The Nation Sheet [img]http://i.imgur.com/zL9arSP.png[/img] [b]Theocratic Republic of Ardan[/b] [b]Nation's History[/b] The Theocratic Republic of Ardan is home to one of the oldest civilizations, tracing it's history back almost 8,000 years. Ardan is home to the religion of Quddam, which was founded by the Prophet (PBUH) 600 years ago when the Angel Jibril came to him in a vision while he was meditating in the north mountains. Qudduam became split between the two sects, Maliki and Hakkam when the Prophet (PBUH) died. This schism came to be because of the followers of Basir al- Latif, who contested Bin Rahmans's claim to the Caliphate. The Maliki and Hakkam Qudduam sects became further detached from eachother in later years though, with the Maliki's putting more power into the Imams and Ayatollahs, aswell as only praying 3 times a day as opposed to the Hakkam's 5, but other than that, the schism was and continues to be purely political, and trivial considering that both sects follow the same version of the Al Haqq, the Qudshim holy book. The modern state of Ardan was rekindled by Shah Hafez Hashemi after he managed to unify greater- Ardan for the first time in 1,250 years over 500 years ago. Shah Hafez's reign also played a key role in the rise of Maliki Qudduam by converting the Hakkam nation to a Maliki one. After the death of Shah Hafez 'the Great', the Hashemi dynasty ruled Ardan for centuries after, before the last Shah died without an heir, causing a minor power struggle. After the resulting power struggle, the nation was headed by the Shah Jalal 'the Bald' Asgharid, and Ardan was ruled by the Asgharid dynasty for numerous years after his death. The Asgharid Dynasty was toppled though, due to a mixture of corruption and famine, which cause mass unrest and ultimately resulted in the Ardanian Constitutional Revolution, headed by Hassan Ali Jafari who set up the first Constitutional Monarchy in Ardan, ending a long cycle of Absolute Monarchies. Though Shah Hassan Ali's reign was cut short, as he contracted tuberculosis in the fifth year of his reign, and with his death his incompetent son, Sadegh Ackbar Jafarid ascended to the throne. Shah Sadegh Ackbar quickly gained the favor of the populace in the capital and several major cities, though this ultimately caused mass neglect in regards to the villagers and the people in smaller cities and towns, which made up the majority of the country. His neglectful, corrupt and decadent reign caused great unrest, finally causing a Revolution headed by the in- exile Ayatollah Sadegh Sarafzani, with the religious and syndicalist populations rising up against the Shah after listening to the his cassettes, which were smuggled into the country. The Mujahideen e Gharb also joined in later, though to the dismay of Ayatollah Sarafzani, who criticized their extreme behavior. After this Qudduami Revolution, Ayatollah Sarafzani was finally granted re- entry to the country after 20 years of exile and the Shah fled Ardan, seeking political asylum. After he fled the country, it turned out that the Shah has late- stage lung cancer, and he died only three years after being deposed. After the Revolution, there was a massive purge of the Shah's army, with the newly formed Theocratic Republic imprisioning and killing many of the Shah's old generals and officers. Though the Shah's army weren't the only targets after the revolution, with the Mujahideen e Gharb being targetted after they assassinated several of the first Theocratic Republic's presidents, due to the anger they had that they were not represented in the new government. 10 years after the formation of the Theocratic Republic, the death toll was heading towards 20,000, more than 60% of which being Mujahideen members, labelled as terrorists by the new government. After the death of Ayatollah Sarafzani 27 years after the Quddami Revolution, the Ardanian Majlis elected Ayatollah Ali Saharzad as the new Supreme Leader of Ardan. [b]Race[/b] Human, brown skinned with dark hair. [b]Form of Government[/b] Theocratic Republic of Ardan [b]Current Leader(s)[/b] Ayatollah Ali Saharzad, who is elected by the Ardanian Majlis President Houssein Farhangi, who is elected by the people of the nation Grand Vizier Jamshid Perozi, who is appointed by the Ayatollah to supervise internal dealings [b]Notable Figures[/b] Foreign Minister, Kamran Sargashteh Minister of Armed Forces, Bahram Shari Minister of Religion, Imam Ghasem Luri Total Population 86 million, 14 million of which are situated within the capital city of Miladshahr [b]Nation's Location:[/b] [img]http://i.imgur.com/yZfZFne.jpg[/img] [b]Nation's Geography:[/b] Majority desert, wooded grassland and coast in the South West. Mountainous regions in the middle, North and North West [b]Economy:[/b] Syndicalism Oil, Refined Petroleum, Benzine, Gold, raw Iron, Munitions, Industrial goods, Woven goods, Camels and Elephants [b]Technology Overview[/b] While the Quddami Revolution has many social reforms, the technological hit the nation took during it has made it so the nation