Name of Nation: The Republic of Anvegad Government: Parliamentary Monarchy The Republic is run by a parliament of 350 elected delegates, which is elected on the basis of the popular vote for different political parties to determine the percentage of their representation. Delegates to parliament are determined from within each party by their own mechanisms, and the parliament votes within itself to determine heads of different ministries and functions as well as the executive president, typically at the behest of the majority party or ruling coalition. In theory, the monarchy serves as a parallel supreme executive to the president as a means to break deadlocks and ties in voting while constrained by not having any control over budget or domestic policy without parliament’s approval. In practice, the current young Queen Alica Roland is little more than a figurehead with no meaningful political clout, largely rubberstamping what the Centrist party puts on her desk. Presently the major political parties of parliament are: * Centrists: A coalition pact of moderates, businesspeople, and idealists that seek to uphold the core values of justice, equality, freedom, merit, and order of the Republic without adopting too many excesses of the past or radical futurism. Presently the majority rulers of Anvegad, but their coalition nature means several different machinations and factions beneath the appearance of unity. * Royalists: Hardcore loyalists to the throne of Anvegad and Queen Roland, voting in alignment to their queen's wishes. A minority in parliament, especially with the current queen's youth and lack of authority, but a influential one with some strategic pull and high resources for it's small representation. * Collectivists: A new wave of thinking of collective living and socialist society modeled by the Lupine Aneska Kartz, proposing collective rule and ownership of property to bring about true equality. The Collectivist party is firmly on the side of the people, in immediate terms seeking to raise standards of living and curtail the excesses of the elite, and in the long run gain power to spread Collectivism to the rest of the world. Presently the largest of the minority parties. Species: [hider=Species] Human: Common folk of Anvegad and the backbone of the nation, Anvegadians are influenced by the abundance of magical energy within their homeland and cities, resulting in a wide variety of skin and hair colors as well as a wide range of potential physical development. Anveholm Lupinekin: “Bunny People” seemingly crossbred with forest rabbits in some ancient magical creation story, Lupinekin make up a sizable percentage of Anvegad’s population with their high reproductive rates and speed of maturation. Typically they are lesser in physical strength than humans but far more agile. Fenrir: Werewolf-kin that originally immigrated from the southernmost lands to Anvegad, they are large burly beastfolk with wolf-heads and wolfpack mentalities to life and living. Typically larger and stronger than human norm, though they only breed true in high ambient mana. More typically they breed half-breed demihumans with other species. [/hider] Culture: [hider=Culture] The present day Anvegad Republic is a vibrant and diverse land stemming from it’s former Imperial-era expansion and integration of many foreign lands and ideas into it’s pillars of empire, which has since been upended with the revolution against the Valorgarde royal family and the institution of a freer republic without the constraints of the social divide between aristocracy and commons. Anvegad culture is centered around self-realization, finding purpose and place in society and excelling within one’s chosen role. However this is fundamentally a choice, and choices can change. Thus grand dramas, sport, and written word are common pastimes while religion and high philosophy are less prevalent. While the days of conquering adventures in foreign lands have long subsided, the people of Anvegad still view their army with pride and as a source of national resolve and security with recent reforms and performance against the Revenge Wars. The army is the great equalizer and opportunity available to a citizen, where only ability counts and anyone can rise to authority if they can prove themselves in the crucible of war. However this is predominantly a culture of professionalism rather than honor or zeal, with the Republic seeking to avoid the excesses and pillage of the imperial age with a reliable and competent force that doesn’t need to resort to such acts, as thus the civilian government takes their role of keeping the military in line seriously. [/hider] History: WIP Territorial Claims: Economy: [hider=Economy] The Republic has pulled itself out of the economic damage caused by it’s civil war