[center][h1][b]Republic of Vuts[/b][/h1]
[i]Vutsian: Vutsvóhọ Ţá'ŕụ Tsìqxẹ 
Trade Jargon: Vutsvôhrul Ho-Dâh'xǔ[/i]
[i]Claim #10[/i]
[img]http://orig03.deviantart.net/a23a/f/2013/290/3/8/flag_of_the_solar_empire_by_mlp_shadow_blitz-d6qtm9h.png[/img]
[/center]



[b][h2]Location/Geography[/h2][/b]
[img]http://i.imgur.com/hzVqnsz.jpg[/img]

[img]http://www.pageresource.com/wallpapers/wallpaper/fantasy-windows-background-village-mountain.jpg[/img]
The islands are known for being mountainous, with low, fertile valleys scattered across the islands. They have a mild temperature, with cold, snowey winters and temperate yet humid summers. Sprawing trade cities dot the coastlines, while in the valleys, agricultural and fur hunting settlements can be found.  

[b][h2]General Introduction[/h2][/b]
The Republic of Vuts, a prosperous nation, born of trade and warfare, the modern nation comprises the entirety of the Vutsian Islands, and has controlled various trade posts and occupied lands in the past. At the Current time, Vuts has returned to it's traditional method of control though trade and monopoly. 


[b][h2]History[/h2][/b]
The people of Vuts are known to have migrated from an unspecified location millenia ago. Their migration was quick and violent, with historians noting just how short the timespan of their arrival was followed by the extinction of Humanity and Elves on the Vutsian Isles. Most will agree that they are not of any nearby areas, being total isolates in terms of their culture, language, gastronomy, social structure, religion and etcetra, and no solid proposal has been established as to where they came from before migrating into the Vutsian Isles. Establishing themselves in their new home, the winged people of Vuts naturally took to the mountains and forests of their new found homes. It was not long before the islands were split among various competing kingdoms and empires, each controlling pieces of the islands, or entire islands outright. Known as the Warring Times, This time was characterized by constant warfare. 

Many innovations came out of this time. The art of warfare produced a constant need to outdo their competitors, and attract outside nations to aid and trade with them. As such, this tumultuous period was marked by a massive surge in technological achievement, including an independent development of Gunpowder, roughly the same time as the mainlanders' gunpowder became more wide spread. The end of the Warring Times came with the conquest of all the Islands by the King Caqhá, who proclaimed a state that lasted for the next 2 centuries. The Kingdom of Vuts worked to mend relations with nearby kingdoms of man and elf in the region, even going as far to offer their services as mercenaries in the fights against imperial powers. The Kingdom came to an end following a call for reform. The Vutsians began to see their kings and queens as lazy, decadant and corrupt. The leaders of this were a movement calling for autononous law of the people, as system that they called Vutsvóhọ Tsìqxẹ (litterally, Rulership of the People in the Vutsian language). The Vutsvóhọ Tsìqxẹ Movement succeeded in dethroning the king and abolishing the monarchy, establishing an early democratic republic in its place. One of the first actions of this was to decide what to do with the old king and his family. Surprisingly, the government decided to allow them to stay in the country as normal citizens, marking this as a unique revolution in a way. Over time, however, many of the Vutsians began to take notice of their position in the world, and the many resources that they had access to. This was the beginning of the so-called, Merchant's Age, which still continues on to this day. Those who took advantage of the possibility of trade became rich, and were able to enter into government more easily. Through their new-found power, the rich traders of Vuts managed to secure their power through legislation and manipulation that only allowed the merchantile elite to seize power in the nation. Vuts became a functional plutocracy


[h2][b]Government & Society[/b][/h2]
[i][u]Government of Vuts: Plutocratic Oligarchy[/u][/i]
In the modern day and age, money is equal to power in all aspects. The Country is rich on the trade they make, however only a small fraction of the elite ever actually see that money. As well, the public are swayed into the illusion of control over their government through faux elections, though in practice no elected official really has power, no more power than his or her other merchant peers in the aristocracy. The entire government of Vuts is a series of plots and betrayals as the people vie for power. The important seats of government, those who have legal authority over the other aristocrats, are decided based on money, and who can buy their way into the seats, either by literally buying their way into power, or using their influence to pull the stings and eliminate any rivals and challenges in the way of securing power.

At a local level, each city and province is ruled by a governor of the Aristocracy, who hires local mayors to watch over his lands. For the most part, at the city level and below, the country acts as a true democracy. 

