Willy Vereb

Ishtar, Lands of Strife

HOLY ZENTAERI LEAGUE

Name: Holy Zentaeri League, Sacrum Zentaurium Liguum, Heiliga Zentrar
Type: Holy League (militant theocratic empire)
Capital: Holy City of Drachefel, Reusseland, Vaerenheim
Leader: Hochmeister (governance and military), Pontifacia (ruler, religious leader)
Religion: Zentarism
Dominant Species: Hecuris (centaur)
Other Notable Species: Kobolds, Humans, Elves,
The Holy Zentaeri League is a theocratic empire driven by the need to spread Zentarism. They believe unsanctioned use of magic is evil and only through the blessings of Zentaurius one should practice it. For this purpose they launched a number of crusades and may not stop until the entire world abandons witchcraft and embrace the light of Zentarism. The Holy League is dominated by centaurs but they glad to incorporate members of all races.

History

Hecuris (centaur) as a species were first documented during the pre-imperial times, large nomadic half-human and half-horse creatures roaming Westeland in small tribes. Some claim the mysterious "night riders" from 5,000 years ago were perhaps also centaurs given that cavalry should not have been plausible at such an early date. It is uncertain where and how they were born. Unlike many primitive races their belief system had no creator god, or even anything resembling standard religions. Scholars who studied ancient centaurs also recorded that they had various sub-races with three distinct breeds: Antares (warriors), Ergates (laborers) and Cursores (runners). The social status of each breed varied by tribe but usually warriors asserted their dominance and were chosen to rule as chieftains. Hecuris raids were a reoccurring blight to Ishtar but since they were disunited they never posed a threat to Navarre. Eventually tribes of Hecuris swore fealty to the Empire and provided auxiliaries to protect the borders. Unlike their brethren at the Far West the Hecuris under imperial rule developed their own united culture, belief system and everything. Historians date Year 522 the first time records of Zentarism. With the divine entity Zentaurius as its one and only god the records mention its curious nature. This is also often cited behind the Hecuris' new name, Zentaur. Over the centuries this name slowly turns into the species' common name of centaurs, although the more official name Hecuris does not fall out of use.

In 876 the war with the beastkin ravages the entire empire. The so far splintered centaur communities unite to form the loosely defined Zentaur Confederation. Their speed allowed centaurs to evade the waves of beastman hordes and remain relatively untouched. Yet lacking strong leadership they submit to the freshly formed Orduin Empire. Centaurs played an important yet oft-sidelined role in the reconstruction efforts. They were a source of military power directly answering to the Emperor and centaur settlers helped to repopulate some of the most devastated portions of the realm. Centaurs became something akin to secondary citizens, known for their strong loyalty to the Orduin Empire. Being loyal to the imperial line the centaurs only begrudingly accepted Hesper's claim for the throne. Thus in 1247 they put all their support for Dunehelm's rebellion. In spite of that the centaurs were hesitant to offer military aid and outright fight the Empire. In the end they send 4 centaur cohorts but even that was insufficient to stop Zeralda's forces. Feeling shamed and guilty the centaur leadership willingly excile themselves from the empire and they migrate back to their home province of Vaerenheim. Unfortunately the lack of powerful leadership quickly dissolved their country into several successor states and remained as such for a long time.

In 2020 a figure under the name Militandros the Great emerges. He unites the centaurs under the restored kingdom of Vaerenheim and puts his support behind the Orduin Empire. The bloodline of Militandros rules Vaerenheim for centuries while allied to the Orduin Empire. Yet compared to the kings of Vaerenheim grow increasingly weaker as individual states earn more autonomy. When the Ordoun Empire falls so did the country of Vaerenheim within years and the nation split to subfactions once again. The Vaerenheim Confederation retained a modicum of order but something new began to emerge. In 2433 a young centaur only referred as the Saint of Gevenfels emerges. She claims to have seen visions of Zentaurius and now she can directly communicate with him. Her acts of divine miracles gained the trust of numerous towns and soon acolytes spread her teachings everywhere in Vaerenheim. This "New Zentarism" of course also garnered numerous enemies from the old order Vaerenheim soon engulfed in a civil war. Ordo Coracis and numerous other knightly orders were established, ironically by recruiting commoners. In the end old nobles and clergy were ousted and believers of the New Zentarism created a new government maintained by knights and a reconstructed priesthood. In 1448 the Holy League of Vaerenheim is formed. The Saint of Gevenfels declared Pontifacia, bridge between our world and the world of god, and she worked hard for faith and the nation's prosperity. She laid down many of the current aspects of Zentarism and personally responsible for sending centaurs on their current path. In 1477 she stepped down of their title and chose hermithood. She was never seen again. Yet successors of the Saint all bore her will and continued her grand work. Believing it's their obligation to teach Zentarism to the entire world the centaurs began their incursion into former Empire territories. Their expansionism continues even now. Since 1505 they are known as the Holy Zentaeri League.

Territory

Dark Grey Claim

Government

The Holy League is a theocratic military state where the various Knights of Zentar rule in the name of the Archpriestess/Pontifacia. The man with highest authority is the Hochmeister/Grandmaster to whom every knight order swears unwavering loyalty. Each Meister/Master is given a commandry to govern which can be anything from a province to a small country. Larger regions covering multiple commandries are under the authority of the Grossmeister (Great Master) who may have less direct control but could influence the Meisters underneath them. Of course with knights being militant order first and governors second the majority of the administration is shared between the members of the Zentarist Church and the appointed civil governors. In general a recently conquered region retains most of its former governance structure but under Zentarist authority. As time goes on this could and almost assuredly will transform to a system governed by the Church.

The main directive of Zentarist conquest is to spread their faith and establish order as they will hunt down magic users. Local faiths are usually made subservient to Zentarist authority, only abolished if its teachings cannot be reconciled by the core elements of Zentarism. Aside from matters of faith the Church is also heavily involved in education, scholars, book keeping and matters of culture. The Church ultimately aims to placate populations and nurture people to be loyal believers of Zentarism. Thanks to the empire's might they often have the resources to be very generous and endear people to the idea of following the Church's directions. As said magic usage is restricted in Zentarist regions. Special buildings called Spell Sanctums erected near every magic font under their control. While these can't influence the fonts directly they can be used to direct the purest streams of magic power to people who carry specific items meant to receive these. Usually looking like amulets in the shape of a cross they are frequently used by clergy, sanctioned mages and paladins. Gathering magic power from the environment is strictly forbidden under Zentarism, or even teaching it. Those discovered with such abilities are declared warlocks and witches and could very well suffer capital punishment.

Zentarism

Zentaurius is an ancient deity of light chiefly revered by centaurs. Zentaurius is the embodiment of light and his birth ended the eons of darkness and brought the beginning of the world as we know it, at least according to centaurs. Albeit he's the sole deity of Zentarists he isn't the only deity they recognize. As such ancient Zentarist communities had no trouble holding rituals for other gods and it could peacefully work within the imperial cult of Orduin. Zentaurius is no creator entity, no lifemaker and not even a leader of gods. In this sense it's strange how Zentaurius became the patron of centaurs. Uniquely enough Zentaurius is looked upon as a teacher and source of enlightenment. Seeking him brought inner light to one's life and filled them with creativity, resolve and wisdom. This view got twisted considerably by the rise and dominance of "New Zentarism". Rather than respecting other faiths it became a pressing need to spread the love and reverence for Lord Zentaurius whose divine light should guide the entire world. Other deities can only be respected if they are allied to or subservient to Lord Zentaurius.

Another new element of Zentarism was the way they approached magic. For the longest time Zentarists were neutral to magic usage yet the new teachings declared most forms of spellcasting as impure and inherently evil. While Zentarists don't outright demonize spellcasters of other disciplines they recognize their art as wrongful and mages practicing these as misguided. Instead they promote their own spellcasting system where Divine Sanctums send magic energy to those faithful and owning the right trinkets for it. In their view this act is necessary to purify magic through Zentaurius' holy light. Natural magic occurrences are not abhored, though. It's only for artificial magic like spells, enchanted items and of course monsters, the perversion of the divine order.

Zentarism grown immensely in scope and organization in the last few centuries. They are the primary supporters of culture, magic and sciences. Even if most artists and scholars aren't part of the Zentarist Church, they have strong ties to them. A considerable portion of the League's mages are actual priests of Zentaurius and they are duty-bound to help people through their powers. Organization wise they have multiple branches but ultimately every member is subservient to the College of Primas and Priors. The title "Pior" refers to high-ranking male priests who have authority over an entire province (administrative sub-unit, usually there are 3-8 provinces per commandry). Prima are female priestesses tasked with similar range of authority but different role. Priors handle administration, culture, education and scholarship. Primas direct the matters of faith, religion and magic. Priors can advance the ranks further and become Cardinals, aside from increased authority this gives them power to elect the next Pontifacia. Only a Prima can be chosen as Pontifacia, it is an exclusively female title. This sorts of duality is present throughout the entire Church and could be even one of its defining attributes. Male priests deal with the worldly affairs while priestesses are retaining their purity to focus on the divine. Only female candidates are worthy of becoming the bridge between the people and Zentaurius while the male leadership acts like anchors to help her remain in this world.

Demographics

The Holy Zentaeri League is a growing empire which incorporates way more than just the former nations of Vaerenheim. As such it is little surprise that only 30% of the population are some type of centaur. In spite of this centaurs are the most dominant race of the League with all the other races being secondary. The League tends to build its administration above the day to day governance of the conquered so even after joining them the average countryman's life is hardly effected. Yet this system also naturally puts centaurs and those supporting them to the top. Elves in general have very good chances for advancement within the League thanks to their history with centaurs and of course due to their considerable magic potential. Albeit high elves are more of the extremes. Their past history of rulership and immense magic knowledge can easily put them at odds with the League. Many high elves become fugitives or migrate to other countries to escape the League's wrath. At the same time high elves who do cooperate with the League often find themselves at the same status as centaurs.

Centaurs are one of the larges if not the largest sapient species in the League. This means they require much greater amount of food each day. It also means that any building meant for centaurs have to be built with larger entrances and overall far more spacious. They also need servants for their day to day activities for which they chiefly utilize kobolds. These small reptillian creatures were enslaved by centaurs thousands of years ago and now serve them as indentured servants. They are small, merely 5 feet tall at average and weigh around 60 pounds. They are strong and tough for their childlike size but they are still weaker than the average human. Kobolds and centaurs have an unique relationship. Most kobolds served the same family of centaurs for centuries if not longer. They aren't just servants, in a twisted sense they are part of the centaur family. A kobold's prestige is determined by the prestige of the centaur they serve. Within certain limits the kobolds can choose to serve a different family but in effect this is rarely done.

Centaurs

Hecuris/Zetaur/Centaur is a type of creature where the upper body is humanoid and the lover body is equine. That being said centaurs aren't horse/human hybrids, they are an entirely different race. There aren't two bodies sewn together but a large body with its own unique anatomy. The chest of a centaurid holds two giant hearts pumping blood at a rate which might seem insane. This fills the centaurid with energy but also speeds up their metabolism, requiring more food. The abdominal portion of the upper body also has the first stomach, out of the three in total. The lower body has the lungs and intestines. Just as the hearts, this place holds almost every organ in twins or having a duplicate. Even if one pair of the organs fail the centaurid will not die, albeit it may limit vital functions down the line.

Centaurs are diverse with three typical forms: runner, worker and warrior breeds. These used to form a caste-based system but due to frequent interbreeding the divide between these three is almost non-existent. Centaur genes are somewhat unique in the fact that they can interbreed with almost any humanoid species. The produced hybrid will be a type of centaurid which also bears some traits of the other parent. For example elf-centaur hybrids would be smaller and more nimble in stature while also having the telltale pointed ears. For these reasons the centaurs in the past had to abide strict breeding restrictions but since the fall of the Orduin Empire they are no longer limited by such. Since a centaur-humanoid hybrid is still essentially a centaurid, they are referred as centaurs and continue being treated as such. Over the time regions dominated by centaurs will have increasingly larger proportion of centaur populations thanks to this fact. Kobolds being reptiloid creatures are of course unaffected by this phenomenon, albeit the meteoric rise of centaur population did lead to the League allowing non-kobolds to become centaur servants.

Centaurs are large, the mightiest warriors may weigh above 500kg and would be full of muscle. Even the comparatively tiny "ponitaur" breeds are heavier than almost any human. They are especially long which means they need far greater space to turn around. Centaurs don't like narrow spaces and their structures are filled with wide open hallways. A lot of building designs common for humans are borderline inaccessible for centaurs. This is especially true for castles. Tall spiraling towers or bastion tops with barely room to stand upon are just not feasible with centaurs. Another curious element is the chairs. Centaurs don't need to sit and even if they do, they lie down on bed-like furnitures. As such chairs are relatively uncommon in centaur-domninated regions, albeit they still exist for non-centaurids. Being as fast as horses while having even more stamina it is no wonder that centaurs love to travel. They can journey many leagues within a day and their horse-backs are ideal for large packages. Centaur travelers, traders or even missionaries are not an unfamiliar sight even in the most distant lands.

Economics

The League spans for over a thousand miles and covers cultures ranging from old imperial regions to racial enclaves of more shunned cultures. They are now all united in their local flavor of Zentarism. Joining the League also connects these small states to the centaurs' extensive trade lines which is an unquestionable benefit. Lastly there are a limited number yet very effective League-wide laws which helps to maintain public order and also ensures all races treated (mostly) equally. Whenever it was reasonable the Holy League restored the old Orduin Empire's system which given the familiarity of all constituents made it all the smoother. This includes their own variant of the imperial tecks called the Stavius. Unlike past emperors though the noble metal content of gold and silver Stavius rods is constant and the League doesn't devalue their currency. This makes Stavius a fairly potent trade currency with neighbors and generally League subjects gladly exchange it for their own local currency forms.

The League's center is the Seven States of Vaerenheim, the original land of the centaurs. As the nexus of the League's trade activity the region enriched massively and its cities are famous for their industry. Vaerenheimian steel is sorts of legendary in Ishtar while mechanical wonders only considered a rare curiosity during the Orduin Empire are becoming widespread. Of course in the general sense the trade of food dominates the League's markets. Just like during the Orduin Empire a good half of the region has either limited or rather poor arable lands. As such importation of grain and other foodstuffs dominate the League's trade lines, coming from foreign lands or just from other states of the League.

Military

The Holy League is effectively an empire run by the priesthood but especially knight orders. Garrisons of holy centaur knights and their retinue are protecting the people, maintain order and stave off rebellions. Though portraying themselves as protectors of people and justice these centaur legions are effectively occupation forces and the backbone of the League's military as a whole. A lot of the League's strategy builds on these trained centaurs and their abilities. In comparison non-centaurs are viewed as local defenders or auxiliaries. Some of them are more respected while others are viewed outright as second grade forces. Of course this is intentional since their lynchpin for order is these fiercely loyal knight orders who act both as army and governors. Centaurs are large and are effectively living cavalry which does heavily influence how the League approaches warfare. They prefer to be mobile to conduct raids and skirmishes with the sheer power of their knightly charges being the heaviest hitter. Everything else exist to support their actions and enable knights in battle. Another curious factor is the League's utilization of magic. Zentarism restricts spells to specific practices and source provided by Divine Sanctums. Zenarist magic is highly potent but only as long as it's within the range of these sanctums. When the League invades they need to rely on very limited magic resources which can dry up fast since gathering magic freely from the environment is strictly forbidden. Technically there are Zentarist practices which let believers in foreign lands to practice magic without sinning against Lord Zentaurius but it's less "okay" and more considered a "lesser evil". Which is why actual true believers who can afford to receive sanctified mana from Divine Sanctums this method is amost entirely forbidden.

Unit Types

Conventional Units

- Laegionar: Standard centaur soldier, less of a specific type and more the generic name for them. Standard Legionar wears a breastplate with maile or brigandine covering the limbs and lower bodies. They usually carry the Goedendag, a brutish spear-mace hybrid which can skewer its target or deliver crushing blows. They might carry ranged weapons, shields, lances or other equipment but those aren't the norm. Laegionars form the backbone of the Holy League's military.

- Volkswehr: A generic term used when in referring to units under local leadership instead of a knight order. Alternatively called the auxilia this term is also frequently used for non-centaur support units. Their quality can range from peasant levies to seasoned and well-equipped infantry, it generally depends on the region and other circumstances.

- Vaeliter: Light troop meant for flanking and rapid actions. They carry large stacks of pilums held in long quivers hanging at the sides which allows them to continue harrassing enemies. They only have light armor and a kite shield for protection.

- Jaeger/Begleiter: Skirmish and escort troop type chiefly armed with light ballestrinnes, allowing them to quickly reload and keep shooting while on the move. Jeager are lightly equipped and fullfil a similar role to the Vaeliter. Begleiter on the other hand are escorts of knights or support troops to a larger army. Begleiters wear medium armor and may be better armed than the average Jaeger but overall they fulfill a similar ranged support role.

- Schūtze: Specialists armed with heavy ballestrinnes meant for laying down long range fire or use their marksmanship. These require winches to pull back but their bolts are released even faster and travel further.

- Ritter: Warrior who spent their life dedicated to learning warfare and being loyal to the Church. They are considered chosen by Zentaurius to spread his light and to be a tool of justice. They wear heavy armor and form the elite shock troops of the League. They can also act as commanders of the League's forces.

Spellcasters

- Ordnungskler: Priests of Zentarism directly assigned to the service of a knight order. While a large number of them are meant to do ordinary jobs like administration, records and more menial duties the ones seen in the camps of knights are a different type. They are almost always spellcasters meant to mend wounds, cure aliments or just provide spiritual support. They aren't really powerful but knight orders tend to have a lot of these.

- Kampfzaubrer: Mages utilizing the mystic arts the "correct" way are called Zaubrers while witches/warlocks are Hexe/Hexer in centaur terminology. Kampfzaubrers are the battle mages of the Holy League, well versed in the art to support the army in battle. They can throw attack spells but more often they are seen to enhance the performance of the legion's performance via various spells. Most famously they create a "magic territory" around themselves where friendly projectiles are enhanced by some magic effect. The strength of this effect depends on the momentum of the projectile so a crossbow bolt has less boost than a cannonball. This territory is centered on the caster and moves along with them. Of course each projectile boosted strains the caster proportional to the amount of boost they get so this technique should be used sparringly but it is fairly infamous regardless. Also outside the Holy League where the Divine Sanctums don't reach the spellcasters need to carry bulky magic containers with them and even then they can only have limited use of magecraft before it depletes. Especially thanks to these battle mages the Holy League is considerably more dangerous at their "home turf" than outside of it.

- Fliegerritter: The flying knights of the Holy League. Any knight with the gift for magic could undergo further training and become a type of magic knight which specializes at flight. Centaurs can't really use flying mounts so instead they developed a spell which allows them to sprout wings and fly. Nobody knows why exactly the centaurs can fly like this. Some suspect shared ancestry with the mythical pegasi, others think the League's spells are just more refined in this aspect. Technically any centaur spellcaster can learn to fly but of course the inherent dangers involved means only the Fliegerritter are widely known for doing as such. Compared to the transformation the maintenance of the flight is relatively easy but it still requires concentration. Things get more difficult when the Fliegerritter journeys out of the range of Divine Sanctums. In this case they have to carry large mana reserves so they can only fly so far before running out. Of course as spellcasters the Fliegerritter can do other magic, mostly focused on enhancing their combat performance. In order to conserve magic these enchantments are effectively gone when fighting outside the League's borders.

- Paladin: The epitome of knighthood, the perfect holy warrior to defend Zentarism and show its fruits. Paladins often aren't born, they are made. They are product of the Zentarist Church's program of training knights. Those who prove worthy should advance further and by the time they are 25 they are already an elite magic knight who combines both might and magic. Paladins in a sense are comparable to Fliegerritter, only much more powerful. Aside from being heroic warriors who can fly the Paladin is also well-versed in the art of auras. These wide-range spells can effect entire army units to boost their performance considerably. A Paladin with aura of Fleet Footedness can erase the fatigure of the soldiers fighting with him and allow them to cross over terrain as if they are feather. Aura of Vengeance on the other hand turns an unit into holy avengers who fear nothing and strike harder than ever before. Of course with so much magic you could expect that the Paladins would run out fast when outside the Divine Sanctum. Yet they have special permission of mana consecration which means they are some of the few people in the League allowed to draw mana from the environment. While Paladins aren't as effective without Divine Sanctums they are affected the least. Paladins are rare and they only join battles worthy of their name. Yet even the presence of one such warrior can be an awe-inspiring experience.