and reemerged as a exporter of high-grade mana crystal, artisan alchemical craftworks and metallurgy, and spell-enhanced hardware. Between revitalization of the maritime trade and the breaking of trade barriers with former enemies, the Republic stands poised for further growth but faced with constant decisions on where to invest and whom to allow investments in domestic markets. The majority of Anvegad’s industrial power is well developed but exceedingly concentrated in the coastal cities of Ferrum, Cupernum, Niccolum, and Kalium where water-power enabled them to reach feats of alchemical forging many modern cities are hard-pressed to match, and the passage of time has continued to add to their glories with coal powered factories to supplement magical and water power. Many of Anvegad’s other industrialized territories were lost to now bordering countries that were let independent, while much of their central land is underdeveloped and agrarian, albeit augmented by alchemical fertilizers and nature renewal magic to clean up the worst excesses of early industrialization. While efforts to expand the industries are ongoing, Anvegad’s industrial power is quite centralized for the foreseeable future. [/hider] Technology/Magic: [hider=My Hider] At first glance, Anvegad looks more like a Enlightenment period society than a modern culture, with antiquated fashions and cities made of wood and stone more than metal and concrete, with horse-drawn carriages more common than cars and it’s army clad in seemingly medieval knight style armor even. But when one looks beneath the surface, one realizes that while Anvegad isn’t as capable as it’s neighbors in harnessing coal, oil, and machinery nor cutting-edge in adopting the latest pure-tech, it’s magic more than makes up for it and then some. Anvegad is a nation of magic, intertwined with much of it’s society, culture, military, and industries. This is predominantly due to their large reserves of mana crystals, providing a abundance of magical energy readily accessible and available to use for a variety of purposes. In several ways, they make industrial use of what others ascribe mythical value to, and embody the present-day attitude that sufficiently developed magic is indistinguishable and equivalent to modern technology in using mana crystal much like other nations burn coal for energy. The majority of Anvegad’s magic lies in manacrafted alchemical alloys, mixing shards and fragments of mana crystals into ores to create lightweight or elemental-charged metals that are as durable as the best steel and alloys made by technological powers. This has yielded material for grand construction works, body-armor for soldiers that is lightweight and self-cooling, and alloys for ships and bridges. Furthermore, this field of magic is no static or ancient system, but a modern and dynamically evolving field of study as new metals become manipulatable such as titanium and aluminum, with new possibilities emerging from the alchemical labs of Anvegad. In terms of weaponry, Anvegad is one of the world’s greatest manufacturers of spellcannons, predominantly making use of cannons firing shells loaded with mana-crystal powder that can be set to release a variety of potent spells, such as fireballs that can strike singularly at fortifications or split into clouds of firebolts against enemy infantry, or lightning spells for instantly landing direct-fire strikes. The most powerful, reliable, and versatile spellweapons in the world come from Anvegad forges. [/hider] Army: [hider=Army] Though Anvegad has turned a new leaf as a Republic, it remains acutely aware of the need for military force as well as the need to move past the atrocities of the imperial age for the sake of ensuring the next war will not descend to the madness of the Valorgardes. To that end the army was reformed from a largely conscript mob led by noble leaders and cavalry to a professional force of infantry and artillery, forged with a intent to avoid the cannon fodder tactics of the past and secure pride in their nation with a firm bulwark to rally around at over four million professional soldiers active on a rotating basis and a frightening arsenal of arcane weaponry. However the army's quality is a double-edged sword, as conscription laws and practices have slackened in favor of the professional standing army. While in theory parliament can declare conscription necessary and rally millions more to arms, in practice the logistics and methodology to turn citizens off the streets into soldiers is limited and slow. And Anvegad is not eager to resort to a low-grade conscript army again both out of concern for their reliability and potential casualties caused by ignorance. The army is divided between the infantry, artillery, cavalry, and logistics and engineering