[i][u]Species and Society:[/u][/i]
Given the nature of the Vutsians, it is not surprising that the islands are populated entirely by Vutsians, save for some expats of all species that have immigrated from nearby nations.
[hider=Vutsians]
[img]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v694/Nekonyaanyaa/Sarantsatsral.jpg[/img]
[i]An adult male member of the species, dressed in typical clothing[/i] (also not my drawing)
Vutsians, [i]Ţá'ŕụ[/i] in their own language, are a winged humanoid species who live primarily in the Islands of Vuts. Belived to be descended of avian species from the mainland, their ancestors migrated to the Vutsian Islands approximately 2,000 years ago, and largely displaced the Humans and Elves who were living on the Islands beforehand. The Vutsians differ little in terms of Sexual Dimorphism, all members of the species are known for their feminine, youthful looks; which lead to a myth that the Vutsian Isles were inhabited entirely by women. Owing to their avian origins, the males are known to display vibrant colors in their hair, such as bright greens, reds, blues and other colors. They are capable of limited gliding using their wings, however they can no longer fly.    
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As well, the society of Vuts is very unusual compared to their neighbors. 

The Vutsian language is a language isolate, unique not only in its enviroment but indeed in the world. Vutsian is characterized by Subject Object Verb syntax, a lack of Bilabial sounds, vowel harmony, few voiced consonants, 4 tones, highly agglutinative nouns, and a complex isolating system of verbal grammar. 
[i]Example in Vutsian:[/i] [b]Līgàvé tsụvọ'vót'ó nuqūr lạk'ī[/b] - The Stars have shown upon us; a very formal greeting
http://aveneca.com/cbb/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=5403&p=224164#p224164
A simplified version of this language exists called Trade Jargon, that incorporates elements of other nearby languages for facilitating trade relations.

Vutsians are matrilineal; For the most part, their society is egalitarian in modern times, but it is noted that women are often left doing high level work, while men tend to often work in more dangerous aspects of their society, such as those that take them away from the Islands. And as such, it is often men that foreigners see most (though, it is said to be difficult to tell what sex a Vutsian is, as they all look very effeminate and youthful from a human perspective, if one cannot see hair). Understandably, Mothers hold a very high position in Vutsian society, and often extended families are controlled and organized by a martriarchy of the oldest mothers in the family. 

Vutsians are known as the people of passions; indeed, they are well known for their romantic, firey, and expressive literature, as well as their ferocity in battle. 

The staple of the Vutsian diet is the Acorn. Oak Trees were domesticated for mass growth and harvest by the Vutsians some time in their past, and as such, a special breed of domesticated Oak, bred and grown for large acorns, small size, and a short maturity time, managing to produce trees that mature and produce acorns after only 1 year, and reach peak production time after 5 years. The acorns are ground into flour and used for cereal grain. Acorn Bread, Acorn Porridge, and such are staple foods that all Vutsians are familiar with, often eaten with honey.

The Religion of the Vutsians is a bit of an oddity. They are a non-theistic society in refrence to what we think of as Gods. However, they do have a very complex religion based on concepts such as Animism, Katheniotheistoid Ancestor Worship, Necrophagy, and philosphical musings on social order and the natural way of things. The basic deities of the Vutsians are their ancestors, who are believed to walk upon the earth in a spiritual form, watching over and providing for their descendants. However, in this state they have lost their humanity in a way, and are more willing to retaliate in aggression towards what they perceive as disrespect towards them. As such, the Vutsians leave offerings for, ask request of, and keep shrines in remembrance of their dead ancestors. As these spirits are tied to a single family, no two Vutsian households worship the same spirits. The Vutsians take turns venerating one ancestor or group of ancestors over the others every day. As part of the funerary rites for dead relaltives, the Vutsians partake in Nercrophagy, that is, they consume the body of their dead relative. Necrophagy is extremely common among the Vutsians, and those who have gone to war with them will note that they are known to drag the bodies of slain ally and enemy alike to eat later. Due to their very fertility and family generational based religion, the Vutsians are known to look down upon members of their society that are seen as detrimental to producing future children (singleness, homosexuality, asexuality, mental illness,  infertility, sex aversion/repulsion, asocial behavior, etc.). An outgrowth of their religion is the ancestral marker. When a person dies, the family goes out to fell a ceder tree, which will then be carved and decorated, and stood up, like a totem pole, in rembrance and worship of this ancestor. Shrines are built around the Ancestral Marker, and these are the sites of rituals. Families will buy entire fields of land to erect these totem poles on. 