Artillery

- Springaldier: Springald is a complex torsion artillery which can produce a lot of power for its small size. Springaldiers are specialists who carry such device on their backs for transport and assemble it together for battle. They are usually a group of three but two-man groups are also possible. Springalds can launch various projectiles ranging from oversized darts to just rocks or even pots filled with burning oil.

- Onager: Compact catapult device powered by a steel spring wheel in the center propelling a vertical arm and a sling pouch filled with either rocks or various bombs/incendiaries. Compared to a Springald which shoots rather high velocity projectiles for a torsion engine the Onager is designed for lobbing large projectiles over castle walls or similar utilities. The smallest Onagers can be even carried by a single centaur and throw rocks almost as heavy as a typical Springald. Larger engines can throw up to 30lbs projectiles which is why they are still useful. While throwing stones is the cheapest and hence most popular projectile for the weapon it is more known for lobbing incendiaries and explosives on defenders. Spell-boosting Onagers is also popular.

- Steinbüchse: Also referred as Bombards these are massive guns firing huge shots of stone. They are created by bell-founders since nobody else has the means to cast over a metric ton of church-bronze into one piece. They are huge, expensive and difficult to transport. Thanks to these aspects Steinbuchse are actually the property of the Zentarist Church and knight orders only have them on lease. They are finely decorated pieces with each given a name worthy for the Church. Steinbüchse of even the cheapest kind is rarely seen on the battlefield. On the other hand they are popular for both castle defense and sieging fortifications. Once the concert of the Church's avenging bells are heard, no wall should remain in place!

- Hauffnitz: A relatively large bore yet very short barreled cannon meant to be compact yet powerful for the right purpose. They can fire stone shots but more commonly they are filled up with sharp splinters of flint, caltorps, nails or much more rarely darts to spread projectiles over a wide area. Essentially a shotgun this weapon is meant to sow discord in the enemy lines from relatively close ranges and then retreat in order to reload. Hauffnitzer can be as light as only 50kg and even with carriage they could be easily drawn by one centaur. They are very simple and cheap guns which combined with their lightness makes them fairly common on the battlefield. There's no legion in the Holy League which doesn't have about a dozen of these.

Unique Gear

- Ballestrinne: A personal torsion weapon which can be roughly compared to crossbows yet utilize mechanisms more in common with ballistas and similar siege engines. They are rather heavy compared to crossbows which makes them almost unwieldly for humans. The draw weight and overall design of the weapon is also generally made with centaurs in mind. Ballestrinnes can quickly attach a pouch on the string in order to allow it to shoot round projectiles like sling bullets and even more. This usage of Ballestrinne is most popular at point shooting ranges where the impact is the heaviest or when they need to launch special projectiles like incendiaries or even tiny grenades.

Projectile Types

- Light Bolt: Meant for long range shooting. Weak but fast and very well balanced.

- Regular Bolt: Standard bolts, longer than crossbow quarrels but overall lighter.

- Piercing Bolt: Heavier bolt meant to punch through armors better.

- Spell Bolt: Blunt bolt meant to achieve the maximum efficiency out of the Ballestrinne. Cheap but useless without spellcaster support.

- Lead Shot: Accorn-shaped lead bullet, simple to produce but not as powerful as the newer bullets.

- Bludgeonshot: Bronze bullet cast in the shape of a tiny flanged mace, has a significant impact force that can incapacitate people even through armor.

- Scattershot: A thin glass tube containing multiple darts which spread out and cause multiple injuries.

- Incendiary Shot: A clay ball containiner filled with greek fire which ignites on air and spreads flames.

- Grenade Shot: A tiny iron grenade filled with gunpowder and caltorps which is chiefly disruptive rather than devastating.

Crisis of the Confederacy [Sci-Fi Warlords in a crumbling state]

March 19th 2259

Delegates from Asteria arrive at Nefret Station in C&C territory in their yacht-like spaceship, the SS Woodrow, accompanied by a trio of corvettes escorting them. Once they’ve docked into the station, out came the diplomat Dwayne Jefferson, and his retinue, including several security guards and pencil pushers. Surprisingly things were quite bright and jovial at this time and space, it emitted a suspiciously harmonious and positive aura. The team of Asterian officials were welcomed and guided to their appointment within the space station where they would negotiate economic and political agreements. The doors open to the conference room and there are two individuals sitting on the far side in the arrangement of chairs and tables assembled for their team.

They began to introduce themselves once their visitors settled in. The tall, slender man leaning back in his chair finally sat up with a smile, “I’m Rashaad Ulrich, discount manager and deal-broker.” then the other, a woman with freckles and thick-rimmed glasses “Regina Carmine, sales representative and financial advisor.”

Rashaad continued on, “I will be presenting some opportunities, I would like to hear what you have in store for us, and we’ll make business, pronto.” he smiled, looking left to right. Regina casually chimes in while her associate leered, “We both will answer any questions you have, and help make sure things work out how they ought to.”

Mr. Jefferson was somewhat taken back by the chief dealsman’s pushiness but then he was reminded they are living in dire times. Given these extreme circumstances Rashaad’s behavior was entirely justified. “I am Dwayne Jefferson, ambassador representing the Federal Free States of Asteria. This is my attache, Laurie Andersson.” His hands reach in the direction of the woman to his right. “Also I want to introduce Dr. James Collman, our expert in economics. He’d be providing insights and economical advice in regards to the recent crisis.” Mr. Jefferson gestured towards the aging man on his left. Unlike the woman the Collective knew Dr. Collman well enough and Rashaad almost nodded in approval.

After some protocol both sides sat down and began negotiations. “I believe all parties present are aware of what happened and how it’ll impact our economy, if nothing else. So let’s cut to the chase. Asteria wants to freeze the Confederate Credit’s value for the foreseeable future. Our lawmakers are busy accomplishing this at the soonest date possible. Yet Asteria has an extensive list of foreign trade partners so without most of these regions following suit I’m afraid it’d be pointless. I’m aware of the potential benefits for investing in a rapidly devaluing credit. It’d be an attractive gambit which pays back many-fold once the economy restores.”

“That is provided if it actually does. I see your point Mr. Jefferson.” Interjected Rashaad pointedly.

Dwayne continued, “Indeed. We don’t know when or if the Confederacy restores. Until then markets would effectively freeze and trade would slow down to a grinding halt. Such a downturn is good for investors with lots of assets and capital but terrible for anyone who would want to make profit during the interim. Asteria wants none of that so we’re freezing the value of credit instead of icing our economy. As a Federal Ambassador my first priority is to ensure the Collective and the Conglomerate is on a similar page.” He paused and then extended a hand out to the economics advisor on his left, “Dr. Collman, please.”

The so far silent man stood up and activated his holographic projector showing various graphs and future economic predictions. He held a brief 10-minute presentation about the region’s future and potential outcomes. The Conglomerate spoke business so for them empty words held little value. That’s why Dwayne called the famous Dr. James Collman to translate everything to their language. The full details of his research were also transferred to Rashaad’s datapad for future analysis, probably the best gift Asteria could’ve prepared.

Now that Asteria had provided more confidence behind their words, the C&C representatives seemed a lot more receptive to the plans put forth by their neighboring state. They seemed to be in agreement however there seemed to be an elephant in the room which has yet to be discussed. “A temporary freeze would help keep things stable,” remarked Rashaad, “As of now it would be too dangerous to allow it to be manipulated by who-ever, now that Sol is gone.”

With the first issue cleared Dwayne Jefferson was quickly shifting gears. “That being said, economics is far from the only problem we may face. The Confederacy as we speak is shattering into pieces and warlords claiming themselves the representative of the Confederacy will attempt to take the reins.” He took a moment to pause while scanning his audience of two, “While nominally under the Confederacy we Asterians pride ourselves on our freedoms. The Confederacy have abandoned us for decades, little despots trying to order us around would obviously not endear us the slightest. The Collective and Conglomerate may not mind the new regime but as we know the highest ranking Confederate official in the region is none other than this particular figure.”

Dwayne put a tiny holographic device on the table and activated it. The display showed a portrait of a middle aged man with stern eyes alongside his personal details. “Julan Bartok, a hardliner Pro-Earth activist who makes even the most diehard Confederacy supporters question themselves. An accomplished admiral and for some even a local hero. Yet his diplomatic skills are like a blunted axe. I think we all know what’s coming in the near future.” Mr. Jefferson let out a painful smirk. Admiral Bartok was anything but good news for the region. Even if he had a competent staff supporting him Bartok would only bring ruin to any system under his new control.

The Asterian diplomat continued, “Asteria and the Collective always had a cooperative relationship. We may never have been on the best terms but we need each other for continued survival. What I suggest is hardly new or groundbreaking in our relationship. Asteria wants some further cooperation with C&C, now in the military sense. Bartok is a threat to Asteria so my government wants him removed. I have a strong sense this feeling is mutual between us. Further details of our cooperation will be handled through the usual secret channels.”

Both Regina and Rashaad looked at each other for a moment, and then back at Dwayne, with the woman speaking “We must officially present ourselves as neutral and benign to the admiral in public, however there is nothing restricting us from ensuring you get some of the best deals our territories have.” She looked to Rashaad, who opened up a thick binder full of what seemed to be coupons.

The deal-broker continued his associate's statement, “We’ve got tons of opportunities ranging from… oh, could be anything! These discounts are exclusive to nation states, and they pack a wallop - here, look at this one--” he pushes the binder towards Mr. Jefferson and Dr. Collman emphatically, pointing out the many potential deals which range from food, to small arms, to space ships, to components, and so on.

The two groups go through the coupons and Rashaad meticulously notes what piqued the interests of their counterpart and was able to create a bundled deal which fit the needs of their neighbors. After the deal had been arranged, he double-checked with his people outside of the meeting to authorize the discounted deal, and within only ten to fifteen minutes did he get approval. With so many marked-down deals, freebies, and sales being made for both Asterians military and civilian markets, a huge range of access to affordable products and services had become open to them. It was somewhat reminiscent of a ‘relief package’ which long-term intention was to keep customers engaged and exchanging currency between solar systems.

“That’s all very impressive, Mr. Ulrich. I’m certain my government will be rather interested.” Taken aback from the sudden attack Dwayne just barely manages to hide his nervousness. Indeed that’s a military aid but not exactly what he had in mind. Perhaps Rashaad has something to hide? Maybe it’s just in the discount broker’s veins. Either way Dwayne got everything he wanted. The two sides continue the discussion for a while then exchange the usual pleasantries before leaving, being escorted out by the same person who brought them to the conference room. The ambassador vessel SS Woodrow departs Nefret Station in peace. The Asterian ships almost leave Hovno Diera System when Mr. Jefferson’s datapad rings in a strange pattern. Being formerly part of the Secret Service he immediately recognized it as a morse code. It said: “OK”. Dwayne smiled which made his attache Laurie Andersson look puzzled. “What is it, Mr. Jefferson?” She never got her answer.

Summary

Asteria and the C&C discuss economics and agree to temporarily freeze the value of Confederate Credit within their area of influence. They agree to several economic deals and also mention the potential idea of military cooperation in the future.

Ishtar, Lands of Strife

Holy Zentaeri League

HOLY ZENTAERI LEAGUE

Name: Holy Zentaeri League, Sacrum Zentaurium Liguum, Heiliga Zentrar
Type: Holy League (militant theocratic empire)
Capital: Holy City of Drachefel, Reusseland, Vaerenheim
Leader: Hochmeister (governance and military), Pontifacia (ruler, religious leader)
Religion: Zentarism
Dominant Species: Hecuris (centaur)
Other Notable Species: Kobolds, Humans, Elves,
The Holy Zentaeri League is a theocratic empire driven by the need to spread Zentarism. They believe unsanctioned use of magic is evil and only through the blessings of Zentaurius one should practice it. For this purpose they launched a number of crusades and may not stop until the entire world abandons witchcraft and embrace the light of Zentarism. The Holy League is dominated by centaurs but they glad to incorporate members of all races.

History

Hecuris (centaur) as a species were first documented during the pre-imperial times, large nomadic half-human and half-horse creatures roaming Westeland in small tribes. Some claim the mysterious "night riders" from 5,000 years ago were perhaps also centaurs given that cavalry should not have been plausible at such an early date. It is uncertain where and how they were born. Unlike many primitive races their belief system had no creator god, or even anything resembling standard religions. Scholars who studied ancient centaurs also recorded that they had various sub-races with three distinct breeds: Antares (warriors), Ergates (laborers) and Cursores (runners). The social status of each breed varied by tribe but usually warriors asserted their dominance and were chosen to rule as chieftains. Hecuris raids were a reoccurring blight to Ishtar but since they were disunited they never posed a threat to Navarre. Eventually tribes of Hecuris swore fealty to the Empire and provided auxiliaries to protect the borders. Unlike their brethren at the Far West the Hecuris under imperial rule developed their own united culture, belief system and everything. Historians date Year 522 the first time records of Zentarism. With the divine entity Zentaurius as its one and only god the records mention its curious nature. This is also often cited behind the Hecuris' new name, Zentaur. Over the centuries this name slowly turns into the species' common name of centaurs, although the more official name Hecuris does not fall out of use.

In 876 the war with the beastkin ravages the entire empire. The so far splintered centaur communities unite to form the loosely defined Zentaur Confederation. Their speed allowed centaurs to evade the waves of beastman hordes and remain relatively untouched. Yet lacking strong leadership they submit to the freshly formed Orduin Empire. Centaurs played an important yet oft-sidelined role in the reconstruction efforts. They were a source of military power directly answering to the Emperor and centaur settlers helped to repopulate some of the most devastated portions of the realm. Centaurs became something akin to secondary citizens, known for their strong loyalty to the Orduin Empire. Being loyal to the imperial line the centaurs only begrudingly accepted Hesper's claim for the throne. Thus in 1247 they put all their support for Dunehelm's rebellion. In spite of that the centaurs were hesitant to offer military aid and outright fight the Empire. In the end they send 4 centaur cohorts but even that was insufficient to stop Zeralda's forces. Feeling shamed and guilty the centaur leadership willingly excile themselves from the empire and they migrate back to their home province of Vaerenheim. Unfortunately the lack of powerful leadership quickly dissolved their country into several successor states and remained as such for a long time.

In 2020 a figure under the name Militandros the Great emerges. He unites the centaurs under the restored kingdom of Vaerenheim and puts his support behind the Orduin Empire. The bloodline of Militandros rules Vaerenheim for centuries while allied to the Orduin Empire. Yet compared to the kings of Vaerenheim grow increasingly weaker as individual states earn more autonomy. When the Ordoun Empire falls so did the country of Vaerenheim within years and the nation split to subfactions once again. The Vaerenheim Confederation retained a modicum of order but something new began to emerge. In 2433 a young centaur only referred as the Saint of Gevenfels emerges. She claims to have seen visions of Zentaurius and now she can directly communicate with him. Her acts of divine miracles gained the trust of numerous towns and soon acolytes spread her teachings everywhere in Vaerenheim. This "New Zentarism" of course also garnered numerous enemies from the old order Vaerenheim soon engulfed in a civil war. Ordo Coracis and numerous other knightly orders were established, ironically by recruiting commoners. In the end old nobles and clergy were ousted and believers of the New Zentarism created a new government maintained by knights and a reconstructed priesthood. In 1448 the Holy League of Vaerenheim is formed. The Saint of Gevenfels declared Pontifacia, bridge between our world and the world of god, and she worked hard for faith and the nation's prosperity. She laid down many of the current aspects of Zentarism and personally responsible for sending centaurs on their current path. In 1477 she stepped down of their title and chose hermithood. She was never seen again. Yet successors of the Saint all bore her will and continued her grand work. Believing it's their obligation to teach Zentarism to the entire world the centaurs began their incursion into former Empire territories. Their expansionism continues even now. Since 1505 they are known as the Holy Zentaeri League.

Territory

Dark Grey Claim

Government

The Holy League is a theocratic military state where the various Knights of Zentar rule in the name of the Archpriestess/Pontifacia. The man with highest authority is the Hochmeister/Grandmaster to whom every knight order swears unwavering loyalty. Each Meister/Master is given a commandry to govern which can be anything from a province to a small country. Larger regions covering multiple commandries are under the authority of the Grossmeister (Great Master) who may have less direct control but could influence the Meisters underneath them. Of course with knights being militant order first and governors second the majority of the administration is shared between the members of the Zentarist Church and the appointed civil governors. In general a recently conquered region retains most of its former governance structure but under Zentarist authority. As time goes on this could and almost assuredly will transform to a system governed by the Church.

The main directive of Zentarist conquest is to spread their faith and establish order as they will hunt down magic users. Local faiths are usually made subservient to Zentarist authority, only abolished if its teachings cannot be reconciled by the core elements of Zentarism. Aside from matters of faith the Church is also heavily involved in education, scholars, book keeping and matters of culture. The Church ultimately aims to placate populations and nurture people to be loyal believers of Zentarism. Thanks to the empire's might they often have the resources to be very generous and endear people to the idea of following the Church's directions. As said magic usage is restricted in Zentarist regions. Special buildings called Spell Sanctums erected near every magic font under their control. While these can't influence the fonts directly they can be used to direct the purest streams of magic power to people who carry specific items meant to receive these. Usually looking like amulets in the shape of a cross they are frequently used by clergy, sanctioned mages and paladins. Gathering magic power from the environment is strictly forbidden under Zentarism, or even teaching it. Those discovered with such abilities are declared warlocks and witches and could very well suffer capital punishment.

Zentarism

Zentaurius is an ancient deity of light chiefly revered by centaurs. Zentaurius is the embodiment of light and his birth ended the eons of darkness and brought the beginning of the world as we know it, at least according to centaurs. Albeit he's the sole deity of Zentarists he isn't the only deity they recognize. As such ancient Zentarist communities had no trouble holding rituals for other gods and it could peacefully work within the imperial cult of Orduin. Zentaurius is no creator entity, no lifemaker and not even a leader of gods. In this sense it's strange how Zentaurius became the patron of centaurs. Uniquely enough Zentaurius is looked upon as a teacher and source of enlightenment. Seeking him brought inner light to one's life and filled them with creativity, resolve and wisdom. This view got twisted considerably by the rise and dominance of "New Zentarism". Rather than respecting other faiths it became a pressing need to spread the love and reverence for Lord Zentaurius whose divine light should guide the entire world. Other deities can only be respected if they are allied to or subservient to Lord Zentaurius.

Another new element of Zentarism was the way they approached magic. For the longest time Zentarists were neutral to magic usage yet the new teachings declared most forms of spellcasting as impure and inherently evil. While Zentarists don't outright demonize spellcasters of other disciplines they recognize their art as wrongful and mages practicing these as misguided. Instead they promote their own spellcasting system where Divine Sanctums send magic energy to those faithful and owning the right trinkets for it. In their view this act is necessary to purify magic through Zentaurius' holy light. Natural magic occurrences are not abhored, though. It's only for artificial magic like spells, enchanted items and of course monsters, the perversion of the divine order.

Zentarism grown immensely in scope and organization in the last few centuries. They are the primary supporters of culture, magic and sciences. Even if most artists and scholars aren't part of the Zentarist Church, they have strong ties to them. A considerable portion of the League's mages are actual priests of Zentaurius and they are duty-bound to help people through their powers. Organization wise they have multiple branches but ultimately every member is subservient to the College of Primas and Priors. The title "Pior" refers to high-ranking male priests who have authority over an entire province (administrative sub-unit, usually there are 3-8 provinces per commandry). Prima are female priestesses tasked with similar range of authority but different role. Priors handle administration, culture, education and scholarship. Primas direct the matters of faith, religion and magic. Priors can advance the ranks further and become Cardinals, aside from increased authority this gives them power to elect the next Pontifacia. Only a Prima can be chosen as Pontifacia, it is an exclusively female title. This sorts of duality is present throughout the entire Church and could be even one of its defining attributes. Male priests deal with the worldly affairs while priestesses are retaining their purity to focus on the divine. Only female candidates are worthy of becoming the bridge between the people and Zentaurius while the male leadership acts like anchors to help her remain in this world.

