting to state employees
- [X][DIS] Arrest CAP members for minor crimes using loyal soldiers
- [X][MIS] Naturalize all refugees from Levant as citizens
- [X][MIS] Appoint AENC members as ballot counters
- [X][MIS] Spy on Iskandar Drakos
I would like to point out that while Burgundy is boring to play, it's a bit dismissive to claim they're decrepit and lack a concrete identity. They're one of the few nation states in Europe at the start of the game. Burgundian is that branch of French expanding and solidifying as a distinct dialect, with a touch of influence from Dutch and Rhenish German. The colour used for Burgundian culture is the same as Wallonian in the base gmae, but it's clear that its quite different from Belgium. In most games I see them body the Dual Monarchy and Germany hard, despite being sandwiched on two fronts.
Was saying that neither as an insult nor as a reference to gameplay. As I mentioned in that paragraph about Burgundy, I was only talking about what I remembered of the background lore (meaning DoD mod thread stuff, not game stuff) for Burgundy in regards to where it was supposed to be taken if it had a storyline to it like some other countries. Said lore was talking about it trying to create its own identity due to being a crossroads between French and Occitain cultures, German cultures, Dutch cultures, and so on; as well as being a crossroads between the "modern" and "feudal" state in 1836.
Fair I suppose on the "antiquated in 1914" part. I should note I never called it a "backwater" though, since even in 1836 where it is objectively antiquated (as in, trying to hold up a defunct HRE on its own) I never called it backwater. It was powerful then and it still has some power to it now. I just said it's certainly had the short end of the stick in regards to sticking to its "victory" narrative path from the mod's start date.
Muslims aren't allowed to vote and proving a religious conversation is a costly time consuming affair. Speed up the process with no questions asked for how sincere the conversation truly was and a wave of 'Christians' may vote for the first time.
[ ] Something far grander than a mere governor, aim to become Doge of Egypt
[ ] Plan Everything Looks Aboveboard
-[ ][ACC] Declare the election a holiday so people have the day off
-[ ][ACC] Allow mosques to collect early votes and function as polling stations
-[ ][ACC] Provide religious conversation papers to the AENC
-[ ][FRA] Expand voting to landowners
-[ ][FRA] Expand voting to state employees
-[ ][DIS] Arrest CAP members for minor crimes using loyal soldiers
-[ ][MIS] Publish stories on Levant atrocities and Macedonia's support for the regime
-[ ][MIS] Naturalize all refugees from Levant as citizens
-[ ][MIS] Find a way to sabotage the Macedonian cruiser in Alexandria
[] Something far grander than a mere governor, aim to become Doge of Egypt
I feel like this is the easier path to getting the foreigners thrown out of Egypt entirely. Like, it risks Marcato overplaying his hand once he gets the Great Powers to back off, and thus is perfect for him to lose his power once sovereignty is secured. It also would be an acceptable alternative to me if we somehow accidentally'd into being extremely competent in a manner where Marcato succeeds at stabilizing himself as Doge of Egypt, because that is a pretty cool alternative path to pan-Arabism as well.
[] A Necessary Scam
- [][ACC] Declare the election a holiday so people have the day off
- [][ACC] Allow mosques to collect early votes and function as polling stations
- [][ACC] Provide religious conversion papers to the AENC
- [][FRA] Expand voting to business owners
- [][FRA] Expand voting to state employees
- [][DIS] Arrest CAP members for minor crimes using loyal soldiers
- [][MIS] Naturalize all refugees from Levant as citizens
- [][MIS] Appoint AENC members as ballot counters
- [][MIS] Spy on Iskandar Drakos
To explain everything, I'll go one by one. Okay, so the access options all feel like necessities to have a chance at getting enough Muslim voters eligible to vote in the upcoming election. I also feel none of them should raise too many eyebrows so it should be safe on its own. The religious papers could look bad if we draw Macedonian attention to us, but the rest of my plan tries to keep everything looking "legitimate" and just keeping in the bounds of the "true democratic transition" the Macedonians want for their puppet state while they're distracted with other stuff. The mosques can be explainable by being common communal buildings anyhow so that their allowance as voting polls is just a short-term thing until the Copts can reestablish themselves as the dominant group of Egypt (once again looks slightly shady but not too bad unless we draw attention).