branches. Infantry Anvegad Infantry are unusual in that many units are still issued with significant knight-like body armor in the modern age, courtesy of alchemically crafted lightweight alloys that can take a few glancing hits or slow down killing shots to survivable blows without weighing too heavily on the soldier wearing them, though the limitations of flexibility mean most infantry just wear the breastplate and helmet, with only assault infantry or fortress troops wearing full bodyarmor. The standard Anvegad armament is the Armory Rifle, a medium-caliber bolt action rifle made by the National Armory. Utilizing cooling alloys in the barrel and manapowder propellant, the Armory Rifle makes up for any lack of hard-hitting firepower with great reliability and consistent firing action even under the worst of conditions. Subdivisions of the Anvegad Infantry include * Assault Infantry: Soldiers expecting to go into close-quarters combat (storming fortresses, cities, trenchlines, etc) exchange their rifles for bandoliers of revolvers, grenades, and full body armor to be the tip of the spear in engagements. Usage of assault infantry is heavily situational, but it’s a cadre Anvegad maintains given how such situations occur at strategic objectives. * Sappers: Dedicated engineering troops drop most of their armor to carry packs laiden with tools and explosives, such as the notorious Wildfire-D manapowder charge. Whether it’s building bridges, burying roads, clearing paths, establishing bases, the Sappers are ever ready, ever prepared. * Scout-Snipers: Armed with scoped rifles and training in camouflage and covert maneuver, the scout-sniper corps are the eyes and ears of the army as well as the dagger to the infantry’s sword and the artillery’s hammer. Whether hunting officers, supply caravans, or key weakpoints, these few serve in a way a thousand rifles may never match. Artillery The Anvegad Army favors spellfire cannons as it’s main indirect fire platform, capable of channeling fire, thunder, and other elemental strikes via mana crystal infused shells and cannons. What they might lack in absolute firepower is made up for with extreme versatility by simply activating different patterns of mana within the shells before firing, the end resulting being cannons that can fire patterns of cluster-fire on a charging platoon of infantry, call down a lightning strike on a enemy officer, then switch to direct-fire with a concentrated magma bolt to blast a bunker, while requiring only one type of shell and a mage-cannoneer to pattern the mana output during the barrage. As a whole, Anvegad favors fewer Grand Batteries of heavy howitzers and field guns over mass-producing lighter field support pieces, primarily due to limits of it’s forgeworks and alchemical forging lines. Barrages are governed by artillery marshals and forward Targeteers capable of telepathy and complex ballistic calculations, enabling long rolling bombardments that can shift and adapt as needed against targets proven to be hardened against one type of shellfire over another. The heaviest artillery are found in Siege Batteries used for battering down fortresses and manning coastal defense fortresses against naval attack. Cavalry With the advent of the machinegun and primacy of infantry warfare, the role of cavalry has shifted to support, recon, and mounted infantry roles over the glorious charges or raids it has performed in history. The smallest of the military branches, and growing smaller by the year as the battlefield has less place for horses, they still serve with dignity while eagerly looking for new ways to make fast, mobile forces a practical reality again. The one exception are the desertfaring Sand Salamander corps, consisting of desert Lupinekin and their traditional desert mounts alongside camels and hardened horses. Skilled in desert survival and raids, they keep the hinderland of Anvegad safe and have fought in northern campaigns in the past quite ably. For the time being, there is not foreseeable replacement for them. Logistics and Engineering Corps More notable than the sheer number of troops however is the size of the noncombat contingents of the army, with the logistics and signals corps given as much support and development as frontline units with two million personnel in fulltime logistics roles, moreso in some ways given Anvegad’s industrial alchemy favoring support roles. Suffering major losses due to logistical shortcomings and overextension have taught Anvegad hard lessons in keeping it’s troops supplied, especially with the demands of the industrializing battlefield. While outsiders may laugh at an army that ties up so much manpower fulltime in rear-echelon roles and calls people who never fire a gun in their careers “soldiers”, such naysayers rarely pay