Demographics

The Holy Zentaeri League is a growing empire which incorporates way more than just the former nations of Vaerenheim. As such it is little surprise that only 30% of the population are some type of centaur. In spite of this centaurs are the most dominant race of the League with all the other races being secondary. The League tends to build its administration above the day to day governance of the conquered so even after joining them the average countryman's life is hardly effected. Yet this system also naturally puts centaurs and those supporting them to the top. Elves in general have very good chances for advancement within the League thanks to their history with centaurs and of course due to their considerable magic potential. Albeit high elves are more of the extremes. Their past history of rulership and immense magic knowledge can easily put them at odds with the League. Many high elves become fugitives or migrate to other countries to escape the League's wrath. At the same time high elves who do cooperate with the League often find themselves at the same status as centaurs.

Centaurs are one of the larges if not the largest sapient species in the League. This means they require much greater amount of food each day. It also means that any building meant for centaurs have to be built with larger entrances and overall far more spacious. They also need servants for their day to day activities for which they chiefly utilize kobolds. These small reptillian creatures were enslaved by centaurs thousands of years ago and now serve them as indentured servants. They are small, merely 5 feet tall at average and weigh around 60 pounds. They are strong and tough for their childlike size but they are still weaker than the average human. Kobolds and centaurs have an unique relationship. Most kobolds served the same family of centaurs for centuries if not longer. They aren't just servants, in a twisted sense they are part of the centaur family. A kobold's prestige is determined by the prestige of the centaur they serve. Within certain limits the kobolds can choose to serve a different family but in effect this is rarely done.

Centaurs

Hecuris/Zetaur/Centaur is a type of creature where the upper body is humanoid and the lover body is equine. That being said centaurs aren't horse/human hybrids, they are an entirely different race. There aren't two bodies sewn together but a large body with its own unique anatomy. The chest of a centaurid holds two giant hearts pumping blood at a rate which might seem insane. This fills the centaurid with energy but also speeds up their metabolism, requiring more food. The abdominal portion of the upper body also has the first stomach, out of the three in total. The lower body has the lungs and intestines. Just as the hearts, this place holds almost every organ in twins or having a duplicate. Even if one pair of the organs fail the centaurid will not die, albeit it may limit vital functions down the line.

Centaurs are diverse with three typical forms: runner, worker and warrior breeds. These used to form a caste-based system but due to frequent interbreeding the divide between these three is almost non-existent. Centaur genes are somewhat unique in the fact that they can interbreed with almost any humanoid species. The produced hybrid will be a type of centaurid which also bears some traits of the other parent. For example elf-centaur hybrids would be smaller and more nimble in stature while also having the telltale pointed ears. For these reasons the centaurs in the past had to abide strict breeding restrictions but since the fall of the Orduin Empire they are no longer limited by such. Since a centaur-humanoid hybrid is still essentially a centaurid, they are referred as centaurs and continue being treated as such. Over the time regions dominated by centaurs will have increasingly larger proportion of centaur populations thanks to this fact. Kobolds being reptiloid creatures are of course unaffected by this phenomenon, albeit the meteoric rise of centaur population did lead to the League allowing non-kobolds to become centaur servants.

Centaurs are large, the mightiest warriors may weigh above 500kg and would be full of muscle. Even the comparatively tiny "ponitaur" breeds are heavier than almost any human. They are especially long which means they need far greater space to turn around. Centaurs don't like narrow spaces and their structures are filled with wide open hallways. A lot of building designs common for humans are borderline inaccessible for centaurs. This is especially true for castles. Tall spiraling towers or bastion tops with barely room to stand upon are just not feasible with centaurs. Another curious element is the chairs. Centaurs don't need to sit and even if they do, they lie down on bed-like furnitures. As such chairs are relatively uncommon in centaur-domninated regions, albeit they still exist for non-centaurids. Being as fast as horses while having even more stamina it is no wonder that centaurs love to travel. They can journey many leagues within a day and their horse-backs are ideal for large packages. Centaur travelers, traders or even missionaries are not an unfamiliar sight even in the most distant lands.

Economics

The League spans for over a thousand miles and covers cultures ranging from old imperial regions to racial enclaves of more shunned cultures. They are now all united in their local flavor of Zentarism. Joining the League also connects these small states to the centaurs' extensive trade lines which is an unquestionable benefit. Lastly there are a limited number yet very effective League-wide laws which helps to maintain public order and also ensures all races treated (mostly) equally. Whenever it was reasonable the Holy League restored the old Orduin Empire's system which given the familiarity of all constituents made it all the smoother. This includes their own variant of the imperial tecks called the Stavius. Unlike past emperors though the noble metal content of gold and silver Stavius rods is constant and the League doesn't devalue their currency. This makes Stavius a fairly potent trade currency with neighbors and generally League subjects gladly exchange it for their own local currency forms.

The League's center is the Seven States of Vaerenheim, the original land of the centaurs. As the nexus of the League's trade activity the region enriched massively and its cities are famous for their industry. Vaerenheimian steel is sorts of legendary in Ishtar while mechanical wonders only considered a rare curiosity during the Orduin Empire are becoming widespread. Of course in the general sense the trade of food dominates the League's markets. Just like during the Orduin Empire a good half of the region has either limited or rather poor arable lands. As such importation of grain and other foodstuffs dominate the League's trade lines, coming from foreign lands or just from other states of the League.

Military

The Holy League is effectively an empire run by the priesthood but especially knight orders. Garrisons of holy centaur knights and their retinue are protecting the people, maintain order and stave off rebellions. Though portraying themselves as protectors of people and justice these centaur legions are effectively occupation forces and the backbone of the League's military as a whole. A lot of the League's strategy builds on these trained centaurs and their abilities. In comparison non-centaurs are viewed as local defenders or auxiliaries. Some of them are more respected while others are viewed outright as second grade forces. Of course this is intentional since their lynchpin for order is these fiercely loyal knight orders who act both as army and governors. Centaurs are large and are effectively living cavalry which does heavily influence how the League approaches warfare. They prefer to be mobile to conduct raids and skirmishes with the sheer power of their knightly charges being the heaviest hitter. Everything else exist to support their actions and enable knights in battle. Another curious factor is the League's utilization of magic. Zentarism restricts spells to specific practices and source provided by Divine Sanctums. Zenarist magic is highly potent but only as long as it's within the range of these sanctums. When the League invades they need to rely on very limited magic resources which can dry up fast since gathering magic freely from the environment is strictly forbidden. Technically there are Zentarist practices which let believers in foreign lands to practice magic without sinning against Lord Zentaurius but it's less "okay" and more considered a "lesser evil". Which is why actual true believers who can afford to receive sanctified mana from Divine Sanctums this method is amost entirely forbidden.

Unit Types

- Laegionar: Standard centaur soldier, less of a specific type and more the generic name for them.

- Vaeliter: Light troop meant for flanking and rapid actions. They carry large stacks of pilums held in long quivers hanging at the sides which allows them to continue harrassing enemies. They only have light armor and a kite shield for protection.

- Jaeger/Begleiter: Skirmish and escort troop type chiefly armed with light ballestrinnes, allowing them to quickly reload and keep shooting while on the move. Jeager are lightly equipped and fullfil a similar role to the Vaeliter. Begleiter on the other hand are escorts of knights or support troops to a larger army. Begleiters wear medium armor and may be better armed than the average Jaeger.

- Schūtze: Specialists armed with heavy ballestrinnes meant for laying down long range fire or use their marksmanship. These require winches to pull back but their bolts are released even faster and travel further.

- Ritter: Warrior who spent their life dedicated to learning warfare and being loyal to the Church. They are considered chosen by Zentaurius to spread his light and be a tool of justice. They wear heavy armor and form the elite shock troops of the League. They can also act as commanders of the League's forces.

Unique Gear

- Ballestrinne: A personal torsion weapon which can be roughly compared to crossbows yet utilize mechanisms more in common with ballistas and similar siege engines.

N.E.O. - New Earth Oracle

Union of Nordic Socialist States

Nordiska Unionen av Socialistiska Stater

The Union of Nordic Socialist States (UNSS, also called Nordic Socialist Union) is what became of the countries of Finnland and Sweden after Post-Visitation era. Sweden sunk into complete anarchy as the widespread mutant activity crushed all semblance of national unity. This era of chaos was brought to an end by the rise of socialism and a federation states regardless of their race began to emerge. The more peaceful mutant communities and the dispersed human successor states found common ground through the values of socialism. Abandoned by their old allies the UNSS sought the help of Moscow. That being said the Nordic and Muscovite views on socialism had some fundamental differences. As such they are reluctant to accept Soviet control but they are willing to cooperate. The Nordic Socialist Union didn't join the Warsaw Pact. Instead they have their own alliance pact with the Soviets and those under them. While relations with the USSR can be tense this has nothing on the pure vitriol between the Nordic Socialist Union and the rest of Scandinavia. While devastating warfare was largely averted the tensions between the two dominant ideologies of Scandinavia continue to grow.

Territory:
Sweden and Finland

History Overview

Early in 1961 the Kingdom of Sweden experienced an upswing of radical ideologies. As part of the new wave of politics various grassroots movements criticized advertisements, consumerism, wage gap and various other elements of modern life and economy. Yet all the buzz about their activities were drowned out when the Visitors have arrived. It's hard to define exactly what happened but strange reports surfaced in various places. The media initially shook off these reports as mass-hysteria and for a few years nothing happened. Nothing seemed to happen. Yet this era of complacency met a violent end with a sudden bombastic surge of frankly fantastical reports. Phenomena which defied understanding, mass attacks by horrifying monsters, kidnappings and mysterious disappearances. Sweden and seemingly the world as a whole found themselves under assault by forces of unknown. Within just a few years Sweden collapsed, unable to take the pressure. Social order was in shambles and the nation divided into a number of isolated states within the sea of unknown.

The successor states of Sweden continued their struggle, fighting both monsters and even among themselves. Historical documentation stops for nearly a decade and it is uncertain what really happened. Those who experienced it have conflicting testimonies. As such it isn't certain exactly what happened but various Swedish states experienced their first legitimate contact with those whom they later call metahumans, people with very specific mutations who retained their intelligence and founded their own culture. They were the elves, dwarves, trolls and so forth. Researchers are not sure if metahumans chose these names based on their understanding of Swedish culture or whether the humans meeting metahumans started to refer them as such. Either way their cooperation with humans led to various confederations and eventually this ended Sweden's short-lived dark age.

One of major factions of Sweden in this period were the Commune of Östergötland lead by Aron Holmlund. Their unity allowed them to extend their influence and swiftly gained dominance in Sweden. Holmlund wished for equality and a new order. He established the Swedish People's Confederation which within years encompassed the entire region of the former country. Of course this movement was not treated kindly by Sweden's neighbors. Though in a terrible shape Sweden received plentiful foreign aid from the West. As such Holmlund immediately sought out new allies and who else would be better partner than the Soviet Union?

The freshly established People's Federation of Sweden sent ripples through Europe. Though they never formally joined the NATO, Sweden had close relations to the West. For such a country to suddenly join the Soviet influence sphere was almost unthinkable. While feuds between the East and West revitalized at the same time Finnland found itself in a perilous situation. With the reawakening of the Soviet Union and also Sweden becoming communist they could no longer retain their tenuous neutrality and they had to choose a side. Ultimately they fused with the Swedes and the country was renamed the Union of Nordic Socialist States. Finish society transformed to the Swedish vision of communist ideas and metahumans took residence in Finland. In a sense the change wasn't that obvious yet over the time they adopted more and more elements from Sweden. By now the Finland portion of the Nordic Socialist Union is deeply similar to Sweden's.

Government Overview

The Nordic Socialist Union is unique among communist states. It advocates itself as a true "people's democracy" with multiple political parties and its own elections. Of course all parties are communist but all the main parties represent different branches of communism. In theory it's possible for a non-communist party to enter the race but in effect such movements are quickly silenced. Small parties on the other hand tend to campaign for matters more closely related to the day to day lives of the citizens. Be it more rights for a certain race, advocating benefits for a certain profession and more. The Dordic Socialist union propagates the core elements of socialism, even to oppressive levels, yet in a sense they aren't a dictatorship.

Nordic Socialist Union has a number of states with differing races and cultures. Aside from the various human states there are also metahumans. They are mutants yet for the sake of the law they are defined as something else. Metahumans have distinct races and they possess human intelligence. On the scale of mutations they are usually on the modest scale, neither light nor extreme. The most well-known metahumans are elves, dwarves and trolls yet there are some small minorities of other types. Metahumans in general revere the Visitors as their gods and each have their own religious system about it. Though Marx abhors religion the UNSS allows metahumans to practice their faith. Religious activities for humans are more regulated, albeit not completely forbidden. The Nordic Socialist Union outwardly seem like a single country yet in effect they are divided into a number of smaller states. While the states are nominally under strict central control in effect every region has their own customs and way of doing things. As long as they complete the plans and report satisfyingly to Stockholm they are good.

Pressing Issues

The Nordic Socialist Union is a relatively new state still bearing the scars of the Visitation. Social order has been long restored and economy is stable but as a fledging state the UNSS still has a lot to do. In addition NHC-related mysterious events never stopped occuring. Mutants, monsters and things even weirder still come up and provide security issues. The Western neighbors of the UNSS also feeling betrayed and tensions continue to rise. Even for the Soviets there's the ongoing ideological differences and frictions between the UNSS and other socialist neighbors.

• New nation on the ashes of old
• East v.s. West Scandinavia
• Mutants, Monsters and Mysteries
• Communists of a different persuation

Budget

N.E.O. - New Earth Oracle

Militaires Sans Frontieres

Militaires Sans Frontiéres

Official Name: Soldier's Republic of Haven
Alternative Names: Haven's Island, Militaires Sans Frontiéres (Soldiers Without Borders, MSF)
Formerly Known As: Dominica
Type: Soldier's Republic (a more organized military junta)
Leader: Grandjid (Grand Leader) Claude Jaeger
Population: Estimated to be above 200,000

MSF is a nebulous organization best known for providing mercenaries across the globe. They are the official rulers of the small Caribbean island of Haven, a special region outside the reach of any power. MSF fashion themselves as revolutionaries, people who had enough of the great powers manipulating the world. They value strength and believe only those who can fight would achieve true freedom. They collect people all across the globe. Disillusioned soldiers, war orphans, free thinkers on the run, Haven has all of these. Though it might seem MSF is a complete eyesore their effectively lawless status and high quality manpower means their services can be often useful for both sides of the Cold War. As such Haven is in an odd state of bégrúding tolerance by the whole world. Some consider them heroes fighting for what they believe in but their general portrayal is that of a den of criminals. MSF is walking a tightrope but their unique situation also allows them to work with almost any government or organization.

History

TBA

Government

Haven is under MSF's complete control and this reflects their form of governance. Haven operates as a one-party dictatorship with the only political group being MSF which is also Haven's military. Haven is ruled by Claude Jaeger, head of MSF, who is also declared Grand Leader for life. With that out of the way though Haven does have an actual legislature with each minister having an almost military-style tree of subordinates. MSF views soldiering an essential part of life and for this reason every able bodied adult undergoes boot camp and learns how to handle weapons. They receive refresher courses every year. Even the weak and crippled are helping by managing inventory, book keeping and other supportive duties.

Haven's demographics changed significantly over the decades. The original Dominican population is just the minority with migrants, deserters and exiles gathering on the island from across the world. Haven openly accepts anyone who wishes to join their cause and kindly accept refugees. Of course the new residents must accept MSF's rule and unique social mores. Haven also takes up war orphans from conflict zones and nurtures them into model soldiers. People who are running away from the KGB/CIA also can find safety in Haven. Ex-agents, traitors, scientists and so forth all could find peace within this island.

Pressing Issues

The Militaires Sans Frontiéres movement is going strong and there aren't any issues... as if! Albeit MSF is less of a pariah than it used to be in the beginning they are still isolated and considered madmen chasing an equally crazy ideology. Even at home most people don't truly believe in MSF and just view this as their only way of life. The worldwide revolution which once the Grand Leader was envisioning is nothing but a dream. While MSF had an amazing run in the past their edge in exploiting alien technology is quickly vanning. Age in general is a huge issue for MSF leadership. The Grand Leader is in his seventies and succession after his death is still not entirely resolved. Similarly, great scientific minds who sought shelter and helped Haven are now old and their knowledge is becoming obsolete. Charming dissidents to Haven is becoming harder lately. Overall some estimates say that MSF only has a little over a decade left. Something must change before the revolution succumbs to decay.

Budget

TBA

Crisis of the Confederacy [Sci-Fi Warlords in a crumbling state]

The Asterian Arsenal

I use this post to record the Asterian military equipment. It isn't a complete list and actually we miss on a lot of equipment which is more or less standard across the Confederation but I have fun writing this and hopefully you have fun reading it so let's go.

Infantry

Asterian soldiers nowadays make use of shock rifles which makes them distinct from the usual infantry. They are semi-automatic weapons which emphasize good marksmanship instead of suppressive fire. On the other hand each shot is like a micro explosive which can do considerable hurt. It's a very different approach which puts confidence in the shooting skills of the soldier.

Standard Infantry Weapons

- Amerilite M2A4 Shock Carbine: Standard armament of the entire military service. It has power settings ranging from P1 (stun) to P8 (airburst and door-buster) with the standard being P5. The weapon is powered by plasma clip which is sufficient for 20 shots. Although in special situations the soldiers can be equipped with L-size plasma clips sufficient for 50 shots total. The weapon has an internal flywheel which charges the weapon's electric systems by channeling the surplus energies behind each shot. The weapon has built-in sensors and optics to allow precise usage of the weapon. Soldiers can also buy various attachments to the rifle to customize it to their needs.

- Blaser AA-12 Shockgun: Close combat weapon mostly associated with Marines and those put on base guard duties. Shock rifles are powerful but maybe too much. They can cause too much collateral damage and their effect in room cleaning isn't stellar. The AA-12 has a mechanism to break its plasma bolt 4-36 individual "pellets". The detonation of each pellet is smaller but they can cover a much wider area together which makes them fearsome. The shockgun can also shoot a lower velocity singular plasma bolt which can reach up to P10 firepower. This allows the weapon to demolish barriers rather efficiently. One of the weapon's weaknesses is consumption. Even at normal power the weapon can only manage 12 shots before needing a new plasma canister.

- Barbarossa M9 Shock Pistol: The most popular shock sidearm in Asteria. Rated P6 as its maximum with P4 being average the S-sized plasma clip can lasts for 12 standard shots.

Support Weapons

- Ordnance M60 Squad Shock Repeater: Lightweight and heavily simplified shock repeater meant to support troops. The weapon is rated P6 and is capable of higher penetration and plasma bolt velocities than the plasma carbines. The weapon is powered through a feed tube leading to a backpack mounted plasma pack and depending on size it could unleash anywhere from 200 to 500 shots before emptying out.

- Barney M82A5 Heavy Shock Rifle: Effectively a sniper rifle meant both against distant targets and anti-material use. The weapon is usually rated P12 but can be pushed towards P16 when needed. The long accelerator coil allows it to penetrate relatively hardened targets and its advanced optic enables a wider range of utility.

[to be continued...]

NOTE: P-ratings are a semi-objective way to tell firepower between these. Rather than a linear scale think of these like bore diameters so a P10 shot is at least 4 times stronger than a P5 shot, for example. I very much use this as a replacement for bore diameters on the energy weapons.

Combat Vehicles

Aside from the shock technology Asterian AFVs are mostly conventional. Asteria has some propensity with grav-craft but they aren't exclusively the only vehicle. Another odd factor is the reliance on tiny mechs called Personal Troopers.

Military Vehicles

- Medium Tank M4A8 "Grizzly": Simple tank designed during the early periods of Asteria meant for surface patrols and police actions. Originally equipped with a large-bore grenade projector the tank is completely overhauled after the Black New Year creating the A6 variant which is effectively a new tank in all but name. The Grizzly has a P75 shock cannon and only has composite armor on the front and turret but the new fusion turbine makes it rather nimble. The tank is 2.4m tall and only 4.8m long and has a crew of 3. While the tank has active protection and other features it has a notoriety as "rolling coffin". This is mostly due to the fact that the Grizzly is often mistakenly used like an MBT and fared poorly. The inherent danger of large plasma canisters which the Grizzly uses as munitions also gave it the unsavory nickname "Zippo", because it always lit up on the first strike.

- M103 "Kodiak" Heavy Grav Tank: Asterian tank designed in response to the terrible attrition rates of the Grizzly. Initially it was meant to replace them but the high brass caught up in the feature creep and demanded more and more about the project. The end result was the Kodiak, a large grav tank with heavy armor and armed with a P105 shock cannon. The vehicle is slower than the Grizzly and less maneuverable but its anti-grav propulsion allows it to traverse all terrains. In the end the production was delayed by a decade and even after that it's only made in limited quantities because it's somewhat expensive. The Kodiak is considered a "breakthrough tank", forming armored spearheads closely followed by Grizzly medium tanks.