is several years behind it's neighbors, though the current administration is striving to close the gap between Ardan and it's fellow nations. [b]Military Overview[/b] 6% of the population, 2,510,000 in reserves and 2,650,000 active personnel. Ardan has mandatory service where every able- bodied man is required to serve 2 years in the military [i]atleast[/i] once, if they are between the ages of 20 and 45. Single children are granted immunity during peacetime, but their immunity will be stripped during war time. [b]Army Overview[/b] [hider=My Hider] [img]http://i.imgur.com/Wkl9Hhr.jpg[/img] [/hider] 1. [color=ed1c24]Sepah- e Pasdaran e Enghelab e Quddami:[/color] Elite forces of the Ardanian army, when not at war, they are used as peacekeeping forces in and outside of Ardan. Given 20 weeks of advanced training. 2. [color=ed1c24]Child Basiji:[/color] Children volunteers to the Ardanian army are almost never turned down, and are given jobs such as sending messages from one point of the field to another and in dire circumstances, grenade throwers and riflemen. 3. [color=ed1c24]Colonel:[/color] A higher ranking officer, mostly in charge of the Revolutionary Guard but occasionally also leading the Pasdaran. [hider=My Hider] [img]http://i.imgur.com/P7BIm7I.jpg[/img] [/hider] 1. [color=ed1c24]Regular Pasdaran troop:[/color] The main force of the Ardanian army, made up of men who chose to serve their country for longer than their 2 year long mandatory service. Given 12 weeks of basic training. 2. [color=ed1c24]Command Sergeant Major:[/color] A basic non- commissioned officer in the Pasdaran. 3. [color=ed1c24]Ardanian Expeditionary Force:[/color] Units who undergo strenuous training in the harsh mountain climates of northern Ardan, where winters are known to be exceptionally snowy. [hider=My Hider] [img]http://i.imgur.com/Wlwekbc.jpg[/img] [/hider] 1. [color=ed1c24]Basiji:[/color] Volunteers into the Ardanian army, made up of men doing their mandatory service. Given 7 weeks of basic training. 2. [color=ed1c24]Mobile Basiji:[/color] Volunteers into the Ardanian army, differing from the on- foot Basiji because of their state- issued bicycle which allows them to go from area to area faster with less strain on the soldier. Given 8 weeks of basic training. 3. [color=ed1c24]Toufangchi:[/color] Basiji's who distinguished themselves during basic training and/or combat with their exceptional shooting, given a longer range rifles and are trained to hone their shooting skills. Given 9 weeks of basic training. [hider=My Hider] [img]http://i.imgur.com/rcMlA52.jpg[/img] [/hider] [color=ed1c24]Feil e Janghi, Mk. I:[/color] Ardan's primary armored land unit, aside from the Aghrab Mk. II. This armored unit is exceptional in flatter terrain, but can also work in low hills and sparse forest. It may not work at it's best in densely forested regions, but it becomes useless in heavy mountains and steep hills, due to it's sheer weight and size. [hider=My Hider] [img]http://i.imgur.com/lL8G0RS.jpg[/img] [/hider] [color=ed1c24]Aghrab Mk. II:[/color] Ardan's mid- armored land unit. The Mk. II is one of the Theocratic Republic's newest breakthroughs in the art of warfare, and it replaces the old decommissioned Aghrab Mk. I's used by the Shah's army. The Aghrab is most exceptional in flat area, such as desert or plains. It's legs are made specifically to deal with the fine, grainy sand of the Ardanian desert, but it also adapts well to mountainous environments and hilly terrain, unlike it's counterpart, the Fiel e Jangi Mk. I. [hider=My Hider] [img]http://i.imgur.com/RnrLRQO.jpg[/img] [/hider] [color=ed1c24]Perooz Anti- Armor Cannon Mk. I:[/color] The Perooz Mk. I is an anti- armor cannon that is capable of penetrating most mid to heavy armors. The downside to this beast of a gun is that it's dependant on it's crew of three, and it takes up to a minute to reload and re- aim a round. [hider=My Hider] [img]http://i.imgur.com/Db2YFDb.jpg[/img] [/hider] 1. [color=ed1c24]Toupchi:[/color] Ardanian artillerist, picked from the Basij to man the armored vehicles and artillery 2. [color=ed1c24]Lieutenant Colonel:[/color] Commisioned officer looking over enlisted men in the Pasdaran and Basij artillery and armor units 3. [color=ed1c24]Toupchi Sarkar:[/color] Spotter for the artillery and the armored machinery. [b]Navy Overview[/b] 106 Cruisers 78 Destroyers 12 Dreadnoughts 56 Torpedo Cruisers 24 Transports Total of 276 ships in the Ardanian fleet [hider=My Hider] [img]http://i.imgur.com/ZRp2Jt2.jpg[/img] [/hider] 1. [color=ed1c24]Pasdaran Marine:[/color] Pasdaran who chose to be directed to the naval branch of the armed forces as Marines. Given 12 weeks basic training. 2. [color=ed1c24]Basiji Sailor:[/color] The lifeblood of a vessel, made up of Basiji's who chose to be directed to the naval branch of the armed forces. Given 5 weeks basic training. 3. [color=ed1c24]Admiral:[/color] A commander of several vessels in the Ardanian fleet [b]Air Force Overview[/b] Ardan doesn't have a functional airforce and relies on the RSI for air support.