[img]http://i.imgur.com/WT7TUAf.png[/img] [hider=Cethos] [b]Name of Nation:[/b] Cethos [b]Government:[/b] Absolute Monarchy (Ruler: [i]Matra Prunak[/i] ‘Mother’s Protector’) [b]Species:[/b] Humanoid fish people with primitive gills allowing them to breathe under water (in both fresh and saltwater) for up to 10 hours, webbing in their hands and toes to swim better, able to dive to depths of 130ft (40m), and have a clear, third, eyelid that allows them to see underwater. 'Cethosi tears' are often used to describe fake tears, as they get rid of salt build up via it leaking out of their eyes with water. They lack hair, instead having vestigial fins on the top of their head that start brightly colored and can be large, but dull with age. Indeed, that is the only sign of age. Cethosi women are larger than Cethosi males, by an average of five inches. There is no noticeable difference in physical attributes, though the men are typically faster swimmers. [b]Population[/b]: 40 Million [b]Culture:[/b] Cethosi culture, unsurprisingly, is tied to the ocean. From it their demi-gods were born, on it they expanded and united the Cethosi tribe, and it gives them life and sustenance daily. They have a deep respect for the ocean, and go to great lengths to ensure that it is respected as well. The Mother gave us life, but she is a force of nature that will never be tamed, never forget that. Every Cethosi is first and foremost a sailor and a fisherman, and every single one of them is a powerful swimmer. The Cethosi honor code is fairly simple, with every man's word being his bond. If a Cethosi gives you their word, they will hold to it until it complete or they are dead. If it becomes known that someone is an oath-breaker, they will be shunned by the community at large, until they are forced to leave. Most leave the islands entirely, as any ship they take to another island will spread the word of how untrustworthy they are to wherever they land. Cethosi practice exo-cannibalism, believing that if they eat their slain enemies they will gain their enemies strength. In war, to prevent vicious last stands that will result in more casualties than necessary, Cethosi go to great lengths to make it clear that anyone who surrenders and any wounded are safe from being eaten. Everyone who fights and dies against them, however, is fair game. Cethosi believe that when someone dies, their power is spread throughout their family. Being descended from Demi-gods, every Cethosi thus has part of divinity in them, no matter how minuscule. After someone has died, their family thanks them for the power they are leaving. They are then given back to the ocean, to nourish that which has nourished them their whole lives. Tattoos play an important part in Cethos culture, denoting rank, accomplishments, tribe, and which of the long gone [i]Matra Tu[/i] they worship. It is rare to find a Cethosi that doesn’t have some form of tattoo on their body, and many tribes view it as a disgrace if you do not. [b]Geography:[/b] By and large, most Cethosi islands are pleasant tropical islands. Some have sheer cliff spaces or extremely shallow waters very close, limiting where ships can dock and land, but they are all clear waters and pleasant weather. The main cluster of islands in Cethos is starkly different to the rest of the islands. Instead of easy, clear, waters, the approach is filled with dark, choppy waters with large rocks jabbing out at frequent and seemingly random intervals. All around the island are 'ship graveyards' where entire invading fleets met their doom or the royal family forced the rebels to enter the island on their defenses, sinking what remained the royal navy around the island. There is one main path through all of this, and that leads straight into the teeth of the island's defenses The waters of Cethos are filled with exotic and magical creatures: huge fish whose scales shine with every color of the rainbow, mermaids playfully calling from the sea, giant squids sinking under the waves, talking turtles with gold growing on their shells, etc etc. [b]History:[/b] Descended from the many Demi-Gods ( [i]Matra Tu[/i] ‘Mother’s Children’) of the ocean, whose final decree was that no impure would set foot on their holy islands, the people of Cethos have always preferred to isolate themselves from the rest of the world. The only recorded time in Cethosi history, before modern times, that they ever left their islands as a nation to interact with the outside world, was when Kratoria reached for allies against the [i]Chan Ak Su-na[/i] the ‘Dark Invaders From Afar’ (often shortened to simply [i]Chan[/i]). Known as the Black Empire, the Ap Morgi, The Morghul Dominion, and a thousand other names in a thousand other tongues, the [i]Chan[/i] had already gained a foothold on the Cethosi islands, and were embroiled in a bloody war of conquest against the Cethosi and the [i]Matra Tu[/i]. The Cethosi and their gods were losing ground every day, only slowing the [i]Chan[/i] at a terrible cost. The Kratorians landed on Cethos’ shores, and offered an alliance. With nowhere else to turn, the [i]Matra Tu[/i] accepted. Together, they forced the [i]Chan[/i] off the islands. Thus began Cethosi involvement in a centuries long war that would claim the lives of thousands of Cethosi and dozens of [i]Matra Tu[/i]. When