Personal Troopers

Small mechs evolved from power loader and utility labor mechs. Compared to the much more sophisticated battlemechs a Personal Trooper is inexpensive, easy to maintain and fairly economical. Though they aren't walking tanks a Personal Trooper is still a decent match for medium vehicles while being lighter, more agile and overall flexible. In a sense Personal Troopers are between Battlemechs and Power Armors. Actually, a stronger power armor may outperform a Personal Trooper. The reason why Asteria fully embraced them is because they are very affordable and when armed with shock weaponry they can have considerable firepower. Being mechs and even at that having relatively simple controls a Personal Trooper doesn't have the same range of motions and they are very much walking vehicles.

M48 Schwarzkopf Battle Trooper

Height: 3.63m (standing), 1.98m (standby/transport mode)
Weight: 5.05 metric tons (standard)
Powerplant: Honeywell APT-480c Compact Fusion Turbine
Armor: Protected against shrapnel and up to light autocannons
Fixed Armaments: M60E2 Shock Repeater (mounted in the head unit), Shock Knuckles x 2 (wrist mounted)
Optional Armaments & Equipment: See bellow

Standard-issue Personal Trooper with a long lineage. It started as the M26 Custer Heavy Trooper at the tail end of the 22th century and each successive model retained roughly the same dimensions and appearance. It originally was a type meant for assault units with several different Personal Armor types fulfilling different roles each. Over the time this simplified down and its successor the M46 Schwarzkopf was considered a Medium Trooper with no heavy counterpart to complement it. As such when it came to the update the M47 Schwarzkopf was called a Battle Trooper, a type of PT which is utilized in nearly every type of combat. The M48 is the latest member of the Schwarzkopf family with the current variant called M48A5.

The Schwarzkopf has a 360 degree rotating head and torso, laminate durasteel armor the capability to operate in all environments. The machine can walk or even run but for quicker movement it uses grav-hover propulsion emanating from the soles of its feet. This allows the mech to hover a handful inches off the ground so it can glide over most terrains seamlessly. Like most of the Personal Troopers the Schwarzkopf's main armaments are handheld and look like oversized infantry weapons. This allows the PT to switch armaments on the field but the mini mech also has hardpoints for optional armaments. PT are kind of like a mix between power armors and ordinary combat vehicles. They seem like oversized infantry, even taller than power armors but aren't as huge as battlemechs. At the same time their purpose is similar to heavily armed recon vehicles and they can't do the same range of motions as power armor.

Equipment List

- Shock Knuckles: The wrists of the PT often hide tiny projectors which can unleash a concentrated plasma blast at point blank range. This weapon is meant for melee combat where at very close ranges the blast could easily punch through armor. Each usage of Shock Knuckles uses up a cartridge and the M48 Schwarzkopf has 12 cartridges in each hand. The current variant is Aerospace Arms M434.

- Amerilite M16A3 Shock Blaster: P30 Shock Cannon made into an oversized rifle. The most common weapon of the Schwarzkopf PT. It has a changeable plasma pack meant for 60 shots and can either fire semi-auto or 3-round burst modes. The weapon's firepower allows it to clean buildings and take on modestly armored vehicles. It can also attach a plasma projector for short range anti-tank/anti-fortification firepower.

- Mirkon M32 Plazooka: Mech-sized "bazooka" which launches concentrated blasts of plasma. Basically it's an old P90 shock howitzer tube stripped down to be just light enough to be carried by PTs. The weapon can only do direct fire but its power makes the Plazooka best against heavy armor and fortifications. The weapon has a magazine containing 12 plasma canisters to power just as many shots.

- M61 Firestorm Gunpod: P12 shock repeater utilizing multiple weapon assemblies to achieve phenomenal firing rate. The weapon can also operate as a pseudo-shotgun and unleash a spread of 24 plasma bolts at once. This gun has its own external reservoir which can vary in size but regardless it tends to run out of ammo rather fast.

- Missile Pods: The Schwarzkopf can also equip missile pods of varying sizes and loadouts. These are generally fire and forget missiles meant for saturation, anti-fortification, anti-vehicular or short range anti-air purposes. There are many kinds of missiles and while they tend to slow down the mech they can be really useful when extra firepower is on demand.

- Mission Packs: The Schwarzkopf has a wide range of add-ons and mission packs to customize them for various purposes. This includes a hoverpod for high-speed patrol, plasma boosters for high altitude jumps, grav gliders for drops and even a roundmover space kit for some mobility in outer space.

Smallcraft

TBA

Warships

TBA

Crisis of the Confederacy [Sci-Fi Warlords in a crumbling state]

Federal Free States of Asteria

Federal Free States of Asteria

Name: Federal Free States of Asteria (FFSA)
System(s): Olympia System
Capital: Daper City, Moon Artemis
Government Type: Federation (officially, at least)
Type: Independent

Asteria is a thriving yet wild nation found at the Western Frontier. It possesses extensive mining and industrial sector, providing resources for the Confederacy as a whole. Asteria built a fortune exploiting the neighboring Falconcrest Nebula and they are prime exporters of fuel and exotic gases. It was the land of opportunities and numerous settlers journeyed to Asteria in such hopes. Yet the Black New Year dashed these hopes and Asteria just narrowly escaped collapse. Over the years they established relative autarky and Asteria was saved. Being independent in all but name the Asterians embrace the new freedom and wish to bring liberty to all.

History/Summary

Asteria began as multiple individual mining colonies set up within the asteroid belt of Olympia. Eventually these colonies grew too large and colonization of the system's habitable belt became necessary. Each group chose to conquer the environment of a different moon or planet. After a while Asteria developed its own culture and became a nation in its own right. Unlike many other governments though Asteria didn't have a single major population center but multiple. And given the focus on resource exploitation the importance of the original mining colonies never went away. Asteria became a federation with thirteen founding states. With astronomical units between the various members each state was encouraged to have a large degree of autonomy. Asterian culture as a whole embraced liberty and independence as their core values which made them further resistance to proper unification attempts. With great distances and came exorbitant fuel consumption. To feed their thirst Asteria began exploiting the Falconcrest Nebula extensively. This turned out to be a massively successful enterprise and soon Asteria became one of the Confederations prime fuel exporter. This also led to the construction of Cygnus Station a Rift Gate orbiting planet Cygnus.

The collapse brought forth by the Black New Year hit Asteria immensely. Yet it only inspired them to embrace independence all the more. They scaled back on fuel operations and offered aid to local enterprises to survive. They hastily sold their surplus fuel to neighbors and began restructuring Asterian industry once again. Rather than being purely governmental in nature the lion's share of investment came from donations and the private sector. To ward off pirates the Astarians formed the Federal Forces, mostly from local military organizations uniting under one banner. Yet not everything was peachy. Poverty is on the rise and rural settlements receive almost no government attention. Banditry is on the rise and with the economic boom over the government is hard-pressed to support its increasing expenses. Though Asteria seems to be a success story for an independent nation there's more going under the surface. Regardless the Federal Government is intent maintaining the facade. Political leadership spreads anti-Confederation views and there's a growing urge to liberate the world from an oppressive regime.

Location/Resources

Claim --- Light Blue, Southwest Corner

The Olympia System is a trinary star system with the brightest star being Olympia A (Olympia B and C aren't even tenth in size). Regardless this trinary arrangement resulted in an exotic system with multiple habitable zones spread dozens of astronomical units apart. While Olympia doesn't have a true gaia planet it has no less than 7 astral bodies which can support some kind of life. Cronos is a super Jupiter type gas giant and it has no less than 31 moons. Out of these 4 of them are fit for life and are the population centers of Asteria. They are Apollo, Artemis, Eris and Triton. Aside from these there are the planets of Eos, Mercurius and Plato. These seven astral bodies house 85% of Asteria's population with the rest living in various space habitats ranging from artificial colonies to hollowed out asteroids. Another important region of Asteria is the Falconcrest Nebula. This large formation of interstellar gases is at the northern border of Asteria and covers multiple lightyears. Millions of people from Asteria wander the nebula and collect interstellar matter.

Asteria is a highly industrialized nation with their main focus on resources, especially fuel and exotic gases. Their significance in the Coalition is shown by the Rift Station established above the planet Cygnus. Back in the glory days this allowed Asteria to reliably transport untold tonnes of fuel to distant Coalition planets year-round. The collapse of interstellar economy hit Asteria hard at first but they could shift their focus on local services and exported resources for neighbors. The fuel industry which absolutely dominated Asteria had to be scaled down and manufacturing plants absorbed the freed up workforce. Asteria has a relative autarky and produces its own goods, including weapons.

Administration/Society

Asteria is nominally a federation with 48 member states. Yet given the sheer autonomy of each member it could be closer to confederation. Leaving Asteria is forbidden for the states but otherwise they can overrule federal actions and could keep the Federal Government in check. Asterians are fond of their personal liberties and fear their own government becoming too powerful. In general the Federal Government has a mixed image, they are both viewed as selfish parasites and also the protectors against enterprises that grow too powerful. Asterians are very resentful of tax increases or introducing new taxes yet also complain about the government not doing enough. This actually led to an unique situation where private groups took over a lot of activities typically fulfilled by the government. Small settlements appoint sheriffs who usually have no government authority. Mobs form to fight bandits and even social services are handled by local firms. And of course the average citizen expects the Federal Government to step in if either of these private groups become the public enemy. Asterian governance may look downright chaotic to the outsider but for the locals they would not settle for anything else.

Military

Weapons hold a key importance in Asterian civilian life for as long the nation stands. Every adult Asterian owns at least one type of gun, both as status symbol and for self-defense. With the threat of alien wildlife, bandits and space pirates they had a constant need for militia groups. Finding potential soldiers for the Federal Army is easy yet keeping them employed is difficult. As such the Federal Forces is often a skeleton army made of volunteers. Instead much of the military budget during peacetime is spent on weapons procurement. Asteria has strict laws supporting locally produced weapons which allowed arms manufacturers to become some of the most powerful entities within the nation during these last 16 years. Anyways, the Federal Army has an unique doctrine which supports large groups wielding mass-producible weapons and Asterian marksmanship. They utilize shock weapons, a type of concentrated plasma which blows targets to pieces. Though hover vehicles are common the most typical combat machine in Asteria is the Personal Trooper (PT). They are humanoid mechs only 3.5 meters tall and can fight in all environments, including outer space. Their predecessors were exosuits meant to work in hazardous regions but Asterians modified them for war. Nowadays Personal Trooper armors are widespread, even civilians can buy simpler models. They are small and rather inexpensive to produce which combined with their simple maintenance makes them very popular in Asteria.

With the disappearance of the Confederation Navy it was Asteria's duty to survive within this new age of pirates. They initially used armed shuttles and civilian spaceships but ultimately thanks to local manufacturing plants the Federal Fleet utilizes warships of their own design. Freedom-class corvettes are distinctive products of Asteria which forms the backbone of the Federal Fleet. They sacrifice cruising range and endurance for considerable firepower which makes them a ideal for the nation's needs. Yet the main force of the Federal Fleet are their shuttlecraft, gunships and fighters. With the majority of Asterians experienced at navigating with shuttles the Federal Fleet has a seemingly bottomless supply of eager youth to become combat pilots. For this purpose the development of a "carrier ship" was absolute necessity. The Ranger-class escort carrier may be a heavily modified cargo ship design but it does fulfill its purpose. Lacking orbital dockyards the ship has a modular design built from multiple large blocks. Each individual piece is just light enough to be transported up via the space elevator and the final assembly is done in orbit. Similarly repairs could be done by just exchanging the damaged parts to a new one. While rather inefficient in both design and construction measures this is the only way Asteria could make them.

Strengths

Industrialized Frontier:
For a frontier colony which declared its independence Asteria is doing pretty swimmingly. Even the economic crash only slowed them down. Since the collapse of the world economic network Asteria began rapidly developing their own local industry and they were largely successful. With the region's resources and connections to neighbors Asteria could remain self-sufficient.

Arms of Liberty:
Every adult Asterian owns at least one gun and weapon usage is widespread in the nation. Asterians are known for their marksmanship and combat ability. Shuttlecraft ownership is also a must for a self-respecting Asterian and space travel between various states is almost a commonplace. Overall this means the Federal Forces hardly has any trouble to recruit soldiers or even military pilots for their needs.

Shock Weapons:
Asterians fully embraced plasma technology and have their own take on it, the so-called shock technology. It uses ultradense plasma at immense pressures contained within a canister. Using this they can have powerful energy weapons without needing bulky power sources. Each canister can only hold limited shots, though. Shock weapons shoot concentrated bolts of plasma which explodes on impact and damages with its raw force. They can range from handguns to naval cannons. Shock rifles are limited to semi-auto fire because rapid firing needs a much more bulkier mechanism (reserved for shock repeaters used by weapons teams). Shock weapons are versatile and you can adjust the plasma to explode in various ways including airburst, delayed blast or even shaped charge effects.

Weaknesses

Libertarian To the Core:
Asterians culture celebrates liberty and does not like government authority. Although they accept government power as a necessary element they protect their rights and privacy with fervor. Asterians are notoriously difficult to tax. Any new form of taxation or tax increase would meet resistance. In spite of their good economy the Federal Government actually has limited funds. Luckily the Asterians somewhat understand this and don't expect the government to maintain good social services but ever since Asteria's economic growth slowed down the Federal Government finds themselves in debt.

Space Cowboys:
Asteria is a wild region where gunfights and gun violence is everyday news. Whenever outlaws pop up they are heavily armed and riots can easily turn into a massive firefight. When recruiting soldiers from such region your troops would be obviously more than a little trigger happy. Asterian soldiers are stereotypically gung-ho and hard to discipline. While they know their trade there are various marks of corruption within the military system. Rumors of hedonism, property damage and even outright illegal activities are known about almost every unit. While the Federal Government strives to straighten out the military they don't have the funds and manpower to resolve this anytime soon. Another problem is motivation. Though fresh recruits are eager once they taste the terrors of warfare they could easily become jaded. When the Federal Forces lose soldiers fighting in foreign lands they are often drilled by media. Depending on severity there could be entire protests and political campaigns against continuing the war.

Clankers Go Home:
Asterians don't reject technology, nor they are hating industry. Yet they are extremely suspicious to anything related to worldwide information networks, AI development and transhumanism. Cyborg technology is heavily regulated in Asteria and neural implants are almost entirely outlawed in every state. Augmented reality networks are rejected and sapient AI is viewed with suspicion. Conspiracy theories about thinking robots and them supposedly being secret government agents are very popular in Asteria. In general Asterians are staunchly guarding their privacy and are very averse to anything which might allow "soulless machines" to govern them.

The Asterian Arsenal

The Asterian Arsenal

I use this post to record the Asterian military equipment. It isn't a complete list and actually we miss on a lot of equipment which is more or less standard across the Confederation but I have fun writing this and hopefully you have fun reading it so let's go.

Infantry

Asterian soldiers nowadays make use of shock rifles which makes them distinct from the usual infantry. They are semi-automatic weapons which emphasize good marksmanship instead of suppressive fire. On the other hand each shot is like a micro explosive which can do considerable hurt. It's a very different approach which puts confidence in the shooting skills of the soldier.

Standard Infantry Weapons

- Amerilite M2A4 Shock Carbine: Standard armament of the entire military service. It has power settings ranging from P1 (stun) to P8 (airburst and door-buster) with the standard being P5. The weapon is powered by plasma clip which is sufficient for 20 shots. Although in special situations the soldiers can be equipped with L-size plasma clips sufficient for 50 shots total. The weapon has an internal flywheel which charges the weapon's electric systems by channeling the surplus energies behind each shot. The weapon has built-in sensors and optics to allow precise usage of the weapon. Soldiers can also buy various attachments to the rifle to customize it to their needs.

- Blaser AA-12 Shockgun: Close combat weapon mostly associated with Marines and those put on base guard duties. Shock rifles are powerful but maybe too much. They can cause too much collateral damage and their effect in room cleaning isn't stellar. The AA-12 has a mechanism to break its plasma bolt 4-36 individual "pellets". The detonation of each pellet is smaller but they can cover a much wider area together which makes them fearsome. The shockgun can also shoot a lower velocity singular plasma bolt which can reach up to P10 firepower. This allows the weapon to demolish barriers rather efficiently. One of the weapon's weaknesses is consumption. Even at normal power the weapon can only manage 12 shots before needing a new plasma canister.

- Barbarossa M9 Shock Pistol: The most popular shock sidearm in Asteria. Rated P6 as its maximum with P4 being average the S-sized plasma clip can lasts for 12 standard shots.

Support Weapons

- Ordnance M60 Squad Shock Repeater: Lightweight and heavily simplified shock repeater meant to support troops. The weapon is rated P6 and is capable of higher penetration and plasma bolt velocities than the plasma carbines. The weapon is powered through a feed tube leading to a backpack mounted plasma pack and depending on size it could unleash anywhere from 200 to 500 shots before emptying out.

- Barney M82A5 Heavy Shock Rifle: Effectively a sniper rifle meant both against distant targets and anti-material use. The weapon is usually rated P12 but can be pushed towards P16 when needed. The long accelerator coil allows it to penetrate relatively hardened targets and its advanced optic enables a wider range of utility.

[to be continued...]

NOTE: P-ratings are a semi-objective way to tell firepower between these. Rather than a linear scale think of these like bore diameters so a P10 shot is at least 4 times stronger than a P5 shot, for example. I very much use this as a replacement for bore diameters on the energy weapons.

Combat Vehicles

Aside from the shock technology Asterian AFVs are mostly conventional. Asteria has some propensity with hovercraft but they aren't exclusively the only vehicle. Another odd factor is the reliance on tiny mechs called Personal Troopers.

Military Vehicles

- M113A2 All-Terrain Transport (ATT): Armored hover transport meant for carrying troops and act as the Federal Army's general utility vehicle. It has numerous variants specialized for differing roles and perhaps the most popular military vehicle in Asteria by far. It sports a quad-jet configuration for hover propulsion. Unlike less bulky variants this works in all environments, including space, without any modifications. The vehicle is protected against blast effects, small arms and some arcs are even durable enough to withstand light autocannons. The M113A2 is the standard variant in Asteria meant to be their designated APC. It has a P20 shock cannon for self-defense and can carry up to 12 mechanized infantry in full gear. Compared to conventional transports the M113A2 is quite a fuel-guzzler but in return it can seamlessly pass through any terrain and could skim over terrain at fairly good speeds.

- Medium Tank M4A8 "Grizzly": Simple tank designed during the early periods of Asteria meant for surface patrols and police actions. Originally equipped with a large-bore grenade projector the tank is completely overhauled after the Black New Year creating the A6 variant which is effectively a new tank in all but name. The Grizzly has a P75 shock cannon and only has composite armor on the front and turret but the new fusion turbine makes it rather nimble. The tank is 2.4m tall and only 4.8m long and has a crew of 3. While the tank has active protection and other features it has a notoriety as "rolling coffin". This is mostly due to the fact that the Grizzly is often mistakenly used like an MBT and fared poorly. The inherent danger of large plasma canisters which the Grizzly uses as munitions also gave it the unsavory nickname "Zippo", because they always lit up on the first strike.

- M103 "Kodiak" Heavy Hovertank: Asterian tank designed in response to the terrible attrition rates of the Grizzly. Initially it was meant to replace them but the high brass caught up in the feature creep and demanded more and more about the project. The end result was the Kodiak, a large hovertank with heavy armor and armed with a P105 shock cannon. The vehicle is slower than the Grizzly and less maneuverable but its air cushion jet propulsion allows it to traverse all terrains. In the end the production was delayed by a decade and even after that it's only made in limited quantities because the tank is almost prohibitively expensive. The Kodiak is considered a "breakthrough tank", forming armored spearheads closely followed by Grizzly medium tanks.

Personal Troopers

Small mechs evolved from power loader and utility labor mechs. Compared to the much more sophisticated battlemechs a Personal Trooper is inexpensive, easy to maintain and fairly economical. Though they aren't walking tanks a Personal Trooper is still a decent match for medium vehicles while being lighter, more agile and overall flexible. In a sense Personal Troopers are between Battlemechs and Power Armors. Actually, a stronger power armor may outperform a Personal Trooper. The reason why Asteria fully embraced them is because they are very affordable and when armed with shock weaponry they can have considerable firepower. Being mechs and even at that having relatively simple controls a Personal Trooper doesn't have the same range of motions and they are very much walking vehicles.