I feel like state employees and business owners would provide the most amount of Arab voters, given that they make up the largest chunk of Egypt's demographics, while still fitting into the Macedonian's intended facade of a democratic transition. Landowners could go against that by allowing elites into the vote in a manner that could make the Coptic elites feel threatened.
Arresting CAP members is the only option in the DIS category I feel is low-key enough to detract from the opposition while not drawing intervention.
Naturalization is the most "eye-brow raising" option I put in here, but I feel everything else is low-key enough to balance it out and not cause too much unrest. AENC ballot counters synergizes well with the mosque option, and I feel the Macedonian watchers are a bigger threat than the Coptic PM presumptive so I prefer the risk of just watching Drakos over watching both.
With this plan, I believe we can pull the rug out under the Macedonians and Copts while having everything still appear completely legitimate and not at all disrupted by external forces. After the Doge is established, we can then try to connect the AENC with the Comintern and get some pan-Arabism going.
[] Plan : build our power base
-[ ][ACC] Declare the election a holiday so people have the day off
-[ ][ACC] Allow mosques to collect early votes and function as polling stations
-[ ][ACC] Provide religious conversion papers to the AENC
-[ ][FRA] Expand voting to state employees
-[ ][DIS] Fund AENC paramilitaries to intimidate voters
-[ ][MIS] Publish stories on Levant atrocities and Macedonia's support for the regime
-[ ][MIS] Naturalize all refugees from Levant as citizens
-[ ][MIS] Appoint AENC members as ballot counters
-[ ][MIS] Find a way to sabotage the Macedonian cruiser in Alexandria
I'm looking for the options that empower the AENC or make it more likely we won't get blown up if there's trouble, while trying to avoid options that empower the governor.
Some of this is risky but I feel like we have to neutralize the cruiser and build up our paramilitary, otherwise they'll just turn to violence to crush us when it becomes clear we played them.
[] Going Gamer
-[ ][ACC] Declare the election a holiday so people have the day off
-[ ][ACC] Allow mosques to collect early votes and function as polling stations
-[ ][ACC] Provide religious conversion papers to the AENC
-[ ][FRA] Expand voting to state employees
-[ ][FRA] Expand voting to landowners
-[ ][FRA] Expand voting to business owners
-[ ][DIS] Close all church polling stations
-[ ][DIS] Fund AENC paramilitaries to intimidate voters
-[ ][DIS] Arrest CAP members for minor crimes using loyal soldiers
-[ ][DIS] Bomb polling stations in Copt neighbourhoods
-[ ][MIS] Publish stories on Levant atrocities and Macedonia's support for the regime
-[ ][MIS] Naturalize all refugees from Levant as citizens
-[ ][MIS] Appoint AENC members as ballot counters
-[ ][MIS] Find a way to sabotage the Macedonian cruiser in Alexandria
-[ ][MIS] Stuff ballot boxes
-[ ][MIS] Spy on Iskandar Drakos
-[ ][MIS] Spy on Mina Psoy
I would like to note that regardless of results, Egypt would not become independent immediately nor will Marcato immediately declare himself Doge. You have to survive the election and potential fallout before actually reaching the administration stage. It may also be possible to reach an agreement with Macedonia that goes over Iskandar's head, but without leverage on him that'd be difficult. He's turned the colonization of Egypt into his pet project, so he's more or less taken point on a lot of stuff on the ground.
I would like to note that regardless of results, Egypt would not become independent immediately nor will Marcato immediately declare himself Doge. You have to survive the election and potential fallout before actually reaching the administration stage. It may also be possible to reach an agreement with Macedonia that goes over Iskandar's head, but without leverage on him that'd be difficult. He's turned the colonization of Egypt into his pet project, so he's more or less taken point on a lot of stuff on the ground.
Yeah, I figured that. After all, the reason we are able to get away with this stuff is because Macedonia is noted to not be paying much attention due to other distractions and feeling they have this one in the bag. Pretty sure the Muslim-majority party winning against an expected Copt landslide will draw attention
I just feel our opening moves are just as important as anything else to how we will be moving from here on out, both in our coalition's makeup and in how the AENC is perceived abroad.
Yeah, I figured that. After all, the reason we are able to get away with this stuff is because Macedonia is noted to not be paying much attention due to other distractions and feeling they have this one in the bag. Pretty sure the Muslim-majority party winning against an expected Copt landslide will draw attention
I just feel our opening moves are just as important as anything else to how we will be moving from here on out, both in our coalition's makeup and in how the AENC is perceived abroad.
I'm glad it's clear then. There was some confusion elsewhere so I thought I'd clarify the intent here. The options selected can definitely have an affect on the AENC, though for the time being it's unified behind the fairly socialist leadership of Hakim and Nadir. Whether that remains that way will be up to the players or not and the choices made controlling the administration. The AENC is a broad coalition party with diverse factions within it that can be roughly broken down into three main camps: Marxist, Ba'athist, Islamist. There's wings within each faction, but I'm not going to go further into micro-sets. While the Islamists are far more socially conservative, they're still anti-imperialists and mostly on board with revolutionary programs to an extent.
Also, voting is open. There's no clear consensus yet, so let's see if one forms.
Oh hey this already vibes well with how Taqiyya is allowed by both Sunnis & Shias in dealings under compulsion with non-Muslims (such as thks ban for Muslim votes), so I expect this to have notable impact.
[] Something far grander than a mere governor, aim to become Doge of Egypt
I feel like this is the easier path to getting the foreigners thrown out of Egypt entirely. Like, it risks Marcato overplaying his hand once he gets the Great Powers to back off, and thus is perfect for him to lose his power once sovereignty is secured. It also would be an acceptable alternative to me if we somehow accidentally'd into being extremely competent in a manner where Marcato succeeds at stabilizing himself as Doge of Egypt, because that is a pretty cool alternative path to pan-Arabism as well.
[] A Necessary Scam
- [][ACC] Declare the election a holiday so people have the day off
- [][ACC] Allow mosques to collect early votes and function as polling stations
- [][ACC] Provide religious conversion papers to the AENC
- [][FRA] Expand voting to business owners
- [][FRA] Expand voting to state employees
- [][DIS] Arrest CAP members for minor crimes using loyal soldiers
- [][MIS] Naturalize all refugees from Levant as citizens
- [][MIS] Appoint AENC members as ballot counters
- [][MIS] Spy on Iskandar Drakos
To explain everything, I'll go one by one. Okay, so the access options all feel like necessities to have a chance at getting enough Muslim voters eligible to vote in the upcoming election. I also feel none of them should raise too many eyebrows so it should be safe on its own. The religious papers could look bad if we draw Macedonian attention to us, but the rest of my plan tries to keep everything looking "legitimate" and just keeping in the bounds of the "true democratic transition" the Macedonians want for their puppet state while they're distracted with other stuff. The mosques can be explainable by being common communal buildings anyhow so that their allowance as voting polls is just a short-term thing until the Copts can reestablish themselves as the dominant group of Egypt (once again looks slightly shady but not too bad unless we draw attention).
I feel like state employees and business owners would provide the most amount of Arab voters, given that they make up the largest chunk of Egypt's demographics, while still fitting into the Macedonian's intended facade of a democratic transition. Landowners could go against that by allowing elites into the vote in a manner that could make the Coptic elites feel threatened.
Arresting CAP members is the only option in the DIS category I feel is low-key enough to detract from the opposition while not drawing intervention.
Naturalization is the most "eye-brow raising" option I put in here, but I feel everything else is low-key enough to balance it out and not cause too much unrest. AENC ballot counters synergizes well with the mosque option, and I feel the Macedonian watchers are a bigger threat than the Coptic PM presumptive so I prefer the risk of just watching Drakos over watching both.
With this plan, I believe we can pull the rug out under the Macedonians and Copts while having everything still appear completely legitimate and not at all disrupted by external forces. After the Doge is established, we can then try to connect the AENC with the Comintern and get some pan-Arabism going.
[X] Something far grander than a mere governor, aim to become Doge of Egypt
[X] A Necessary Scam
- [X][ACC] Declare the election a holiday so people have the day off
- [X][ACC] Allow mosques to collect early votes and function as polling stations
- [X][ACC] Provide religious conversion papers to the AENC
- [X][FRA] Expand voting to business owners
- [X][FRA] Expand voting to state employees
- [X][DIS] Arrest CAP members for minor crimes using loyal soldiers
- [X][MIS] Naturalize all refugees from Levant as citizens
- [X][MIS] Appoint AENC members as ballot counters
- [X][MIS] Spy on Iskandar Drakos
[X] Something far grander than a mere governor, aim to become Doge of Egypt
[X] A Necessary Scam
I see the arguments here and think they make sense:
1) I don't think the AENC is gonna just be accepted into power without jumping through a few hoops to make things seem less outwardly disruptive to the balance of power
2) The Most Serene Republic of Egypt is hilarious
3) The Most Serene Republic of Egypt getting taken over by Pan-Africanists/Pan-Arabists is even more hilarious - Imagine Doge Nasser
I see the arguments here and think they make sense:
1) I don't think the AENC is gonna just be accepted into power without jumping through a few hoops to make things seem less outwardly disruptive to the balance of power
2) The Most Serene Republic of Egypt is hilarious
3) The Most Serene Republic of Egypt getting taken over by Pan-Africanists/Pan-Arabists is even more hilarious - Imagine Doge Nasser
I'm glad to see other people are as amused by the idea as I am. I have a slight correction on the name. It'd be The Most Serene Islamic Republic of Egypt. The crux of the issue will be balancing party factions and preventing or supporting Marcato in splitting off the Islamists to form a conservative power base. It should go without saying that the Islamists be very concerned if the Marxists end up in charge pursuing their more radical social programs.
The Marxists want to limit the Islamists and expel the right most members, seeing them as ultimately counter-revolutionaries who'd simply recreate feudal and reactionary social structures. They're defined by their internationalist perspective and desires to create an atheistic workers state. They are somewhat vanguardist simply by the fact that the working class is small, but no explicit desire to create a party state. It does contain some Pan-Arab elements, though its seen as part of the struggle against imperialism rather than an unique experience. That means it also includes a great deal of Pan-Africanists.
Islamists return the feelings, wanting to reign in the radical elements of the Marxists and use them to build a strong economy and state. It does include progressive and revolutionary elements, but is the most socially conservative faction. As the name implies, they want Islam to remain an important factor in any future state, even if it's not outright theocratic. They are technically the most diverse faction, filled with a lot of micro-sets including a few Islamic Socialists, though the majority of of them are the type of people who'd end up forming the Muslim Brotherhood in real life.
Ba'athists make up a slim majority of the party, mostly defined by Arab Socialism and Pan-Arabism, and wishes to see both wings merged under its leadership. They currently form the leadership of the party under Hakim and Nadir, who are seen as the center. It can of course end up favouring one wing over another, allowing it to re-align the party and minimize the power of the losing wing, or neuter both wings and merge them into itself. They do want to create a one party state until a certain point is reached in the future where they feel its accept to open up elections.
The party dynamic is partially inspired by the FLN and INC. There was a point where the INC held Hindu nationalists alongside outright communists worked side by side in the party before independence.