the war was finally over, and the [i]Chan[/i] finally defeated, the Cethosi retreated to their isolation again. The [i]Matra Tu[/i] bid their former allies farewell, and settled into their isolated kingdoms, ruling over their islands. It was only a few years later that Kratoria would return, demanding Cethos allegiance and servitude to the Kratorian Empire, a new power filling the void left by the destruction of the [i]Chan[/i]. The Cethosi and their gods refused, and threw the Kratorian delegation off of their islands. Within days, a Kratorian fleet sailed across the ocean, intent upon conquering the isles. The [i]Matra Tu[/i] would unite their islands again, and meet the threat in open battle in the sea. In the centuries that followed, the [i]Matra Tu[/i] would engage the Semideums in titanic battles, entire fleets being shattered on both sides, and the Cethosi tribes awaiting to battle any Kratorians that made it to the Islands. The Empire never achieved its dream of conquering the Cethosi Islands, but they did inflict severe blows to the Cethosi population and morale. Bit by bit, year by year, the [i]Matra Tu[/i] were being eradicated. History debates and wildly speculates on the cause, some claiming a curse from the [i]Chan Ak Su-na[/i], others from the Kratorians, still others simple old age, and yet more others that the Kratorians had poisoned them. All agreed that the war with the Kratorian Semideums aggravated the issue, and the results are all the same. Eventually, the [i]Matra Tu[/i] were extinct as a race. Cethos was left without its defenders, and Kratoria wasted no time launching another invasion fleet. This one without Semideum, as they were needed for the war against Etresna and knew it to be below them to battle ‘island savages’. The Cethosi, still united despite the death of their guardians, met the fleet in open waves. It was a desperate last stand. They knew that if the Kratorians were allowed to gain a foothold, they would be conquered within months. So they threw every ship they had at the Kratorian fleet, and did everything possible to destroy it. Ships were lit on fire and rammed into the enemy. Cethosi crews would madly rush aboard Kratorian ships with oil and fire, throwing it everywhere as they were cut down. Cethosi ships were thrown in front of advancing Kratorian ships to slow their advance to the island. Hundreds of Cethosi ships were sacrificed, and thousands died. But it worked. Most of the Kratorian fleet was destroyed and those ships that weren’t slinked back to Kratoria. Another invasion never came, as Kratoria became ever more obsessed with defeating Etresna and lost its grip on the rest of its holds. The Cethosi leadership that had united them during this battle all perished, and the tribes of Cethos fractured again. They only unanimously agreed to keep the Islands free of outsiders, and then went to their separate islands to live how they believed their [i]Matra Tu[/i] wanted them too. Even during the unification of the islands in the years 1650-1660, Cethos kept outsiders as much out of their islands as they could, even going so far as to execute those they found twice. Up until 1880, the islands kept as minimal contact with the outside world as they could. Their sacred decrees were everything, and they would not break it. When the year 1880 finally arrived, the Cethosi Civil War broke out and ravaged the islands for twenty years. An officer of the Cethosi Navy, Gharn Lashk, had become the leader of a faction pushing for Cethos to open its borders and to increase contact with the outside world. Cethos, he argued, was falling behind in the arms race of the world and it would only be a matter of time before a stronger nation came and conquered them. He had seen the technology Etresna possessed, the armies of the nations that were only a short sail away, and new that his beloved Cethos would not survive a war with any of them. His warnings were ignored, and he kept pushing. He kept pushing for their borders to open, for trade to be allowed, for them to become modernized quickly before someone took advantage of their weakness. After being stopped time and time again, stopped by his superiors and his king, Gharn took matters into his own hands. He had amassed a strong following, especially among the peasantry of the islands, and he could seize control. Gharn attempted to assassinate his king and the royal family. The attempt failed, and Gharn barely escaped with a handful of his followers. He vowed to return, and finish what he had started. The Cethosi Civil War had begun. What would follow was twenty years of vicious naval battles, bloody beach assaults, and the massive ramp up of modernization and defensive fortifications on the islands. Ships and guns became more and more modern as both sides bought from outsiders, islands became entrenched on all sides awaiting the next assault. Gharn got all that he wanted and more. He only had to bring half of the islands under his control to complete his dream. He couldn't afford to let them destroy each other any longer. He needed to end the war quickly, so he reached out to the outside world. Specifically he reached out to Etresna, and made their alliance stronger. In return for Cethos' naval aid and keeping some of the islands they take, Etresna will help him win this civil war. Etresna fleets and military soon deployed in aid of Gharn's rebellion, and their aid proved invaluable in winning Gharn the war. As Etresnamaden and Cethosi Rebels stormed the palace of the main island, the royal family and their last loyal troops barricaded themselves in the palance. It was a magnificent structure, made of ebony wood, that had been apart of Cethos history for hundreds of years. It was said to have been a gift from the [i]Matra Tu[/i], before they died. Gharn gave them one chance to surrender, to join him. They refused. Gharn set fire to the entire palace with everyone inside. As the Royal family burned alive, the flames of the old ways flooding the skies with black smoke, Gharn was crowned the new [i]Matra Prunak[/i] of Cethos. Ten years have passed since then. Gharn's reconstruction of the military and its fortifications on all the islands, in addition to Cethos acquiring two client states, has left the economy perilously weak. If not for its tight alliance with Etresna, Cethos would have no doubt been stuck with its devastated army and navy. The economy has slowly been built back up, exports previously kept within Cethosi borders being shipped out to other nations. With their navy strong, their army dug in, and their alliances sealed, Cethos stands ready for whatever this new era brings. [b]Territory Claims:[/b] All of the pink islands off the coast of Etresna. [hider=Big fucken map][img]https://i.cubeupload.com/8s8c9g.png[/img][/hider] [b]Economy:[/b] The Cethosi economy is perilously weak. After the Civil War and the military rebuilding, the economy had no trade beyond Etresna to fall back on. While that was enough to prevent complete economic collapse, Cethos simply doesn't have the funding to increase and improve many things. With the recent discovery of oil on and off their main islands, the outlook is better. As trade opens and things previously kept from the world are sent out, their economic weakness might change. As of now, Cethos is tightly tied to Etresna for economic support. [b]Technology:[/b] While by no stretch of the imagination a leader of the pack in the technology arms race, Cethos has, with the help of their allies Etresna, kept themselves effectively modern. [hider=army and marine corp uniform][img]https://i.pinimg.com/originals/58/91/64/589164569fad0a77604bfccaa642154a.png[/img][/hider] [b]Army:[/b] The Cethosi Army is divided into two divisions. The Islands Defense Force, IDF, is a small and purely defensive branch of the military. Numbering only 120,000 in total, the IDF is spread out across the island holdings of Cethos, entrenched in the fortifications built during the Cethosi Civil War, and repaired to modern specifications in the past ten years. Every island has some form of fortification, the smallest having pitfall trenches, barbed wire, and machine gun bunkers, the largest having coastal artillery emplacements, sea mines (not deployed), barbed wire, pit falls, machine gun nests, etc. The vast majority of active duty soldiers being veterans of the Civil War, the IDF stands ready and able to repel any possible invasion of the islands. The Second Division of the Cethosi Army is the Islands Army. Numbering 180,000 standing members with another 100,000 on reserve the Islands is the projection force of Cethos. It is the force that will be sent forward alongside the marines to support allies or attack enemies. [b]Navy:[/b] With 600 war ships the Cethosi Navy is one of the largest navies on the seas of Narrev, if not the largest, and Cethos goes to great lengths to maintain their naval supremacy. As such, and due to their heritage and culture with the ocean, the Cethosi naval forces are much larger than that of other nations. The Marine Corps alone contains 980,000 active duty members and another 150,000 on reserve. These active members are spread across the navy ready to form a beachhead for allies, or help defend. The Marine corp is so large in its own right that it is more akin to the army of other nations, though they lack artillery, and as such are trained in land operations as well. [hider=Warship Numbers] Dreadnoughts: 30 Battleships (pre-Dreadnoughts): 60 Battlecruisers: 35 Armoured Cruisers: 50 Protected Cruisers: 40 Scout Cruisers: 30 Light Cruisers: 40 Destroyers: 220 Torpedo Boats: 80 Submarines: 15 Total: 600 [/hider] The Cethosi navy, technically, has access to thousands of other ships from centuries of Cethosi naval aspects. The [i]Byuna Vasha[/i] are possessed ships with crews from centuries in the past, ranging from simple ramming ships to massive manowars. The vast majority of them are scuttled on the beaches, those with cannons and ranged weapons facing towards the sea for defence, and are more like to temples than actual warships. The Cethosi Army and Marine Corp weapons designs are based off of Etresna, using the same base design as the make and models from the Etresnamaden military. The standard Cethos rifle, the [i]Matra Wuban[/i] ‘Mother’s Wrath’ is based off of the Etremaden [url=http://john1911.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/9387847_1.jpg]‘Atassidaiir Vyye 1903 - Repeat Firearm Model 1903’.[/url] The Cethosi design was built with durability and functionality in mind, capable of operating even after submerged underwater for hours at a time or being used as a makeshift club, at the cost of some range. Every Cethosi soldier or marine comes with a dagger attached to their hip, and their bayonets are longer than traditional bayonets, making their guns looked more like spears than rifles. Melee combat and styles vary from island division to island division, as each culture has its own take and preference on how to fight. [b]Air Force:[/b] With no money to fund this innovative technology, Cethos has no airforce to speak of. [b]Magic:[/b] Cethosi magic is tightly tied to blood, flesh, and the consumption of it. Those two things are major factors amongst the mages of Cethos, as is ancestor reverence and worship. It is not uncommon for a modern day Cethosi mage to discuss things with the spirit of a mage who existed centuries ago, during the times of the [i]Matra Tu[/i]. As an organization, the mages of Cethos are only loosely united by their investigation and cultivation of magic. Aligning themselves more according to their tribal lines than their universal similarities, there is no overarching organization to govern them. It is generally accepted, however, that the mages in the service of the crown have the power to shut down any research or development they deem dangerous to the Isles. Cethosi magic is most well known for its use of the bodies of the dead. In various factories and special buildings across the islands, mages and those that work for them process the blood and flesh of the dead (enemies or volunteers) into vials of blood or packets of meat to be consumed. Upon consuming these, the Cethosi gains the physical attributes of whoever was processed into the vial or the packet. If a Cethosi was to drink the vial of blood, they would experience increased attributes for a few hours (a max of five, but it also depends on physical activity, with the shortest amount of time being an hour). If a Cethosi eats the package of meat they would experience increased attributes for a little longer than a day ( 28 hours max, but it also depends on physical activity, with the shortest amount of time being 20 hours). Because of this, bodies of certain races are valued highly by Cethosi mages. They’ll pay top dollar for Uruk, minotaur, and elf corpses, and will pay any amount demanded if someone were to somehow get their hands on a semideum corpse. They can get this process down to only a specific trait, used primarily with animal corpses. For example, an eagle’s blood would only lend the eyesight of an eagle to whoever drinks it, a bear’s blood would only lend the strength of a bear, so on so forth. These vials, while much more powerful, are much shorter lasting. They only last for a max of thirty minutes, depending on the physical activity, with a max of 15 minutes. The Cethosi have developed a liquid, made from blood of course, that their bullets can be dipped into. When this liquid comes in contact with blood it causes the blood to turn acidic, making anything it touches burn in agony and, eventually, death (time frame depending on how fit and healthy the victim is). If the wound is washed out quickly enough, the effects are cancelled. Cethos has also figured out how to tie the souls of dead sailors to ships they served on. These [i]Byuna Vasha[/i] ‘Blessed Vessels’ have the souls of crewmembers who had been on the ship for years, and sailing in war vessels for decades. While the spirits are incapable of touching or interacting with the living world, they can possess the ship to tell the crew the max they can push it beyond recommended levels, they do not need rest or feel the elements (making them excellent look outs and guides through storms), and can tell the living crew the best way to set up things for the fastest and most accurate firing. The same process is used to bind the souls of ancestors to buildings, allowing for their wisdom to be accessed for centuries to come. It is particularly popular amongst the cethosi mages. Cethos has designed submarines made out of the corpses of dead sea leviathans. While these submarines are much more fragile and easily destroyed than normal submarines, they can stay under longer and move faster than their technological counter parts. Cethos has developed a bone armor that covers the torso and head. Covered in blood runes and flexible, the bone is weaker than steel, but also much lighter. Incapable of blocking bullets at anything except extreme long range, it is more than capable of blocking melee weapon attacks. For that reason, and its lightness, most Cethosi soldiers come equipped with this light armor. [hider=Rolls]5 - Territory - Your nation is somewhat small, with room for perhaps a city or two and some farmland. (7-2) 13 - Tech - Your nation is decently modern, with an effective grasp of technology. It is by no means a trend setter, but it stays up. 17 - Army Size - The size of your army is formidable, and is maintained year-round. (7+10) 5 - Economy - Your economy is weak, and is teetering on a recession. 12 - Production -Your nation is a mix of agrarian and industrial. (14-3) 20 - Navy Size - Your nation rules the waves. Your merchant fleet is the best out there and your matchless navy seeps with tradition. 1 - Airforce Size - You have no air force. 20 - Mobilization Ability - It takes a week to mobilize. 15- Magic -Impressive, you can put lightning cannons in a lot of places, perhaps you've decided river patrol boats should shoot lightning instead of bullets[/hider] [b]Traits[/b] [i]Masters of the Sea[/i]- Every Cethosi has been in a boat from the earliest time they can remember. They’ve been swimming since before that. They know the ocean, and all her fickle moods. As such, Cethosi ship crews are the most efficient in the world, getting that extra knot from their ships, firing those couple of seconds faster, etc etc. When in water, regardless of whether its swimming, beaching operations, or any other operation in the ocean, they’re much more at ease and skilled at it than other races. [i]Cannibals[/i]- Cethosi are exo-cannibals, meaning they only eat enemies slain in battle. However, their reputation as cannibals has rapidly distorted out of proportion. Enemies who face them are understandably afraid of this fate, making them more likely to break if they see defeat (and being eaten alive) rising. However, if they have nowhere to run this same fear makes them more likely to fight to the death instead of surrendering. The knowledge of the Cethosi honor code has eased some of these fears, but not many. [i]Battle Forged[/i]- Cethos only recently finished a brutal civil war that soaked the islands in blood. As such, all but the very young and the very old have experience in combat and war. The Cethosi army and navy is filled with experienced and hardened soldiers and sailors, ready from their time in the war. A large amount of the factories that they have are geared towards building weapons of war still. However, this has left their economy perilously weak, and there are still dissenters from the losing side, hidden away. [i]Naval Traditions[/i]- Cethos has always been a nation and a people that emphasizes navy and seagoing traditions over most others. As a result, it is only natural that most of their volunteers are for the navy and marine corp, making those military factions much larger than other nations, more akin to actual armies in their own rights. However, this also means that their army and artillery corps are much smaller than other nations. [i]Unfettered Ambitions[/i]- Cethos is playing catch up with the rest of the world. While they were being isolationist, the rest of the world was making advances in industrial and technological sectors. Now that they have reentered the world they are only kept afloat by their ally’s technological superiority and economic might. To stop that, any and all money Cethos can spare is going to creating a thriving and modern industry in within the nation’s borders, at the cost of other sectors. [b]Client States[/b] [hider=Hyanids][img]http://i0.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/facebook/000/897/558/c1d.jpg[/img] Population: 27 million Army size: 80,000 Navy: N/A Overview: A mess of snarling tribes and contentious members, Hyan has always been a divided nation. Until Cethos arrived and forcibly united them, and continues serving as a peacekeeper and settler of disputes, the tribes had separated themselves into various city states. Once Cethos arrived, the tribes acquiesced to the greater Cethosi strength one by one, until Cethos had all of their loyalty. They were allowed to keep their autonomy, but with Cethos keeping a watchful eye on them. [i]Trait: War Dogs[/i]- The Hyan’s culture is based heavily around war and combat. It is built into almost every facet of their lives, and they are very prepared for and experienced in it. However, they are also extremely eager to fight in it and die in it. This leads to recklessness, such as charging heedlessly straight into the teeth of entrenched forces and artillery, giving away positions in a night attack, so on so forth. It also leads to officers being unable to control them, leading to acts of unnecessary savagery and cruelty. 5 - Territory - 5 Provinces 3 - Political Stability - This nation is doing alright. 6 - Nationalism - This nation is ashamed of its culture and is completely subservient to your nation.[/hider] [hider=Slaugs][img]https://i.pinimg.com/736x/87/6f/22/876f2206094a1879b81ddc75f7d50b1e--creature-concept-art-creature-fantasy.jpg[/img] Population: 10 million Army: 50,000 Navy: N/A Overview: Natives to Shrask, the Slaugs are a largely isolationist nation. They would much prefer to be left alone, even from each other, minding their own business. Alas, the ways of the world prevented that, and when Cethos arrived offering their navy in return for Shrask's allegiance, they couldn't refuse. Still, Cethos maintains a very hands off policy towards them, not wanting to anger them. [i]Trait: Good Things Take Time[/i]- The Slaugs are a very patient race. They move slowly in everything. Building, moving, going to war, firing weapons, the Slaugs are slow and precise. When they do get to completing what they’re doing it is usually with masterful purpose. Their creations are superbly built and beautiful to look at. They move into a purposeful location. They strike at a key area in a war. Their weapons hit hard and powerfully. The Slaugs move slowly, but never without cause or impact. 5 - Territory - 5 Provinces 5 - Political Stability - This nation is peaceful and stable. 3 - Nationalism - This nation is somewhat nationalist, and is fiercely independent.[/hider] [b]Other:[/b] [u]Alliances[/u] -Etresna -Nahs'rahk [/hider]