M48 Schwarzkopf Battle Trooper

Height: 3.63m (standing), 1.98m (standby/transport mode)
Weight: 5.05 metric tons (standard)
Powerplant: Honeywell APT-480c Compact Fusion Turbine
Armor: Protected against shrapnel and up to light autocannons
Fixed Armaments: M60E2 Shock Repeater (mounted in the head unit), Shock Knuckles x 2 (wrist mounted)
Optional Armaments & Equipment: See bellow

Standard-issue Personal Trooper with a long lineage. It started as the M26 Custer Heavy Trooper at the tail end of the 22th century and each successive model retained roughly the same dimensions and appearance. It originally was a type meant for assault units with several different Personal Armor types fulfilling different roles each. Over the time this simplified down and its successor the M46 Schwarzkopf was considered a Medium Trooper with no heavy counterpart to complement it. As such when it came to the update the M47 Schwarzkopf was called a Battle Trooper, a type of PT which is utilized in nearly every type of combat. The M48 is the latest member of the Schwarzkopf family with the current variant called M48A5. That being said R&D is underway for its replacement M50 and the future next generation counterpart the M60 Schwarzkopf.

The Schwarzkopf has a 360 degree rotating head and torso, laminate durasteel armor the capability to operate in all environments. The machine can walk or even run but for quicker movement it uses hover propulsion emanating from the soles of its feet. This allows the mech to hover a handful inches off the ground so it can glide over most terrains seamlessly. Like most of the Personal Troopers the Schwarzkopf's main armaments are handheld and look like oversized infantry weapons. This allows the PT to switch armaments on the field but the mini mech also has hardpoints for optional armaments. PT are kind of like a mix between power armors and ordinary combat vehicles. They seem like oversized infantry, even taller than power armors but aren't as huge as battlemechs. At the same time their purpose is similar to heavily armed recon vehicles and they can't do the same range of motions as power armor.

Equipment List

- Shock Knuckles: The wrists of the PT often hide tiny projectors which can unleash a concentrated plasma blast at point blank range. This weapon is meant for melee combat where at very close ranges the blast could easily punch through armor. Each usage of Shock Knuckles uses up a cartridge and the M48 Schwarzkopf has 12 cartridges in each hand. The current variant is Aerospace Arms M434.

- Amerilite M16A3 Shock Blaster: P30 Shock Cannon made into an oversized rifle. The most common weapon of the Schwarzkopf PT. It has a changeable plasma pack meant for 60 shots and can either fire semi-auto or 3-round burst modes. The weapon's firepower allows it to clean buildings and take on modestly armored vehicles. It can also attach a plasma projector for short range anti-tank/anti-fortification firepower.

- Mirkon M32 Plazooka: Mech-sized "bazooka" which launches concentrated blasts of plasma. Basically it's an old P90 shock howitzer tube stripped down to be just light enough to be carried by PTs. The weapon can only do direct fire but its power makes the Plazooka best against heavy armor and fortifications. The weapon has a magazine containing 12 plasma canisters to power just as many shots.

- M61 Firestorm Gunpod: P12 shock repeater utilizing multiple weapon assemblies to achieve phenomenal firing rate. The weapon can also operate as a pseudo-shotgun and unleash a spread of 24 plasma bolts at once. This gun has its own external reservoir which can vary in size but regardless it tends to run out of ammo rather fast.

- Missile Pods: The Schwarzkopf can also equip missile pods of varying sizes and loadouts. These are generally fire and forget missiles meant for saturation, anti-fortification, anti-vehicular or short range anti-air purposes. There are many kinds of missiles and while they tend to slow down the mech they can be really useful when extra firepower is on demand.

- Mission Packs: The Schwarzkopf has a wide range of add-ons and mission packs to customize them for various purposes. This includes a hoverpod for high-speed patrol, plasma boosters for high altitude jumps, glider kits for drops and even a roundmover space kit for some mobility in outer space.

Smallcraft

Nearly every Asterian has space shuttle piloting experiences. Traveling space for hours is something like a daily routine for a good portion of Asterians. As such it comes as little surprise that the Federal Forces put so much emphasis on their smallcraft pilots.

Warships

TBA

Crisis of the Confederacy [Sci-Fi Warlords in a crumbling state]

Federal Free States of Asteria

Name: Federal Free States of Asteria (FFSA)
System(s): Olympia System
Capital: Daper City, Moon Artemis
Government Type: Federation (officially, at least)
Type: Independent

Asteria is a thriving yet wild nation found at the Western Frontier. It possesses extensive mining and industrial sector, providing resources for the Confederacy as a whole. Asteria built a fortune exploiting the neighboring Falconcrest Nebula and they are prime exporters of fuel and exotic gases. It was the land of opportunities and numerous settlers journeyed to Asteria in such hopes. Yet the Black New Year dashed these hopes and Asteria just narrowly escaped collapse. Over the years they established relative autarky and Asteria was saved. Being independent in all but name the Asterians embrace the new freedom and wish to bring liberty to all.

History/Summary

Asteria began as multiple individual mining colonies set up within the asteroid belt of Olympia. Eventually these colonies grew too large and colonization of the system's habitable belt became necessary. Each group chose to conquer the environment of a different moon or planet. After a while Asteria developed its own culture and became a nation in its own right. Unlike many other governments though Asteria didn't have a single major population center but multiple. And given the focus on resource exploitation the importance of the original mining colonies never went away. Asteria became a federation with thirteen founding states. With astronomical units between the various members each state was encouraged to have a large degree of autonomy. Asterian culture as a whole embraced liberty and independence as their core values which made them further resistance to proper unification attempts. With great distances and came exorbitant fuel consumption. To feed their thirst Asteria began exploiting the Falconcrest Nebula extensively. This turned out to be a massively successful enterprise and soon Asteria became one of the Confederations prime fuel exporter. This also led to the construction of Cygnus Station a Rift Gate orbiting planet Cygnus.

The collapse brought forth by the Black New Year hit Asteria immensely. Yet it only inspired them to embrace independence all the more. They scaled back on fuel operations and offered aid to local enterprises to survive. They hastily sold their surplus fuel to neighbors and began restructuring Asterian industry once again. Rather than being purely governmental in nature the lion's share of investment came from donations and the private sector. To ward off pirates the Astarians formed the Federal Forces, mostly from local military organizations uniting under one banner. Yet not everything was peachy. Poverty is on the rise and rural settlements receive almost no government attention. Banditry is on the rise and with the economic boom over the government is hard-pressed to support its increasing expenses. Though Asteria seems to be a success story for an independent nation there's more going under the surface. Regardless the Federal Government is intent maintaining the facade. Political leadership spreads anti-Confederation views and there's a growing urge to liberate the world from an oppressive regime.

Location/Resources

Claim --- Light Blue, Southwest Corner

The Olympia System is a trinary star system with the brightest star being Olympia A (Olympia B and C aren't even tenth in size). Regardless this trinary arrangement resulted in an exotic system with multiple habitable zones spread dozens of astronomical units apart. While Olympia doesn't have a true gaia planet it has no less than 7 astral bodies which can support some kind of life. Cronos is a super Jupiter type gas giant and it has no less than 31 moons. Out of these 4 of them are fit for life and are the population centers of Asteria. They are Apollo, Artemis, Eris and Triton. Aside from these there are the planets of Eos, Mercurius and Plato. These seven astral bodies house 85% of Asteria's population with the rest living in various space habitats ranging from artificial colonies to hollowed out asteroids. Another important region of Asteria is the Falconcrest Nebula. This large formation of interstellar gases is at the northern border of Asteria and covers multiple lightyears. Millions of people from Asteria wander the nebula and collect interstellar matter.

Asteria is a highly industrialized nation with their main focus on resources, especially fuel and exotic gases. Their significance in the Coalition is shown by the Rift Station established above the planet Cygnus. Back in the glory days this allowed Asteria to reliably transport untold tonnes of fuel to distant Coalition planets year-round. The collapse of interstellar economy hit Asteria hard at first but they could shift their focus on local services and exported resources for neighbors. The fuel industry which absolutely dominated Asteria had to be scaled down and manufacturing plants absorbed the freed up workforce. Asteria has a relative autarky and produces its own goods, including weapons.

Administration/Society

Asteria is nominally a federation with 48 member states. Yet given the sheer autonomy of each member it could be closer to confederation. Leaving Asteria is forbidden for the states but otherwise they can overrule federal actions and could keep the Federal Government in check. Asterians are fond of their personal liberties and fear their own government becoming too powerful. In general the Federal Government has a mixed image, they are both viewed as selfish parasites and also the protectors against enterprises that grow too powerful. Asterians are very resentful of tax increases or introducing new taxes yet also complain about the government not doing enough. This actually led to an unique situation where private groups took over a lot of activities typically fulfilled by the government. Small settlements appoint sheriffs who usually have no government authority. Mobs form to fight bandits and even social services are handled by local firms. And of course the average citizen expects the Federal Government to step in if either of these private groups become the public enemy. Asterian governance may look downright chaotic to the outsider but for the locals they would not settle for anything else.

Military

Weapons hold a key importance in Asterian civilian life for as long the nation stands. Every adult Asterian owns at least one type of gun, both as status symbol and for self-defense. With the threat of alien wildlife, bandits and space pirates they had a constant need for militia groups. Finding potential soldiers for the Federal Army is easy yet keeping them employed is difficult. As such the Federal Forces is often a skeleton army made of volunteers. Instead much of the military budget during peacetime is spent on weapons procurement. Asteria has strict laws supporting locally produced weapons which allowed arms manufacturers to become some of the most powerful entities within the nation during these last 16 years. Anyways, the Federal Army has an unique doctrine which supports large groups wielding mass-producible weapons and Asterian marksmanship. They utilize shock weapons, a type of concentrated plasma which blows targets to pieces. Though grav vehicles are common the most typical combat machine in Asteria is the Personal Trooper (PT). They are humanoid mechs only 3.5 meters tall and can fight in all environments, including outer space. Their predecessors were exosuits meant to work in hazardous regions but Asterians modified them for war. Nowadays Personal Trooper armors are widespread, even civilians can buy simpler models. They are small and rather inexpensive to produce which combined with their simple maintenance makes them very popular in Asteria.

With the disappearance of the Confederation Navy it was Asteria's duty to survive within this new age of pirates. They initially used armed shuttles and civilian spaceships but ultimately thanks to local manufacturing plants the Federal Fleet utilizes warships of their own design. Freedom-class corvettes are distinctive products of Asteria which forms the backbone of the Federal Fleet. They sacrifice cruising range and endurance for considerable firepower which makes them a ideal for the nation's needs. Yet the main force of the Federal Fleet are their shuttlecraft, gunships and fighters. With the majority of Asterians experienced at navigating with shuttles the Federal Fleet has a seemingly bottomless supply of eager youth to become combat pilots. For this purpose the development of a "carrier ship" was absolute necessity. The Ranger-class scout carrier may be a heavily modified cargo ship design but it does fulfill its purpose. Lacking orbital dockyards the ship has a modular design built from multiple large blocks. Each individual piece is just light enough to be transported up via the space elevator and the final assembly is done in orbit. Similarly repairs could be done by just exchanging the damaged parts to a new one. While rather inefficient in both design and construction measures this is the only way Asteria could make them.

Strengths

Industrialized Frontier:
For a frontier colony which declared its independence Asteria is doing pretty swimmingly. Even the economic crash only slowed them down. Since the collapse of the world economic network Asteria began rapidly developing their own local industry and they were largely successful. With the region's resources and connections to neighbors Asteria could remain self-sufficient.

Arms of Liberty:
Every adult Asterian owns at least one gun and weapon usage is widespread in the nation. Asterians are known for their marksmanship and combat ability. Shuttlecraft ownership is also a must for a self-respecting Asterian and space travel between various states is almost a commonplace. Overall this means the Federal Forces hardly has any trouble to recruit soldiers or even military pilots for their needs.

Shock Weapons:
Asterians fully embraced plasma technology and have their own take on it, the so-called shock technology. It uses ultradense plasma at immense pressures contained within a canister. Using this they can have powerful energy weapons without needing bulky power sources. Each canister can only hold limited shots, though. Shock weapons shoot concentrated bolts of plasma which explodes on impact and damages with its raw force. They can range from handguns to naval cannons. Shock rifles are limited to semi-auto fire because rapid firing needs a much more bulkier mechanism (reserved for shock repeaters used by weapons teams). Shock weapons are versatile and you can adjust the plasma to explode in various ways including airburst, delayed blast or even shaped charge effects.

Weaknesses

Libertarian To the Core:
Asterians culture celebrates liberty and does not like government authority. Although they accept government power as a necessary element they protect their rights and privacy with fervor. Asterians are notoriously difficult to tax. Any new form of taxation or tax increase would meet resistance. In spite of their good economy the Federal Government actually has limited funds. Luckily the Asterians somewhat understand this and don't expect the government to maintain good social services but ever since Asteria's economic growth slowed down the Federal Government finds themselves in debt.

Space Cowboys:
Asteria is a wild region where gunfights and gun violence is everyday news. Whenever outlaws pop up they are heavily armed and riots can easily turn into a massive firefight. When recruiting soldiers from such region your troops would be obviously more than a little trigger happy. Asterian soldiers are stereotypically gung-ho and hard to discipline. While they know their trade there are various marks of corruption within the military system. Rumors of hedonism, property damage and even outright illegal activities are known about almost every unit. While the Federal Government strives to straighten out the military they don't have the funds and manpower to resolve this anytime soon. Another problem is motivation. Though fresh recruits are eager once they taste the terrors of warfare they could easily become jaded. When the Federal Forces lose soldiers fighting in foreign lands they are often drilled by media. Depending on severity there could be entire protests and political campaigns against continuing the war.

Clankers Go Home:
Asterians don't reject technology, nor they are hating industry. Yet they are extremely suspicious to anything related to worldwide information networks, AI development and transhumanism. Cyborg technology is heavily regulated in Asteria and neural implants are almost entirely outlawed in every state. Augmented reality networks are rejected and sapient AI is viewed with suspicion. Conspiracy theories about thinking robots and them supposedly being secret government agents are very popular in Asteria. In general Asterians are staunchly guarding their privacy and are very averse to anything which might allow "soulless machines" to govern them.

Dulce et Decorum Est - A WWI Inspired Nation Roleplay (Mark II)

Name: Republique Sainteté Fénise, Fénisian Republic, Fénise/Fenice
Government: Divine Republic
Capital: Fenice
Dominant Religion: Dionism
Dominant Species: Elavis (deertaurs)
Population: 75 million

Fenice used to be part of the once might Chevroiéren Empire. With the tyranny of Chevroiére overthrown and the empire fragmented, Fenice came to prominence. They formed the Fenician League which absorbed its neighbors in a series of crusades. The revolutions of the 19th century overthrew the clergy, exiled the Archpriestess and established true republic. With the nation completely reformed the Fenisians bravely look forward to the new century. Fenice is a lively country with lots of history.

Rolls

Land Area: 11
Land Fertility: 19 (imported)
Natural Resources: 14
Social Development: 15
Technological Development: 19 (switched, 15+4)
Industrial Development: 13 (18-5)
Total Economic Strength: 9 (5+4)
Land Power: 14 (12+2)
Naval Power: 10 (switched)
Air Power: 2 (-5)

Territory

The Chevroiéren Plains are a fertile land between the tropical and continental climate belts. Compared to the anomaly which is Voldoyouki this might not seem special but these bountiful lands empowered a number of empires throughout history. Diverse flora and fauna lives in this region and it's known for their exotic flowers and timber. When it comes to raw materials though their chief source is in the Montelanse region at the southern borders. Fénisian iron is well-known for its remarkable quality and some rare elements are chiefly found here. Yet overall the amount of raw materials Fénise could mine aren't sufficient for their growth and require considerable imports. In comparison Fénise is known to be unusually rich in magic crystals and they even have a type unique to this region called Solarite. This material is the basis of many Fenisian magitech.

History

TBA

Government

Fenisian governance has little to no parallel across the whole world. They chose a form of federal republician direct democracy which might hardly even make sense for an outsider. The so-called "citoyen" are the official citizenship of Fenice but can be considered a social elite. They are the upper class who agree to pay huge taxes in order to exert the right to participate in politics. They participate in votes and can pursue political career. This is a huge responsibility which Fenicians don't take lightly. As such the citoyen are tested annually to prove their knowledge and overall ability to make correct judgement in these matters. The Fenician philosophy sneers at the idea of universal suffrage and considers it being lead by fools. Instead they want only those with both the commitment and abilities to actually make calls. Given how every citoyen/citizen has direct influence in political decisions in their eyes this method truly conveys the will of the nation. Of course aside from votes from citizens there are various offices, representatives and other institutions. As a federal state ruled from Fenice the other regions can only influence decisions through their representatives in the Senate. Another interesting facet of Fenisian politics is that direct democratic institutions aren't exclusive to the capital and federal central of Fenice alone. Every region has its own capital city where the "citoden" (cityfolk) could exert their direct democratic power. In the Divine Republic of Fénise you have to earn your voting rights. Yet this doesn't bother the ordinary folk. Commoners who don't have citizenship can live their lives in peace and don't suffer much if any social consequences for lacking the ability to vote. Unless they want to participate in politics this doesn't impact them negatively at all. A number of commoners started up their own enterprises, although after a certain point you might still want to acquire citizenship given the prestige and ability to influence politics.

Dionism

Fenisian state religion which is uncertain whether it's Gestalt or Elder in nature. As its name states Fenice views the Sun as their god. It has numerous branches with some taking this literally while others consider it in the philosophical/metaphorical sense. They celebrate the Sun and view it as the source of all goodness in life. Archodionists are the "old guard" who believe in the origin myths surrounding the Sun while Neodionist faiths approach the Sun as a concept and consider it a core of their philosophy. Dionism teaches enlightenment, joy and fills believers with a certain "inner fire". A Dionist lives for the present and values experiences over calm everyday life. Many of them want to live like fire, short yet blazing. Dionism's teachings are the most likely source of the stereotype which associates Fenisians with energetic positivity but also shortsightedness. The Fenisian national creature is the phoenix which is the central figure of Fenisian creation myths and often shows up in myths as divine messenger. The Phoenix was said to be effectively immortal. Short-lived yet constantly reborn. This creature is also the namesake of the city of Fenice.

Demographics

According to the last census Fénise has 75 million souls. Among them about 33 million are Elavis (deertaur), 20 million Nain (gnomes), 10 million humans, 2.5 million Volyudki, 2 million centaurs and the rest being a mix of other races. Fenisians don't discriminate on race, although they have a hard time tolerating other faiths. 98% of the population are believing in some type of Dionism. Gnomes in particular are somewhat unique in the fact that they historically have been slaves or indentured servants to centaurs/deertaurs. As a consequence even though slavery is no longer tolerated in Fénise the gnomes usually find job working as servants and assistance to deertaurs.

Elavis (deertaurs)

Official Name: Elafer (male), Elafé (female), Elavis (group name)
Common Name: Deertaurs
Average Dimensions: height: 176cm, length: 142cm
Average Weight: 90kg (runner), 140kg (worker), 220kg (warrior)
Maximum Lifespan: 200 years

Small yet very agile type of centaurid found chiefly in the western portion of Yevrazha. Before we delve into this race let's fix some misconceptions about centaurids. First off, they aren't human-horse hybrids. There aren't two bodies sewn together but a large body with its own unique anatomy. The chest of a centaurid holds two giant hearts pumping blood at a rate which might seem insane. This fills the centaurid with energy but also speeds up their metabolism, requiring more food. The abdominal portion of the upper body also has the first stomach, out of the three in total. The lower body has the lungs and intestines. Just as the hearts, this place holds almost every organ in twins or having a duplicate. Even if one pair of the organs fail the centaurid will not be hindered, though their vital functions will decrease.

Elavis are an unique part of the Centauridae family. They are light and small in stature by centaurid standards. Their lower body resembles a mix between deers and goats, inheriting advantages of both. Compared to the more robust centaurs the Elavis are very nimble. They could could climb trees, scale cliffs and do tasks you normally wouldn't associate with centaurids. Thanks to their superpowered hearts the Elavis has powerful arm muscles, although the chief portion of their strength is held in their lower body. Elavis are fast runners, capable of reaching between 40-70km/h and their stamina allows them to maintain this for surprisingly long.

Elavis has 3 breeds: runner, worker and warrior. A runner breed centaur is slender and are the best at traversing great distances. They are comparatively weak but still fairly large overall. Worker-breed are made stout-bodied with shorter legs. They adapted to carry heavy weights for long distances but they quite slow compared to the other deertaurs. Warrior-breeds are the largest and most rare. They approach the size of ponies and maximize strength while also have very decent speed. As their name implies they used to compromise the elite of the army and most of them still do.

Nain (Gnomes)

Official Name: Nain
Common Name: Gnome
Average Height: 120cm
Weight: 25kg
Maximum Lifespan: 150 years

Gnomes are a race bound to centaurid service for over a millennia. Their weakness and small stature made them an easy conquest after which the gnomes became the attendants of centaurids, helping them in many ways. Gnomes are distant relatives of dwarves and their hardiness can be perhaps attributed to this. They have oversized heads and limbs which makes them appear a bit child-like. They are socially in an odd place right now. Many of them still consider themselves servants to centaurids but a growing minority promotes complete independence. Gnomes are respected for their assistance but looked down upon when they try to do something outside their stereotype. This produces a growing discontent which could erupt as yet another gnome uprising like the ones lead to their (formal) emancipation.

Technology/Industry

Fénise is a developed country with decent industry yet they aren't anywhere groundbreaking. Fénise is mostly known for their agriculture and light industry and their production capacity is limited. Fenisian artistry and craftsmanship is known worldwide yet during the age of factories the skill of artisans are of lesser concern. Fénise does have a very specific expertise in their own brand of magitech, though. They chiefly use Solarite, a type of magic crystal attuned to their own spells. This is chiefly useful at producing heat and light, the main aspects of the Sun. Although Fénisian magic is the best known for healing. Filling the recipient with inner fire they speed up metabolism and otherwise accelerate healing. The Circle of Fire is an international organization of healers chiefly established to support war-torn places. To flip things over the Fenisians also have reputation for gunmaking. Obsessed with fire they fully embraced firearms and the region has numerous ancestral workshops dedicated to guns. Of course we are in the industrial age and compared to the old times Fenisians lag behind in processes to make the most powerful guns. Yet their reputation is virtually untarnished when it comes to small arms. The Volcanic Arms Factory is known worldwide for supplying pistols and other small arms to civilian markets. Lastly it's known that Fenisians and their spiritual practices managed to communicate with the element of fire itself. Thanks to this they can command fire elementals and use them in various applications. Most famously Fenisian furnances and powerplants often include a fire elemental within them. Thanks to this Fenisian heat machines tend to be more compact but they are also quite temperamental in nature.

Solarite

Vibrant gemstone in the color of flames. Solarite is an unique type of magic crystal transformed by the subconscious Gestalt energies of Dionism. For this reason Solarite can only be mined in Fenise and it has specific interaction with the arts of Dionist spellsmiths. Solarite has the attribute of the Sun which makes it more effective at casting heat and light based spells. It's also the primary medium of Fenisian healers to treat wounds and various ailment alongside the fruits of modern medicine. Solarite also finds common use in any technology related to light or heat. Solarite crystals at the end of lightbulb filaments create clean and efficient light. Solarite crystals can power enchantments in steam turbines to improve efficiency. Solarite also finds its way in firearms technology. Fenisian gunpowders use specks of grounded solarite to improve their guns. They can also have a "Solarization Device" attached to imbue projectiles with explosive solar energies. Yet the most famous use of Solarite is to power the Fenisian "star blades" also known as Estoiler.

Estoiler (starblade)

Starblades are unique melee weapons and the product of centuries of spellsmithing knowledge. They are seemingly nothing but enchanted hilts using Solarite core as their focus. When activated the starblade ignites in the air, forming a blade of plasma like a miniature sun. Yet that's just partially the truth. In effect this shining blade concentrates all its energy around the edges, leaving the sides much colder. Touching the side of the blade might be akin to a boiling kettle, painful but not immediately dangerous. Yet the edge is so intense it can effortlessly cut through people. Starblades of course can't cut through everything. For example they have ten times more trouble to cleave non-combustible materials. They could slice through certain tree hunks with ease yet they can barely scratch a lamppost. The exact reasons for why are unknown but as a consequence even plate armor provides a degree of defense against these. Of course some of the heat passes through and also repeated strikes cult melt the thin pieces of steel but it's better than nothing. Starblades used to be a mark of prestige and many bear elaborate decorations still. Yet heavily simplified versions with lower output nowadays see widespread use in the Fenisian military.

Starblades are very quick to use and deadly, although they can be also immensely dangerous to the untrained user. The blade is weighless and provides no feedback to the user so you have to operate it with your eyes and general experience, otherwise you might lose the position of your blade in the heat of battle. Shorter starblades like those put on as bayonets are less powerful and chiefly focus on thrusting. As such they are much easier to handle by the average soldier. This is called the bayonet-estoiler which has a modestly powerful cutting edge and a fairly strong point for thrusts. They are also considerably shorter, with blades usually being 35-55cm long.

Military

Fenisian military traditions run deep while it's no longer as mighty as it used to be they are still formidable on their own right. Elafer mercenaries were well-known across the continent and the adventurous youth can be still charmed by free companies which then offer their services to various foreign militaries. As living cavalry the Elavis fighting style embraces maneuvering and sheer speed. They are highly drilled soldiers with great coordination. Companies often have a certain family-like feel. Yet of course this also got some dark sides. Fenisian military borderline refuse to accept non-deertaur soldiers, only taking in a smaller amount of auxiliary and specialist troops. As a consequence the Fenisian military, also called Force Fédérale du Fényx (Federal Phoenix Force), is struggling to maintain adequate number of soldiers. Even then the Fenisian army is formidable and they are decently equipped. It's just that Fenisian perception of their military power is certainly inflated which may cause problems in the future.

Army Overview

The Fenisian army is a staunch member to the "cult of offensive" who believe any defensive measure can be overwhelmed by adequate offense. Their army is all about the speed of their action and generally the best prepared to face enemies on the open field. They view fortresses as staging points and defense is only required until relief forces arrive. Combined with cultural reasons it isn't surprising that Fenise is reluctant to accept non-centaurid soldiers. These troops are trained for long marches and could traverse up to 100 miles within a day. This is deemed necessary as the Fénise-Volsrtanlyudkovka border is massive and any attempts at invasion should be thwarted fast.

Infantry

Common Infantry Gear

- Chapuis M98 Rifle: Lever action rifle firing 9.2x42mm cartridges. The buttstock is also a helical magazine holding 24 rounds which can be loaded by 8-round stripper clips from the top feed. The rifle is fairly accurate and the 9mm tubular bullets can achieve close to 1000m/s. In contrast these bullets have mixed reputation in terms of firepower, struggling to penetrate tree hunks or sandbags. Similarly some question the lethality of tubular bullets but in practice it's more down to personal experiences.

- M99 Plasma Bayonet: A much cheaper variant of the traditional starblades, allowing them to be issued to the common soldier. Plasma bayonets have a shorter, usually 45cm long plasma blade which has less cutting power but comparable strength at the thrust. It cannot burn through tree hunks or cut people cleanly in half but the edge can still cut deep and in general this compromise worked out in the soldiers' favor.

- Leclair M03 Pistol: Standard sidearm of the Federal Phoenix Force. It uses special 8x24mm cartridges with tubular bullets to achieve phenomenal velocities. The bullet only weighs about 2.4 grams but has the muzzle velocity of 640m/s. To achieve this the Leclair has an unique "bullpup" feed and long recoil mechanism, giving it exactly 300mm in barrel length. The original trial in 1901 was sabotaged by the Chasseur Corps because they wanted a long ranged sidearm that can effectively supplement their shotguns. Uncharacteristically to many other pistols the Leclair M03 has a double-stack magazine holding 19 cartridges, something again motivated by the Chasseur Corps' demands. Thanks to its long barrel and muzzle velocity the pistol can theoretically shoot up to 200m but in practice it's used like every other military sidearm. Other pistols like the Bergeux M01 and M05 also circulate in the army, not to mention the M88 Revolvers which are rechambered for 8x24mm now.

- M88 Pattern Starsaber: Typical armament of Fenisian military officers this is the mass produced variant of the famed starblades wielded by the legendary knights of Fenise. It has a set of focusing prongs and twin set of focus rings providing better control while also functioning as guards. The blade length is adjustable between 80 to 120cm and same could be said for other characteristics to fit the wielder's style. Since it's merely a hilt it only weighs 300 grams, lighter than a military knive. As such starsabers are remarkably fast which could make them terrifying in combat. Contrary to legends a starblade doesn't need mythical skills, divine blessing, nor it could slash through armor with ease. Most officers who wield starsabers also like to wear special gauntlets made to resist plasma cuts just for safety.

- Benelin Auto-19 Shotgun: Shotgun adopted by the Chasseur Corps as their combat weapon of choice (aside from their standard rifles). It fires 19mmm shells standard in Fenisian use and has a long recoil mechanism allowing semi-automatic fire. As a commercial weapon it has a wide variety of magazines ranging from 3-8 round tubular magazines to 12-36 round helical magazine types. Chasseurs prefer the Chapuis-designed M05 quick-change 7-round tubular magazines for which up to a dozen pieces can be carried and for cheap. The Chasseur variant also retains the charging pump which allows manual operation in case the system fails. These shotguns can fire slugs with effective range up to 125m, various shots&flechette ammo, smoke and flash shells and even rare Solartie-imbued explosive shells meant against emplacements. Chasseurs are aggressive and this weapon is perfect for their style.

- Chapuis M08 Auto Rifle: One of the newest rifles designed by Chapuis Arsenal for civilian markets. It's a semi-automatic rifle using medium cartridge and a simple blowback mechanism, feeding from detachable magazines between the capacity of 8 to 25 rounds. It uses a 9.8 x 29.4 mm cartridge (also called the 10mm SL) and it's popular with hunters. In terms of military use their compact size and high capacity makes them a good competitor with the Chapuis M98 Carbine variant.

- Field Grenade No. 7: Fenisian grenade made for storming enemy lines and overcoming fortifications. In terms of construction they are both simplistic and overcomplicated. The cylindrical grenade body is constructed out of washer-like iron rings fixed by thin iron rods with the internal space filled with TNT. The top of the grenade has a large spring clock which can be set anywhere between 1 to 12 seconds by just twisting the body accordingly. The countback is mechanical and upon reaching zero it activates a tiny solarite sparker thus detonating the grenade. In addition the grenade has a long wooden stick attached to it, increasing its throwing range. Given a running start and a decent throw the No. 7 Field Grenade can be throw to over a hundred meters. Compared to models used by Volstran and Astalia these grenades are actually rather light, without the stick they are only about 250 grams. Chasseurs, assault teams and grenade-carrying specialists tend to carry these, at times over a dozen of them.

- Voltigeur: The nickname of common infantry, they are the bulk of Fénise's combat force. They are almost exclusively deertaurs which means can run like a horse and traverse surprising distances on a trot-like march. Their main armament is of course their rifle which is unique in the fact it uses lever action and has a high-capacity helical magazine. In general Fenisians are less squeemish about ammo consumption and want to make full use of their comparably larger volume of fire. Instead of volleys they perfected a sorts of "gallopping fire" when teams of Voltigeurs fire their rifles in a constant series rather than alterating between large volumes of shots. This is meant to suppress enemy positions and allow deertaurs to get closer and generally dominate via maneuver. At least that's what military theorists say. Voltigeur means "vaulter" and it's only used for centaurid soldiers. For less speedy infantry the semi-derogatory term piéton is used.

- Chasseur: Elite recon, skirmish and assault specialists troops recruited from the most capable youth. They undergo hard drills which usually have 90% of the recruits rolled back into the regular army. Those who pass these trials would become part of the famed Chasseur Corps. They are the advance forces of the Fenisian military but also their elite assault specialists. They are a "light troop" without much in the way of heavy weapons or artillery support. Yet the Chasseurs themselves are often rather densely packed as they carry various weapons, tools and twice the normal amount of necessities. Their "Battle Dolman" is seemingly a ceremonial piece yet in fact the elaborate stitching hides wood-backed steel plates that could even stop bullets. Yes, the Chasseurs wear armor at critical parts to increase their survival. It's neccessary since they are some of the hardest risk takers in the world. The bravery, fearlessness and exploits of the Chasseurs are known worldwide and at one point these people were welcome everywhere as mercenaries. Chasseurs are known for using semi-automatic shotguns in combat but they also carry the carbine versions of the M98 rifles.

- Zenteau: Special troop usually recruiting from the large-bodied centaurs. Thanks to their size they can carry considerable weights and hence they are ideal for carrying heavy equipment with more ease. While originally this category was exclusive to centaur auxiliaries who helped with logistics it currently a term used for those responsible for transporting large amounts. It typically applies to specialized weapons teams like machinegunners, grenades, rocket stands, flamethrowers or those who transport "fast artillery" (see later at the artillery section). The Zenteaux aren't exclusively centaurs anymore and they make use of specially tamed pack animals. These soldiers are responsible for fire support and allow Fénise to have an effective army while also being highly mobile.

Paladine: Though knights are rendered obsolete by modern doctrines they are far from extinct in Fénise. The Holy Dionist Church also maintains a grand militant order who are called the paladins. These modern knights are religious champions trained from youth to serve the Dionist faith and Fénise in general. They are warrior-monks of high status and blessed in the art of magic. They wear blessed plate armor which utilizes more sophisticated technologies to resist at least pistol rounds and have a chance to deflect higher caliber rounds. Paladines are also accompanied by their own retinue of devout soldiers called the Lansequet who also don armor and their duty is to support their superior in battle. The Paladines aren't the only combat magic user in Fénise but they are the best known.

Infantry Support Weapons

- Riebel M07 Machine Gun: A standard Fenisian machinegun made to replace the old models still mounted on artillery carriages. Outwardly it's the same water-cooled machinegun as many others with typical belt feed. Yet the Riebel uses an unique rotary cylinder mechanism which divides it to 4 pseudo-chambers. It separates the feeding & chambering process into separate steps thus improving reliability. In theory this mechanism can handle insane rates of fire but calm heads prevailed and they settled on a modestly high 960RPM. As a machinegun it fires 9.2x42mm rifle rounds and can only use linked ammo.

- Col. Caseneux M13 Cavalry Machine Gun: For a long while Chasseurs lacked machinegun support. While they could carry the weapons issued for the infantry the idea of standing fire didn't endear them. Furthermore the rifle munition these machineguns use was a scarcity for Chasseurs. In 1908 a bright colonel with the name Cédric Caseneux suggested a simplified machine gun using the new 8x24mm pistol cartridges. The end result is a water-cooled "light machine gun" with fabric belt feed which only required a simple blowback mechanism. With the new service pistol 8x24mm rounds were abundant among the Chasseurs and its high velocity of 640m/s made the cartridge fit for supporting fire. The belt feed and water supply could be both placed on the backs of a warrior-type deertaur hence it provided no issue. The weapon has 1200RPM rate of fire which is fairly high but given the weak power of individual bullets it was deemed neccessary. The so-called Mitrailleur carried everything which normally needed an entire machinegun team, including over 2400 rounds of ammunition. As a weapon introduced recently and for the Chasseurs it has no presence in conventional army compositions.

- Darche-Vallée 1903 Monster Gun: Massive lever action rifle meant for hunting huge creatures, especially monsters created through magic anomalies. These are civilian weapons meant for hunters but the military also bought thousands of these in case they need to face an onslaught of wild monsters. It uses a propertiary 27x81mm cartridge with a tubular bullet weighing around 72 grams and muzzle velocity of 850m/s. This is a massive projectile designed to fragment into pieces after impact, making it shockingly effective at stopping dire beasts with only a single shot. Yet Leonard Vallée wanted to make sure, hence it has a 3-round detachable magazine and a sturdy lever action to reload the weapon. Obviously this gun is cumbersome and very much an overkill against human targets.

- M99 Rocket Stand: Modernized and compact variant used as special artillery. It's the modernized variant of the old M77 rocket stands made sturdier to reliably use modern rockets that use smokeless powder propellants. Called M92 it's a 55mm rocket with steel body and enough payload to rain fire and shrapnel on the enemy. Thanks to its De Larval nozzle and smokeless powder propellant these rockets could traverse surprisingly far, up to 7km. On the other hand they aren't very accurate thus usually a group of twelve stands are used together for greater effect. Given the size of the rockets and its innate poor accuracy these rockets aren't the most effective but they are very portable hence part of the Fenisian military. Towed pieces mounting 24 tubes are also known, although they are getting slowly phased out.

- M11 "Starlight" Flamethrower: Fenisians are obsessed with fire and they utilized flamethrowers since the middle ages yet this particular variant is rather unique. It uses Solarite ignition which evaporates portion of the fuel and serves as motive force for the flamethrower's stream. This means the fuel stream is always ignited and it spreads in a turbulent spiral. Fenisian flamethrower jets are often described as being "alive" and performing odd feats. While a lot of these are tall tales the innate enchantment of the M07 Starlight might also explain some.

Combat Vehicles

Fénise is a country of deertaurs and as such vehicular development has a large competition in the populance's innate mobility. For the average deertaur traversing a hundred miles is something they can already do on their own. In addition the large deertaur body makes developing efficient cars troublesome. Inventions like rubber tired rollerblade shoes did make road traveling convenient and there are many unique deertaur contraptions made for them. Militarily this issue is compounded further by the fact that most automobiles can't traverse rough terrain like a deertaur and their pack animals. As such while Federal Phoenix Force is interested in mechanization it didn't get very far yet.

- Creauset Mle. 1911 Autochenille: Halftrack transport truck developed with explicit military demand. It has increased size and more powerful engine compared to older models while remaining cheap. These are chiefly used to ferry supplies but can also function as tractors. Of course compared to significance of railways or pack animals their presence is somewhat negligible.

- Mogamber de chenillé Mle. 1903: Mogamber is a type of motorized 3 to 5-wheel platform which replaces motorbikes in Fénise. They are a mix between a scooter and skeleton of a car with the frontal trike wheel tasked with the purpose of steering. In spite of their skeletal appearances these vehicles are remarkably stable and could compete with contemporary vehicles. Yet this vehicle is a step further from bikes, adopting caterpillar tracks for anything but the front wheel. This and the large 20kW engine makes it a versatile scout and utility vehicle with the top speed of 45km/h. The single deertaur rider places their legs in special rests while picking up the collapsible steering bar which is directly connected to the steering wheel. The engine is started with a solarite spark plug and the front leg rests also have a pair of brake pedals connected to each side of the tracks. Also called as the MCh 03 these are used by logistics personnel to transport goods or even tow anything up to 3 tonnes of weight.

- Sollac Autoblindé 1912 "Triens": The "armored car" of Fénise, some may call it a very early form of tank. Though the idea of armored cars circle around since the turn of the century, the Fenisian military experts weren't too impressed by any of these. As such they pursued the idea of high-speed armored tractors. The Sollac Steel Works company finally came up with the Triens, a small armored tractor with 3 individual caterpillar tracks. It is powered by a Celestial-made 60kW rotary engine which provides road speeds up to 30km/h. It has the crew of two deertaurs and a pair of gnome assistants and its only armament is a turret mounted machinegun. Its sheet metal 5mm armor is sufficient to resist rifles. The vehicle was accepted in 1912 and since then they are produced at a slow rate.

Artillery Overview

Fénise has a decent industry and famous for gunmaking. Through this focus their forges have a great lead in developing artillery. In spite of the fact they build a good portion of the battleship gunnery in the Celestial Sphere the Fenisian military doctrines have a borderline aversion to heavy artillery. Their army doctrine is obsessed with mobility and hence they refuse to accept guns that are unable to keep up with the rest of their forces. Their overall strategy relies on open battlefields where a large number of small artillery are far more effective. If they need more firepower the Fenisian military wants to utilize railways. In particular they invested a considerable amount in railway artillery, turning their network of rails into a mobile fortress system. The idea of using rails for offensive purposes is likely impossible but the strength of the railway guns for defense shouldn't be underestimated. As such the Federal Phoenix Force currently acknowledges 3 classes: Fast Artillery, Field Artillery and Railway Artillery.

Fast Artillery

Very light type of artillery designed to be easily portable by deertaur artillerymen. They are almost always lighter than 500kg which means they can keep pace with the rest of the army.

- Canon de 55 Toussaint: Light gun made in the Toussaint National Armoury firing 55mm high-velocity shells. It has a hydro-pneumatic short recoil system and automatic breech for rapid fire capability. It fires elongated 55mm shells which have less range and less than half the weight of typical 75mm shells. This is compensated to a degree through the utilization of special tubular shells which fly much faster and thanks to the solarization devices these can explode to cover infantry in a spray of shrapnel. Indeed, the main purpose of the 55mm guns is to lay down shrapnel and rapidly decimate the enemy. With such projectile the gun actually has the range over 10 km and almost comparable shrapnel effects to the larger 75mm guns. Of course when it comes to pure destructive power the 50mm gun is largely inferior. Canon de 55 Toussaint has two models, M98 and M08. The latter model is cheaper and more refined. More importantly it can be quickly broken down into several pieces and reassembled on the field, thus giving another convenient means of transportation.

- Obusier de 81 Modéle 1906 Toussaint:Light howitzer lobbing medium velocity 81mm shells while only weighing 451kg with carriage. It could fire standard HE, smoke and shrapnel shells but for anti-fortification purposes it could also utilize so-called "skeleton shells". These projectiles are hollow with an internal grid structure to support them but thanks to solarization devices the body can turn into an explosive. The end result is a faster shell which flies further and can pierce concrete, dig deep into earthworks before detonating. Just as the M08 this gun is designed to be broken down to pieces and quickly reassembled on the field for easier transportation.

- Affut Fusées M05: While rocket stands are easily portable they have their limit. For more firepower Fenisian designers came up with the modernization of an ages old weapon. Affut Fusées or "rocket mount" is just a simple cart mounting anywhere from 24 (M05A), 32 (M05B) or 48 (M05C) rocket tubes. While relatively primitive this setup allows launching a large volley of rockets in a small package. The relatively short range of the weapon and its inaccuracy still renders it a niche in the Fenisian arsenal but they could be fairly demoralizing for the enemy given the right conditions. In spite of the numerous improvements the rockets are still unreliable and as such they are phased out in favor of fielding more "light howitzers".

- Canon de 27 Contre-dirigeables: Anti-balloon gun meant to destroy lighter than air craft like observation balloons from a good distance. It's a simple yet robust scaled up machine gun firing 27x108mm cartridges. It uses hollow bullets to achieve 660m/s which is more than sufficient to hit a stationary balloon from 6km away. More importantly these bullets are enchanted via solarization devices thus acquiring explosive/incendiary properties. The weapon is fed diagonally upwards from a pair of 15-round magazines and has the rate of fire of 450RPM. Although it's chiefly intended for anti-balloon use the weapon soon found its way on ships and even adopted for the role to fight infantry formations.

Field Artillery

These pieces are heavier but still easy to tow by dire stags and other beasts which Fenisians use for pulling carts. They are often limited to roads thus not fast enough to keep up with the fastest of the army.

- Canon de 95 Modéle 1907 Toussaint: 1.5-ton field gun firing 95mm shells. In a sense it's a heavy gun but for Fenise these are effectively field pieces. Compared to the ubiquous 55mm guns these are only really seen at regimental level and more often at divisional level. They use the same recoil and breech technology as the 55mm, just scaled up. The shells they fire are the semi-tubular type which sports a hollow center but the majority of the projectile is still intact.

- Obusier de 122 Modéle 1909 Toussaint: Towed howitzer firing 122mm shells of various type. It has a much shorter barrel than field guns which alongside other things helps reducing the weight to just under 1500kg, slightly lighter than the 95mm field guns.

- Mortier de 163 Modéle 1911 Toussaint: Shorter range artillery meant for lobbing massive 40kg shells with modest velocities. Unlike the howitzers which fire medium velocity shells at high angles the mortars have less than half the typical artillery range but compensate with pure firepower. These weapons can destroy earthworks with ease.

- Canon de 81 Raoult: Late 19th century breech loading field gun firing 81mm shells. It's slightly lighter than the M03 95mm guns but they are generally fielded just as reserves. Same for the heavier 122mm Raoults which are often found in fortresses.

- Mortier de 220 Modéle 1866 Bozzonet: Modernized variant of the early 19th century "Bozzonet Mortars".They are given a carriage and other upgrades but largely remained unchanged. The border tensions of 1895 warranted another upgrade which added a caplock mechanism and the capability to shoot cylindrical smokeless propellant shells for twice the range. Regardless they have abyssal velocity in the 160m/s range but they are fairly handy for their caliber, only weighing some 1500 kilograms.

- Obusier de 244 Modéle 1882: Heavy howitzer developed in the 19th century for coastal defense, using old breechloader ironclad guns as their basis. It soon also found utility as a siege gun meant to destroy fortifications. In the 1890s they are upgraded to fire with smokeless propellant. Yet they ended up never being used and now they are in storage. While this artillery skirts the heavy side it still has a road-mobile carriage pulled by dire stags.

Railway Artillery

Fénise has extensive railways and they capitalize on this via using trains as war engines. Railway artillery are usually but not always are naval guns repurposed for artillery work.

- Canons des 122 Modéle 1908 sur Affût:Modified railway cars mounting heavy artillery on rotating pedestrals. Depending on the size and type of the car it could mount anywhere from one to four guns in this fashion. As for the weapons while built like cannons they had the mounting of howitzers, allowing high angle fire for long range, in excess of 20km.

- Canon de 300 Modéle 1911 á Berceau: Fénise is known for producing large-caliber naval guns and their most common product is the 300/55 Mle 1903 cannons, used by many dozens of warships (also known as the Toussaint 300/55 in Dastria). As such Fénise has a considerable surplus of these barrels which they used in various ways. One of these included mounting the 50-ton gun in various train car designs until the army chose to standardize them under the Modéle 1911 and ordered conversion of each piece to this new standard. As expected from a 300mm piece it has dreadful firepower and thanks to the new mount and extra propellant charge it could reach out for about 45 kilometers. Of course without a robust loading mechanism its rate of fire suffers but its reach and terrifying power keeps it effective.

Air Force Overview

It simply doesn't exist.
Deertaurs like speed but also want their feet planted on the ground. Combine this with the fact that deertaur bodies would have an awful time to pilot these tiny airplanes and it seems obvious why they didn't invest much if any in the idea of aeroplanes. Even airships didn't have much luck due to the stagnating Fenisian economy. What the Federal Phoenix Force has is just a Balloon Corps tasked with early warning and observation. Aside from the standard one man balloons the Fenisians also invested in kytoons. The latter are a merge of balloons and kites, with the wing surfaces providing lift and stability in windy conditions while the balloon portion keeps the craft afload during calm weather. The Balloon Corps itself is surprisingly large, with many hundreds of tiny observation crafts. Their service rifle of choice is the Chapuis M08 medium-powered semi-automatic carbine.

Navy Overview

Fénise only has a modest coastline and a fleet which is only held up through sheer pride and to protect their commerce fleet. The Federal Phoenix Fleet is overall a decent navy with an approach which uniquely focuses on speed. They love destroyers and married into the idea of a squadron of small ships defeating capital vessels. Fénise only possess a handful battleships but great amount of cruisers and surprising amount of destroyers and similar small vessels for a county of this size. Fénise has no plan to become a major naval power but they can ensure their opponents think twice before plotting naval aggression.

Small Ships

- BM242-class Motor Patrol Boat: Small 35m long 80-tonne class speedboat fit for multiple roles. It was originally devised as a light "submarine chaser" meant to fan out and catch enemy submarines near the coasts. As such its octuple inline petrol engines are capable of speeds in excess of 24 knots and it comes armed with three machineguns, a 55mm gun and later a pair of 27mm autocannons. Yet they more often found place as general patrol vessels meant ward off pirates. The class was so successful it became the most common military speedboat in Fenisian use.

- Champlain-class Aviso: Avisos are multi-purpose ocean-worthy corvette sized vessels. They are originally meant to be messengers (hence their name) but currently they are gneric gunships fulfilling various goals. The Champlain-class is a 69m long 500-ton avisio armed with a single 135mm L/55 gun, four 27mm autocannons and 6 machineguns. It has a modest speed of only 22 knots which improves its fuel economy, allowing it to match cruisers in range. As an avisio it also has room for a company of troops, including logistics and light artillery pieces.

- Lagune-class Monitor: Small ship with shallow draft and a specific duty to patrol the rivers or provide fire support at the coast. It sports an unique turret with quad 122mm L/60 guns which can be raised up to 50 degrees. This provides adequate firepower while the long guns can also serve as shoreline/riverside bombardment tools. For self-defense it has four 27mm rapid fire guns and a pair of pedestral-mount 55mm guns. As a riverine monitor the Lagune-class can only achieve 17 knots of speed which doesn't neccessitate possession by fire elementals.

Escort Ships

- Tigress-class Torpedo Ship: Destroyers in Fénise are split into two categories: torpedo ships and vessels that are meant to destroy such. The T family of torpedo ships are the former. Following the reforms of 1907 every "destroyer" class is arranged by letters which was effective retroactively. The Tigress is the first ship in the T-class of torpedo vessels, as such it's also called the Tigress-class. It's a 72m long vessel with 640 tonnes of displacement. Its main armament is a twin 95mm L/50 gun turret with only a trio of 27mm autocannons as auxiliaries. Its most important weapons are the 488mm torpedo tubes in 2x3 arrangement. Thanks to its fire elemental possessed steam turbine the Tigress-class can achieve speeds at around 36 knots.

- Chercheuse-class Torpedo Destroyer: Large 108m long destroyer with full displacement exceeding 2000 tonnes. Unlike the other class of Fenisian destroyers (torpilleur) the letter classifications for torpedo destroyers (contre-torpilleur) started over from the letter "A". Chercheuse being the first ship of the C-class torpedo destroyers also became its namesake. It carries the same 95mm L/50 guns but using a trio of triple turrets in 4x3 arrangement. This is further amplified by six 27mm autocannons on pedestal mounts. As a destroyer it also carries 4 single 488mm torpedo tubes. Most amazingly though the elemental-possessed steam turbine provides it with blinding 40 knots of flank speed, allowing it to chase down any vessel.

- Dévastation-class Battleship Destroyer: A very unique kind of destroyer derived from the hull of the Chercheuse-class. Instead of contre-torpilleur (anti torpedo ship) its role was defined as contre-cuirassé (anti-battleship) and it's meant to overcome the Fenisian disadvantage in terms of capital grade firepower. They reinforced the destroyer's hull, pushed the funnels to the very back alongside with most machinery to make room for a pair of 300mm L/55 guns within a casemate mounting. While limited to +45/-45 degrees of horizontal traverse the guns have decent elevation and feature loading mechanism almost comparable to battleships. Of course in the age of dreadnoughts a single pair of big guns is no longer enough so they needed something more. This is how the Spirit Table Network was secretly developed. This linked the individual ships together to a central spirit table usually found within cruisers and capital vessels. This constantly relayed the relative position of vessels while gyroscopes helped out with the rest. The end result was a squadron which could act like a single battery. With this a group of 4 destroyers and a cruiser could deliver the same firepower as battleships. Of course this meant that the Fenisian navy invested in destroyers that technically had nothing to do with their original role. As such Fénise started pumping out even more conventional destroyers to compensate. The Battleship Destroyer is overall a novel concept but isn't without significant drawbacks. First off, the ship only has a quartett of 27mm pedestral mounts for self-defense. Second, the ships need to orient towards their intended target before firing, "Crossing the T" is exactly what you want to avoid. Lastly the increased mass and structural changes brought down the ship's speed significantly, just barely enough to keep up with cruisers.

Capital Ships

Unlike the small ship classes which are mostly freshly built vessels the majority of the Fenisian capital ships are at least a decade old if not something out of the 19th century. This list, like the rest, is only mentioning the most significant classes.

- Loudet-class Light Cruiser: Bordering the gap between cruisers and the larger destroyer this 4500-tonne warship is Fénise's most recent cruiser design, made to fill up gaps left after mass decomissioning all unarmored cruisers still on primary fleet duty. The SGS Loudet was laid down in 1908 and incorporated a number of new features which shaped naval designs since. It also pioneered Fenisian obsession with quad-gun arrangements and it sports an impressive array of 3x4 guns of the 122mm caliber. Its auxiliary armament includes four 55mm guns and ten 27mm autocannons all on pedestal mounts. In addition it sports a 5-tube torpedo system mounted on a turret to enable launching from both sides. This is accompanied with a doubled set of the C-class destroyers' power plant and propulsion to achieve impressive 31 knots of speed. Overall the Loudet-class is a very capable cruiser for its size, although somewhat anemic when compared to anything more substantial. By early 1914 there are 29 Loudet-class vessels which makes up almost half of Fénise's fleet of capital ships. Each vessel is named after a particular town or city of the country.

- Faure-class Protected Cruiser: Dastrian vessels bought between 1894-1899. They started their life as a Nino-class protected cruisers but they were intentionally unfinished. Following that they are given guns and machinery of Fenisian origin thus creating the G.A. Faure class, named after the 18th century Fenisian navy officer. The original weapons layout included a pair of twin 244mm guns and twelve 135mm secondary guns. The retrofits soon after the turn of the century changed this to a semi-dreadnought arrangement twenty 135mm guns where the large bore cannons were replaced by a modern quadruple 135mm turret (so it's 2x4 + 6x2 in terms of gun placement). It also has 2x2 95mm guns and 4x2 55mm guns, both using twin-mount turrets. In addition it carries six 27mm autocannons but usually only four are mounted up at the time. The ship also occasionally carries the typical 488mm torpedoes in four individual tubes. Thanks to its relatively recent retrofit and design which was already meant for turbine propulsion the Faure-class can approach 27 knots of speed.

- Quinotaur-class Armored Cruiser: Cruiser hull designed in Fénise but produced by Dastrian shipyards in 1906. The heaviest cruiser in Fenisian use they are armed according to the new "dreadnought" idea and are meant for cheaply supplementing Fénise' lacking fleet of battleships. For this purpose it's armed with 4x3 212mm guns in a triple mount arrangement. Combined with the elemental turbine enabled speed of almost 30 knots this ship can actually be fearsome against cruisers and could challenge battleships if given the opportunity to get close. Of course with the new doctrines distancing battleships as much as possibly accomplishing such feat is generally out of question. In terms of auxiliary weapons the Quinotaur-class ships have 4x2 secondary 95mm guns in twin mount turrets, 4x3 55mm triple mount turrets and twelve 27mm autocannons in just pedestal mounts. While the original draft had torpedo armaments these were quickly discarded to make room for the fourth main battery. Quinotaur is a type of magic monster occasionally showing up in the Fenisian seas. Generally, all ships of this class are named after various sea monsters.

- Formidable-class Semi-Dreadnought: Pre-dreadnought laid down in 1903. It had a 142m long hull with the displacement of 15,000 tonnes. It was the most impressive battleship for the grand total of one year before rendered completely obsolete by the Dastrian Dreadnought-class vessels). In spite of this it remained the mainline battleship of Fénise for years. During this time it received a number of improvements, new boilers, new turrets and so forth. Thanks to these the Formidable-class is effectively a semi-dreadnought. It has four twin 244mm "secondary" batteries while its main battery is replaced by a pair of quad-mount 244mm turrets. This provides the Formidable-class with an array of 16 guns. The machinery upgrade meanwhile pushed the old vessel in the range of 25 knots.

- Fédération-class Battleship: The crown jewel of Fénise, the Fédération-class embodies their vision for the future. It's a 207m long battleship with surprisingly low displacement of around 28,000 tonnes. It achieves that by a new armor scheme focusing at long range encounters instead of point blank range brawls. Its aft space is filled with 24 boilers each with their own fire elementals which provided pressure for 8 steam turbines geared to 4 screws. This arrangement allows the Fédération-class to achieve top speeds of around 33 knots. In terms of armaments the Fédération-class mounts sixteen 300mm L/60 Mle. 1909s in quad-gun turrets in a 4x4 array. The caliber might be underwhelming but the sheer volume of fire is commendable. It also has 8 twin 122mm gun turrets (16 guns toral), eight 55mm gun pedestals and twelve 27mm autocannons. The Fédération-class doesn't have any torpedo lunching capabilities, nor it is designed to get within torpedo range. These features overall make the Fédération-class more like a battlecruiser than a proper first rate battleship. Its speed and firepower makes the vessel especially deadly against enemy cruisers while against the latest battleships it might perform worse. The Fédération-class embodies the Fenisian naval doctrine with all its positives and negatives.

National Traits

- Praise the Sun: Dionism covets the Sun and embraces everything about it. Fenisian religious practices and combined with their access to Solarite they could utilize magic in some fairly impressive ways. Magic blades made of virtual plasma, elemental-possessed engines, solarite lenses and the list can go on. Of course such technologies also need extra investment but given the performance gains this is still worthwhile.

- Deertaur Country: The dominant species of Fénise are the Elavis (deertaurs) which fundamentally changes their society. Deertaurs are quick and enduring runners who could cross long distances with ease. When it comes to mobility they are even superior to cavalry. Yet this comes at a price. For starters deertaurs consume more food and require much larger living space. Second, their size and quadrupedal locomotion needs some uniquely awkward engineering solutions to handle modern technology. Deertaurs can't ride animals and even their vehicles can turn out to be very odd looking. Lastly the size of deertaurs does influence their abilities in combat. They can't find covers as easily, they are poor fighters at very narrow spaces and they also have more exposed flanks. They are like a mini-cavalry in combat which might not be the best during the era of trench warfare.

- Artisan Economy: Fenice is one of the oldest cities with numerous centuries of history and known for their unique art and abundance of craftsmen. These traditions translated into sophisticated and high quality products with numerous skilled workers. Fenisian arts are legendary even if rather eccentric. Fenisian armories and gunmakers are known for their unique quality. The flipside is that they have largely artisan industry with serial production often requiring massive quantity of workers.

- Mineral Imbalance: Fénise is at glance is a decently rich region but in reality they have significant shortages in a lot of materials. Montelanse provides 90% of the Fenisian resources and while they are very abundant in iron and coal they don't have so much of the less known but still important minerals. This means while Fénise has above the expected value in steel and magic crystals their other mineral resources are below average thus neccessiating trade.

Foreign Relations

Dulce et Decorum Est - A WWI Inspired Nation Roleplay (Mark II)

Divine Republic of Fenice --- WIP

Name: Republique Sainteté Fénise, Fénisian Republic, Fénise/Fenice
Government: Divine Republic
Capital: Fenice
Dominant Religion: Dionism
Dominant Species: Elavis (deertaurs)
Population: 75 million

Fenice used to be part of the once might Chevroiéren Empire. With the tyranny of Chevroiére overthrown and the empire fragmented, Fenice came to prominence. They formed the Fenician League which absorbed its neighbors in a series of crusades. The revolutions of the 19th century overthrew the clergy, exiled the Archpriestess and established true republic. With the nation completely reformed the Fenisians bravely look forward to the new century. Fenice is a lively country with lots of history.

Rolls

Land Area: 11
Land Fertility: 19 (imported)
Natural Resources: 14
Social Development: 15
Technological Development: 19 (switched, 15+4)
Industrial Development: 13 (18-5)
Total Economic Strength: 9 (5+4)
Land Power: 14 (12+2)
Naval Power: 10 (switched)
Air Power: 2 (-5)

Territory

The Chevroiéren Plains are a fertile land between the tropical and continental climate belts. Compared to the anomaly which is Voldoyouki this might not seem special but these bountiful lands empowered a number of empires throughout history. Diverse flora and fauna lives in this region and it's known for their exotic flowers and timber. When it comes to raw materials though their chief source is in the Montelanse region at the southern borders. Fénisian iron is well-known for its remarkable quality and some rare elements are chiefly found here. Yet overall the amount of raw materials Fénise could mine aren't sufficient for their growth and require considerable imports. In comparison Fénise is known to be unusually rich in magic crystals and they even have a type unique to this region called Solarite. This material is the basis of many Fenisian magitech.

History

TBA

Government

Fenisian governance has little to no parallel across the whole world. They chose a form of federal republician direct democracy which might hardly even make sense for an outsider. The so-called "citoyen" are the official citizenship of Fenice but can be considered a social elite. They are the upper class who agree to pay huge taxes in order to exert the right to participate in politics. They participate in votes and can pursue political career. This is a huge responsibility which Fenicians don't take lightly. As such the citoyen are tested annually to prove their knowledge and overall ability to make correct judgement in these matters. The Fenician philosophy sneers at the idea of universal suffrage and considers it being lead by fools. Instead they want only those with both the commitment and abilities to actually make calls. Given how every citoyen/citizen has direct influence in political decisions in their eyes this method truly conveys the will of the nation. Of course aside from votes from citizens there are various offices, representatives and other institutions. As a federal state ruled from Fenice the other regions can only influence decisions through their representatives in the Senate. Another interesting facet of Fenisian politics is that direct democratic institutions aren't exclusive to the capital and federal central of Fenice alone. Every region has its own capital city where the "citoden" (cityfolk) could exert their direct democratic power. In the Divine Republic of Fénise you have to earn your voting rights. Yet this doesn't bother the ordinary folk. Commoners who don't have citizenship can live their lives in peace and don't suffer much if any social consequences for lacking the ability to vote. Unless they want to participate in politics this doesn't impact them negatively at all. A number of commoners started up their own enterprises, although after a certain point you might still want to acquire citizenship given the prestige and ability to influence politics.