attention to how the food in their stomachs and ammunition in their rifles made their way to them. [/hider] Navy: [hider=Navy] After the collapse of the Anvegad Empire, the Republic has had little desire or will to sustain the once globe-spanning navy, reducing largely to a coastal defense fleet to protect it’s merchant shipping after the damages of the civil war and the de-facto expectations of the allies of the rebellion to reduce the threat of the Imperial Navy. While well-built and capably led, the current Anvegad Fleet simply has little need for a large offensive navy and the backbone of the navy is sturdily-built cruisers rather than battleships. Still, individually the ships of the Anvegad navy are notable examples of magical engineering and great martitime naval tradition, making invading the shores of Anvegad likely a costly prospect even for the present-day maritime superpowers between it’s warships and coastal spellfire cannons. [/hider] Air Force: [hider=Air Force] While there are those who attempt to achieve powered flight via magic or mechanical contraption, so far Anvegad has little success in airpower or branching into the domain of the sky besides spotter balloons for artillery. A field of study not helped by Anvegad alchemy not being of much use for heavier than air flight besides the occasional attempt to recreate flying broomsticks. [/hider] Rolls: (Rolled by GM in the Discord Server. Just ping me, and I’ll roll as soon as I’m able.) [hider=Rolls] Territory: 13 Tech: 5 Army Size: 15+5 Economy: 12 Production: 9 Navy Size: 9 Airforce Size: 6-5 Magic: 16+4 Mobilization: 4+1 [/hider] Traits: [hider=Traits] (Perk) A Beacon for the Future: Once Anvegad was the dominating imperial power of the southern hemisphere, and though those days are long gone they are still remembered, and not all in a bad way. Though the final generations of the Valgarde royal family were notorious for their iron-fisted attempts at holding onto their empire, much of Anvegad rule was characterized by protection, trade, and order. After the tumult of the Valgarde’s collapse, the reinvention of Anvegad into a republic, and uncertainty of the coming years, many of the former holdings of Anvegad are considering it a beacon in the dark, or at least a known military powerhouse they could rally behind. (Positive opinion modifier for NPC nations close to Anvegad) Anvegad Stoicism: Decades of bitter wars, the upheaval of the revolution against the Imperial throne, the loss of a once grand empire, and the bitter recognition of lost glories has tempered the Anvegad spirit. But it is far from broken. Anvegad citizens are predominantly stoic and enduring, shutting up and digging into problems instead of complaining or shying away from hard truths and necessary actions. This does tend to make Anvegadians seem rather stubborn and gloomy to outsiders though. Professionalism: Where some other nations adopt “warrior” mentalities towards war, Anvegad approaches it as a science of “soldiers”, demanding discipline, order, organization, planning, and adaptability. While this means not even their best soldiers can match zealous warriors in unbreakable morale or ferocity of aggression, and is certainly plagued by a degree of slackards and careerists in a untested hierarch, it is a flexible structure able to endure mighty blows and recover quickly both in unit organization and logistical upkeep. Breed like Rabbits: The Anveholm Lupinefolk are a notoriously “frisky” species, which has led to population booms every time there has been agricultural surplus to feed them, such as in the present day. This results in a higher population density than expected to Anvegad’s size, with more workhands for industry, military, and trade purposes. But also makes Anvegad more vulnerable to damage to it’s agriculture. Floating Fortresses: The Anvegad navy is smaller than it’s world-spanning days, but it hasn’t diminished in quality or it’s shipbuilding heritage. Anvegad warships are built for durability above all else, with extensive compartmentalization, redundant structural bracing, thick armor, and rigorous damage control drills making them exceedingly durable compared to other navies. While this costs in total firepower and speed per ship, it suits the now-defensive minded Anvegad navy just fine within it’s new role. Renewal, Rebirth, Reimagining: The young Anvegad Republic is a nation still defining itself, and the opportunities brought about by the usurpation of hereditary birthrights and noble castes has stimulated new growth and innovation in the nation to fuel a drive towards growth and new creation. This free flow of ideas does leave it a bit vulnerable to outside influences however, and provides openings for foreign powers to manipulate it’s politics. [/hider] Foreign Relations: Other: