New version: Nation Name: The Unified Duchies of Resia Flag: [img]http://www.crwflags.com/fotw/images/g/gb-s-lewis.gif[/img] Government: Appropriations are controlled in the name of the Grand Duke by a unicameral, directly elected popular vote Parliament, as are taxes and generally every facet of government but the military, where HGDH The Grand Duke exercises control in organization and deployment. He also may submit declarations of war to the parliament which may only be rejected with a two thirds vote. Economy: As a liberal economy, Resia focuses on the financial and investment sectors, but most of all on maritime shipping. The country is heavily industrialized, but limited population and limited land area prevents it from being THE industrial powerhouse. As for natural resources, the government is experimenting with offshore oil drilling on account of coal supplies being not that numerous. Iron deposits are plentiful amd there is a respectable amount of Elan, For food, fishing in the gigantic Resian territorial waters is a tremendous part of the economy and helps mitigate low agricultural yields. Leader(s): ~Grand Duke Vilhem I ~Prime Minister Lord Lloyd Smith. ~Admiral of The Fleet and Chief of the Admirality, Count Charles of Tayer. ~The Chief of the General Staff and Field Marshal, Margrave George of the Eastern Isles. Desired Map location: http://imgur.com/8iIbWIF Important Locations: ~Streymoy: the metropolitan home island and also the largest. ~Lohna, the beautiful and cosmopolitan capital city, and site of most financial activity. ~Westmark and Eastmark: The furthest west island and furthest east islands. Their precarious positions are not ignored by the government. While Eastmark is close enough to fit niceky under the iron umbrella of the mighty Resian Navy, Westmark is too far to station a significant portion of the navy. Accordingly, it is effectively a garrison state. Press freedoms are limited, every citizen is required to own a gun, and much of the developed land by the coast is used for impressive coastal fortifications, and the beach is covered in obstacles for an amphibious assault. The army maintains a very large Westmark garrison. Cultural Overview: The Resians have always been a free people, not withstanding they have not always had a means of legitimately participating in government. The widely distributed nature of the island kingdom meant rebels could revolt and rapidly secure the islands, forcing the government to have to make opposed amphibious landings against a well-armed people who have likely commandeered coastal cannon in the easy places to land. Thus, the Grand Dukes generally avoided incurring the wrath of his people when possible and reasonable demands were agreed to. They are a hardworking, industrious, traditional and conformist people. A lack of government force has meant that those who defy social norms are only censured by an appropriate degree of ostracism. Technology Overview: With limited government interference, the society of Resia has always been on the forefront of technology, whether the Resians have liked it or not. Better means of production, discovered in Resia or learned on voyages to other lands, are rapidly adopted by the market's invisible hand, despite the gripes of any luddites. Military Overview: By far, the predominant military arm is the navy. The small army exists to support the navy, and so focuses on small, very expensive and modern units with lots of firepower to take land from the enemy when it is diffuse and hold it when concentrated forces come against them. Mobility is secondary to survivability and firepower. Crucial to the navy's strength is the means by which the armor is made. It is a revolutionary process, and an intensely guarded state secret. The armor, a unique steel mixture with Carbon (cemented by gas cementation on only the outward facing side of the armor) Nickel, Manganese, Silicon, Magnesium, and Sulphur is heated on only one side while the other side is buried in clay. Once 40% of the plate is at the needed temperature for face hardening, the plate is dragged out of the furnace and into an enormous vat of water to ensure uniform cooling. The resultant armor is very hard on the exposed face, but not very prone to spalling or cracking. Given that GCMK2 (Gas Cementation Mark 2) armor is a very new, bleeding edge technology, it is only on the newest ships. Armor on the older ships, the GCMK1 armor is more prone to cracking and spalling, but will resist ship weapons just as well. Reserve ships have the 15% less effective CC (Coal Cementation) armor. (Gunnery note: To counter the air threat, all guns under 6 inches have been mounted such that their elevation reaches 80 degrees. All six inch guns can elevate 60 degrees. All 9.2 inch guns can elevate 45 degrees.) Resian Navy Battleship Classes (On account of the air threat,: Number Name (RL analogue)(Armor)(Reserve Status) 18 [I]Ultimatum[/I] class ([i]Majestic[/i] Class)(GCMK2)(Active) 10 [i]Devotion class[/i] ([i]Royal Sovereign[/i])(CC)(Active) Armored/protected First Class Cruiser: 9 Hertford Class (Cressy Class)(GCMK1) 6 Hindon Class (Powerful Class)(CC)(Reserve) Second Class Cruiser 16 Helm Class (Highflyer Class)(GCMK2)(Active) 9 Gauntlet Class (Eclipse Class)(GCMK1)(Active) 20 Chariot Class (Eclipse Class)(CC)(Reserve). Third Class Cruiser (Additional 16 QF 1 pounders to counter air threat): 30 Cotswold Class (Gazelle Class)(GCMK1)(Active) Destroyer (On account of the air threat, all destroyers are equipped with 4 QF 1 pounders in addition to their regular armaments): 50 Hammerhead Class (Lively Class)(Unarmored)(Active) 80 Pirahna Class (Swordfish class)(Unarmored)(active) Airforce overview: Ever the skeptics, the General staff questioned the cost effectiveness of a purely Elan based, pure flying ship. A hybrid airship/boat with a change of propellers (the engines cannot tolerate high RPMs, so a very large propeller is needed in the air) could travel by air or sea, land just about anywhere, and would have a longer range. This is the basis of the Falcon class, an interceptor/scout designed to conserve Elan. ~Falcon Class Air Destroyer (60): Displacement: 236 metric tons. Armor: None Vertical Propulsion: 34 meter diameter spherical rigid helium balloon. Sea speed: 27 knots Airspeed: Theoretically capable of insanely faster speeds, speeds of 33 knots are about the max unless in the middle of combat due to the intense windspeeds making walking on the deck difficult. When everyone is at batttlestations, sheltered from the winds, speeds of 60 knots are not unheard of. Armament: -1 QF 12 pounder -3 QF 6 pounder -4 QF 1 pounder autocannon ~Hellfire Class Port Attack Ship (30) Differs only from the falcon in armament: Armament: -1 QF 12 pounder -2 QF 1 pounder -2000 60 lb Hale rockets