Vutsians are not permited to ask strangers of their names, and actually carry two names. Their birth name, and a "Courtesy Name" which is given out to strangers and used among loose acquaintances. Close friends will exchange their birth names once the feel a sense of mutual closeness to each other.

[h2][b]Economy & Industry[/b][/h2]
Vutsian Trade is vast and all reaching. The nation has almost no restrictions on how companies can be run, allowing for absolutely wildly powerful companies to rise up. Merchant's Guilds are commonplace throughout the country, often competing with one another and working to destroy their competitors. The mountains of Vuts are known for their high content in a few valuable metals, most noticeably, Tin, Copper, Sulfur and Lead, which are all major exports of the Vutsians. As well, Vuts is known for its local method of producing steel, using carbon made from the local cedar trees, and through secretive methods of welding to create strong steel weapons with distinctive wavy patterns. The many trees of the Dense Ceder forests that dominate the Islands are also sold to other nations for lumber. As well, many hunters have etched out a significant living in the fur trade, as many of the animals that inhabit the mountains of the Islands are quite valued by the rich and powerful of other nations. Fish and other seafood makes up an industry on the islands itself, as well as Acorn Farming. The Urban areas of the city are dense, and packed with competing businesses and guilds run wild upon themselves. Technology is very advanced due to the constant one-upsmanship of guilds and companies trying to fight amongst each other. Technology such as movable print type, Matchlock Rifles, early mechanical clockwork, and others are coming to light. The Richer families can afford central heating in the winters through a process of lighting a fire under the house and channing the heat out of the hearth into all rooms through the use of underfloor channels. It may be the exchange for violent and out of control capitalism seeping its way through society and creating the problems of an unstable aristocratic elite.

The Vutsians merchants have trading posts all over the world, and are known to use their military to secure deals and take areas that they want.

[b][h2]Military Overview[/h2][/b]
[img]http://www.trollart.com/alaskaimages/1.jpg[/img]
(To give an idea of what the Armor of the Vutsians looks like)

A military is of course an important aspect of a trade empire like Vuts. The Vutsian military is often deployed in their trade area to seize trade posts, take control of docks, protect and escort cargo, as well as good old fashioned conquest for conquest's sake. Vutsians have a reputation for their tendencies to switch to Guerrilla style warfare, something a bit unorthodox in their time. If facing a Vutsian army in a thick forest, or in the dead of night, be prepared for attacks comming from anywhere, and then dissappearing as soon as they showed up. 

[hider=Army]
[img]http://i.imgur.com/8GqXzDs.jpg[/img]
[i]A Vutsian Infantryman/Calvalryman (left) and a support troop, typical of Bowmen or Artillary (right)[/i]

The armor of the Vutsians is a lamellar type armor made of steel and ceramic mined in the mountains of their island homes. The Republic provides standard issue armor to each solider (though they are known to paint and decorate their armor, and are permmited to do so provided that it does not conflict with their functionality). One of the key features of Vutsian armor is their ceremonial helmets, made entirely of cast iron and padded on the inside. These helmets are ceremonial and functional, there for both psychological effect, and to provide protection. Often, the soliers will wear a cotton shirt underneath their cuirass to absorb blows from melee weapons and gunpowder weapons. 

The Vutsians often show off their firearms, standard issue matchlock muskets, provided more for a psychological effect than actual functionality. Soldiers carry these weapons and will fire them off at their enemy at the start of a battle (reminicent of the roman use of the Pilum) before switching into their melee weapons.

Melee weapons typically consist of the sword, the mace, and the Pike. Pikemen make up the majority of the military. Cavalry usually follows behind. Longbowmen also fill out the ranks to provide ranged coverage.

Infantry: 25,000
Cavalry: 2,000
Longbowmen: 10,000
Artillery: 150


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[hider=Navy]
[img]https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/57/78/b5/5778b51a1c6c509943924f434a8e309d.jpg[/img]
The Vutsian Navy acts primarily as a means to protect cargo and trade ships, and to transport soldiers around the sea. It is, compared to most, a rather mediocre Navy, existing purely for defensive purposes. The Vutsian Navy is not particularly large, and most of it is privately owned by the many Aristocrats of the country. The Republic itself puts little funding into it, expecting the maintenance of trade routes and the movement of Mercenaries to be the primary responsibility of the companies who run the routes and who hire out the soldiers. As such, the navy is far from impressive, comprising a minimal number of vessels. Do not be mislead, however, despite its size, the navy is more than capable of handling itself in battle, and must be to protect it's trade lines.
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As well as serving as Vuts' personal military; Sections of the Vutsian military can be purchased for use as mercenaries by other nations.