Dionism

Fenisian state religion which is uncertain whether it's Gestalt or Elder in nature. As its name states Fenice views the Sun as their god. It has numerous branches with some taking this literally while others consider it in the philosophical/metaphorical sense. They celebrate the Sun and view it as the source of all goodness in life. Archodionists are the "old guard" who believe in the origin myths surrounding the Sun while Neodionist faiths approach the Sun as a concept and consider it a core of their philosophy. Dionism teaches enlightenment, joy and fills believers with a certain "inner fire". A Dionist lives for the present and values experiences over calm everyday life. Many of them want to live like fire, short yet blazing. Dionism's teachings are the most likely source of the stereotype which associates Fenisians with energetic positivity but also shortsightedness. The Fenisian national creature is the phoenix which is the central figure of Fenisian creation myths and often shows up in myths as divine messenger. The Phoenix was said to be effectively immortal. Short-lived yet constantly reborn. This creature is also the namesake of the city of Fenice.

Demographics

According to the last census Fénise has 75 million souls. Among them about 33 million are Elavis (deertaur), 20 million Nain (gnomes), 10 million humans, 2.5 million Volyudki, 2 million centaurs and the rest being a mix of other races. Fenisians don't discriminate on race, although they have a hard time tolerating other faiths. 98% of the population are believing in some type of Dionism. Gnomes in particular are somewhat unique in the fact that they historically have been slaves or indentured servants to centaurs/deertaurs. As a consequence even though slavery is no longer tolerated in Fénise the gnomes usually find job working as servants and assistance to deertaurs.

Elavis (deertaurs)

Official Name: Elafer (male), Elafé (female), Elavis (group name)
Common Name: Deertaurs
Average Dimensions: height: 176cm, length: 142cm
Average Weight: 90kg (runner), 140kg (worker), 220kg (warrior)
Maximum Lifespan: 200 years

Small yet very agile type of centaurid found chiefly in the western portion of Yevrazha. Before we delve into this race let's fix some misconceptions about centaurids. First off, they aren't human-horse hybrids. There aren't two bodies sewn together but a large body with its own unique anatomy. The chest of a centaurid holds two giant hearts pumping blood at a rate which might seem insane. This fills the centaurid with energy but also speeds up their metabolism, requiring more food. The abdominal portion of the upper body also has the first stomach, out of the three in total. The lower body has the lungs and intestines. Just as the hearts, this place holds almost every organ in twins or having a duplicate. Even if one pair of the organs fail the centaurid will not be hindered, though their vital functions will decrease.

Elavis are an unique part of the Centauridae family. They are light and small in stature by centaurid standards. Their lower body resembles a mix between deers and goats, inheriting advantages of both. Compared to the more robust centaurs the Elavis are very nimble. They could could climb trees, scale cliffs and do tasks you normally wouldn't associate with centaurids. Thanks to their superpowered hearts the Elavis has powerful arm muscles, although the chief portion of their strength is held in their lower body. Elavis are fast runners, capable of reaching between 40-70km/h and their stamina allows them to maintain this for surprisingly long.

Elavis has 3 breeds: runner, worker and warrior. A runner breed centaur is slender and are the best at traversing great distances. They are comparatively weak but still fairly large overall. Worker-breed are made stout-bodied with shorter legs. They adapted to carry heavy weights for long distances but they quite slow compared to the other deertaurs. Warrior-breeds are the largest and most rare. They approach the size of ponies and maximize strength while also have very decent speed. As their name implies they used to compromise the elite of the army and most of them still do.

Nain (Gnomes)

Official Name: Nain
Common Name: Gnome
Average Height: 120cm
Weight: 25kg
Maximum Lifespan: 150 years

Gnomes are a race bound to centaurid service for over a millennia. Their weakness and small stature made them an easy conquest after which the gnomes became the attendants of centaurids, helping them in many ways. Gnomes are distant relatives of dwarves and their hardiness can be perhaps attributed to this. They have oversized heads and limbs which makes them appear a bit child-like. They are socially in an odd place right now. Many of them still consider themselves servants to centaurids but a growing minority promotes complete independence. Gnomes are respected for their assistance but looked down upon when they try to do something outside their stereotype. This produces a growing discontent which could erupt as yet another gnome uprising like the ones lead to their (formal) emancipation.

Technology/Industry

Fénise is a developed country with decent industry yet they aren't anywhere groundbreaking. Fénise is mostly known for their agriculture and light industry and their production capacity is limited. Fenisian artistry and craftsmanship is known worldwide yet during the age of factories the skill of artisans are of lesser concern. Fénise does have a very specific expertise in their own brand of magitech, though. They chiefly use Solarite, a type of magic crystal attuned to their own spells. This is chiefly useful at producing heat and light, the main aspects of the Sun. Although Fénisian magic is the best known for healing. Filling the recipient with inner fire they speed up metabolism and otherwise accelerate healing. The Circle of Fire is an international organization of healers chiefly established to support war-torn places. To flip things over the Fenisians also have reputation for gunmaking. Obsessed with fire they fully embraced firearms and the region has numerous ancestral workshops dedicated to guns. Of course we are in the industrial age and compared to the old times Fenisians lag behind in processes to make the most powerful guns. Yet their reputation is virtually untarnished when it comes to small arms. The Volcanic Arms Factory is known worldwide for supplying pistols and other small arms to civilian markets. Lastly it's known that Fenisians and their spiritual practices managed to communicate with the element of fire itself. Thanks to this they can command fire elementals and use them in various applications. Most famously Fenisian furnances and powerplants often include a fire elemental within them. Thanks to this Fenisian heat machines tend to be more compact but they are also quite temperamental in nature.

Solarite

Vibrant gemstone in the color of flames. Solarite is an unique type of magic crystal transformed by the subconscious Gestalt energies of Dionism. For this reason Solarite can only be mined in Fenise and it has specific interaction with the arts of Dionist spellsmiths. Solarite has the attribute of the Sun which makes it more effective at casting heat and light based spells. It's also the primary medium of Fenisian healers to treat wounds and various ailment alongside the fruits of modern medicine. Solarite also finds common use in any technology related to light or heat. Solarite crystals at the end of lightbulb filaments create clean and efficient light. Solarite crystals can power enchantments in steam turbines to improve efficiency. Solarite also finds its way in firearms technology. Fenisian gunpowders use specks of grounded solarite to improve their guns. They can also have a "Solarization Device" attached to imbue projectiles with explosive solar energies. Yet the most famous use of Solarite is to power the Fenisian "star blades" also known as Estoiler.

Estoiler (starblade)

Starblades are unique melee weapons and the product of centuries of spellsmithing knowledge. They are seemingly nothing but enchanted hilts using Solarite core as their focus. When activated the starblade ignites in the air, forming a blade of plasma like a miniature sun. Yet that's just partially the truth. In effect this shining blade concentrates all its energy around the edges, leaving the sides much colder. Touching the side of the blade might be akin to a boiling kettle, painful but not immediately dangerous. Yet the edge is so intense it can effortlessly cut through people. Starblades of course can't cut through everything. For example they have ten times more trouble to cleave non-combustible materials. They could slice through certain tree hunks with ease yet they can barely scratch a lamppost. The exact reasons for why are unknown but as a consequence even plate armor provides a degree of defense against these. Of course some of the heat passes through and also repeated strikes cult melt the thin pieces of steel but it's better than nothing. Starblades used to be a mark of prestige and many bear elaborate decorations still. Yet heavily simplified versions with lower output nowadays see widespread use in the Fenisian military.

Starblades are very quick to use and deadly, although they can be also immensely dangerous to the untrained user. The blade is weighless and provides no feedback to the user so you have to operate it with your eyes and general experience, otherwise you might lose the position of your blade in the heat of battle. Shorter starblades like those put on as bayonets are less powerful and chiefly focus on thrusting. As such they are much easier to handle by the average soldier. This is called the bayonet-estoiler which has a modestly powerful cutting edge and a fairly strong point for thrusts. They are also considerably shorter, with blades usually being 35-55cm long.

Military

Fenisian military traditions run deep while it's no longer as mighty as it used to be they are still formidable on their own right. Elafer mercenaries were well-known across the continent and the adventurous youth can be still charmed by free companies which then offer their services to various foreign militaries. As living cavalry the Elavis fighting style embraces maneuvering and sheer speed. They are highly drilled soldiers with great coordination. Companies often have a certain family-like feel. Yet of course this also got some dark sides. Fenisian military borderline refuse to accept non-deertaur soldiers, only taking in a smaller amount of auxiliary and specialist troops. As a consequence the Fenisian military, also called Force Fédérale du Fényx (Federal Phoenix Force), is struggling to maintain adequate number of soldiers. Even then the Fenisian army is formidable and they are decently equipped. It's just that Fenisian perception of their military power is certainly inflated which may cause problems in the future.

Army Overview

The Fenisian army is a staunch member to the "cult of offensive" who believe any defensive measure can be overwhelmed by adequate offense. Their army is all about the speed of their action and generally the best prepared to face enemies on the open field. They view fortresses as staging points and defense is only required until relief forces arrive. Combined with cultural reasons it isn't surprising that Fenise is reluctant to accept non-centaurid soldiers. These troops are trained for long marches and could traverse up to 100 miles within a day. This is deemed necessary as the Fénise-Volsrtanlyudkovka border is massive and any attempts at invasion should be thwarted fast.

Infantry

Common Infantry Gear

- Chapuis M98 Rifle: Lever action rifle firing 9.2x42mm cartridges. The buttstock is also a helical magazine holding 24 rounds which can be loaded by 8-round stripper clips from the top feed. The rifle is fairly accurate and the 9mm tubular bullets can achieve close to 1000m/s. In contrast these bullets have mixed reputation in terms of firepower, struggling to penetrate tree hunks or sandbags. Similarly some question the lethality of tubular bullets but in practice it's more down to personal experiences.

- M99 Plasma Bayonet: A much cheaper variant of the traditional starblades, allowing them to be issued to the common soldier. Plasma bayonets have a shorter, usually 45cm long plasma blade which has less cutting power but comparable strength at the thrust. It cannot burn through tree hunks or cut people cleanly in half but the edge can still cut deep and in general this compromise worked out in the soldiers' favor.

- Leclair M03 Pistol: Standard sidearm of the Federal Phoenix Force. It uses special 8x24mm cartridges with tubular bullets to achieve phenomenal velocities. The bullet only weighs about 2.4 grams but has the muzzle velocity of 640m/s. To achieve this the Leclair has an unique "bullpup" feed and long recoil mechanism, giving it exactly 300mm in barrel length. The original trial in 1901 was sabotaged by the Chasseur Corps because they wanted a long ranged sidearm that can effectively supplement their shotguns. Uncharacteristically to many other pistols the Leclair M03 has a double-stack magazine holding 19 cartridges, something again motivated by the Chasseur Corps' demands. Thanks to its long barrel and muzzle velocity the pistol can theoretically shoot up to 200m but in practice it's used like every other military sidearm. Other pistols like the Bergeux M01 and M05 also circulate in the army, not to mention the M88 Revolvers which are rechambered for 8x24mm now.

- M88 Pattern Starsaber: Typical armament of Fenisian military officers this is the mass produced variant of the famed starblades wielded by the legendary knights of Fenise. It has a set of focusing prongs and twin set of focus rings providing better control while also functioning as guards. The blade length is adjustable between 80 to 120cm and same could be said for other characteristics to fit the wielder's style. Since it's merely a hilt it only weighs 300 grams, lighter than a military knive. As such starsabers are remarkably fast which could make them terrifying in combat. Contrary to legends a starblade doesn't need mythical skills, divine blessing, nor it could slash through armor with ease. Most officers who wield starsabers also like to wear special gauntlets made to resist plasma cuts just for safety.

- Benelin Auto-19 Shotgun: Shotgun adopted by the Chasseur Corps as their combat weapon of choice (aside from their standard rifles). It fires 19mmm shells standard in Fenisian use and has a long recoil mechanism allowing semi-automatic fire. It has a tubular magazine capable of holding 8-10 shells depending on their size and has a pump-action as backup in case the mechanism fails to load the next round. These shotguns can fire slugs with effective range up to 125m, various shots&flechette ammos and even smoke and high-explosive shells meant for special purposes. Chasseurs are aggressive and this weapon is perfect for their style.

- Chapuis M08 Auto Rifle: One of the newest rifles designed by Chapuis Arsenal for civilian markets. It's a semi-automatic rifle using medium cartridge and a simple blowback mechanism, feeding from detachable magazines between the capacity of 8 to 25 rounds. It uses a 9.8 x 29.4 mm cartridge (also called the 10mm SL) and it's popular with hunters. In terms of military use their compact size and high capacity makes them a good competitor with the Chapuis M98 Carbine variant.

- Field Grenade No. 7: Fenisian grenade made for storming enemy lines and overcoming fortifications. In terms of construction they are both simplistic and overcomplicated. The cylindrical grenade body is constructed out of washer-like iron rings fixed by thin iron rods with the internal space filled with TNT. The top of the grenade has a large spring clock which can be set anywhere between 1 to 12 seconds by just twisting the body accordingly. The countback is mechanical and upon reaching zero it activates a tiny solarite sparker thus detonating the grenade. In addition the grenade has a long wooden stick attached to it, increasing its throwing range. Given a running start and a decent throw the No. 7 Field Grenade can be throw to over a hundred meters. Compared to models used by Volstran and Astalia these grenades are actually rather light, without the stick they are only about 250 grams. Chasseurs, assault teams and grenade-carrying specialists tend to carry these, at times over a dozen of them.

- Voltigeur: The nickname of common infantry, they are the bulk of Fénise's combat force. They are almost exclusively deertaurs which means can run like a horse and traverse surprising distances on a trot-like march. Their main armament is of course their rifle which is unique in the fact it uses lever action and has a high-capacity helical magazine. In general Fenisians are less squeemish about ammo consumption and want to make full use of their comparably larger volume of fire. Instead of volleys they perfected a sorts of "gallopping fire" when teams of Voltigeurs fire their rifles in a constant series rather than alterating between large volumes of shots. This is meant to suppress enemy positions and allow deertaurs to get closer and generally dominate via maneuver. At least that's what military theorists say. Voltigeur means "vaulter" and it's only used for centaurid soldiers. For less speedy infantry the semi-derogatory term piéton is used.

- Chasseur: Elite recon, skirmish and assault specialists troops recruited from the most capable youth. They undergo hard drills which usually have 90% of the recruits rolled back into the regular army. Those who pass these trials would become part of the famed Chasseur Corps. They are the advance forces of the Fenisian military but also their elite assault specialists. They are a "light troop" without much in the way of heavy weapons or artillery support. Yet the Chasseurs themselves are often rather densely packed as they carry various weapons, tools and twice the normal amount of necessities. Their "Battle Dolman" is seemingly a ceremonial piece yet in fact the elaborate stitching hides wood-backed steel plates that could even stop bullets. Yes, the Chasseurs wear armor at critical parts to increase their survival. It's neccessary since they are some of the hardest risk takers in the world. The bravery, fearlessness and exploits of the Chasseurs are known worldwide and at one point these people were welcome everywhere as mercenaries. Chasseurs are known for using semi-automatic shotguns in combat but they also carry the carbine versions of the M98 rifles.

- Zenteau: Special troop usually recruiting from the large-bodied centaurs. Thanks to their size they can carry considerable weights and hence they are ideal for carrying heavy equipment with more ease. While originally this category was exclusive to centaur auxiliaries who helped with logistics it currently a term used for those responsible for transporting large amounts. It typically applies to specialized weapons teams like machinegunners, grenades, rocket stands, flamethrowers or those who transport "fast artillery" (see later at the artillery section). The Zenteaux aren't exclusively centaurs anymore and they make use of specially tamed pack animals. These soldiers are responsible for fire support and allow Fénise to have an effective army while also being highly mobile.

Paladine: Though knights are rendered obsolete by modern doctrines they are far from extinct in Fénise. The Holy Dionist Church also maintains a grand militant order who are called the paladins. These modern knights are religious champions trained from youth to serve the Dionist faith and Fénise in general. They are warrior-monks of high status and blessed in the art of magic. They wear blessed plate armor which utilizes more sophisticated technologies to resist at least pistol rounds and have a chance to deflect higher caliber rounds. Paladines are also accompanied by their own retinue of devout soldiers called the Lansequet who also don armor and their duty is to support their superior in battle. The Paladines aren't the only combat magic user in Fénise but they are the best known.

Infantry Support Weapons

- Riebel M07 Machine Gun: A standard Fenisian machinegun made to replace the old models still mounted on artillery carriages. Outwardly it's the same water-cooled machinegun as many others with typical belt feed. Yet the Riebel uses an unique rotary cylinder mechanism which divides it to 4 pseudo-chambers. It separates the feeding & chambering process into separate steps thus improving reliability. In theory this mechanism can handle insane rates of fire but calm heads prevailed and they settled on a modestly high 960RPM. As a machinegun it fires 9.2x42mm rifle rounds and can only use linked ammo.

- Col. Caseneux M13 Cavalry Machine Gun: For a long while Chasseurs lacked machinegun support. While they could carry the weapons issued for the infantry the idea of standing fire didn't endear them. Furthermore the rifle munition these machineguns use was a scarcity for Chasseurs. In 1908 a bright colonel with the name Cédric Caseneux suggested a simplified machine gun using the new 8x24mm pistol cartridges. The end result is a water-cooled "light machine gun" with fabric belt feed which only required a simple blowback mechanism. With the new service pistol 8x24mm rounds were abundant among the Chasseurs and its high velocity of 640m/s made the cartridge fit for supporting fire. The belt feed and water supply could be both placed on the backs of a warrior-type deertaur hence it provided no issue. The weapon has 1200RPM rate of fire which is fairly high but given the weak power of individual bullets it was deemed neccessary. The so-called Mitrailleur carried everything which normally needed an entire machinegun team, including over 2400 rounds of ammunition. As a weapon introduced recently and for the Chasseurs it has no presence in conventional army compositions.

- Darche-Vallée 1903 Monster Gun: Massive lever action rifle meant for hunting huge creatures, especially monsters created through magic anomalies. These are civilian weapons meant for hunters but the military also bought thousands of these in case they need to face an onslaught of wild monsters. It uses a propertiary 27x81mm cartridge with a tubular bullet weighing around 72 grams and muzzle velocity of 850m/s. This is a massive projectile designed to fragment into pieces after impact, making it shockingly effective at stopping dire beasts with only a single shot. Yet Leonard Vallée wanted to make sure, hence it has a 3-round detachable magazine and a sturdy lever action to reload the weapon. Obviously this gun is cumbersome and very much an overkill against human targets.

- M99 Rocket Stand: Modernized and compact variant used as special artillery. It's the modernized variant of the old M77 rocket stands made sturdier to reliably use modern rockets that use smokeless powder propellants. Called M92 it's a 55mm rocket with steel body and enough payload to rain fire and shrapnel on the enemy. Thanks to its De Larval nozzle and smokeless powder propellant these rockets could traverse surprisingly far, up to 7km. On the other hand they aren't very accurate thus usually a group of twelve stands are used together for greater effect. Given the size of the rockets and its innate poor accuracy these rockets aren't the most effective but they are very portable hence part of the Fenisian military. Towed pieces mounting 24 tubes are also known, although they are getting slowly phased out.

- M11 "Starlight" Flamethrower: Fenisians are obsessed with fire and they utilized flamethrowers since the middle ages yet this particular variant is rather unique. It uses Solarite ignition which evaporates portion of the fuel and serves as motive force for the flamethrower's stream. This means the fuel stream is always ignited and it spreads in a turbulent spiral. Fenisian flamethrower jets are often described as being "alive" and performing odd feats. While a lot of these are tall tales the innate enchantment of the M07 Starlight might also explain some.

Combat Vehicles

Fénise is a country of deertaurs and as such vehicular development has a large competition in the populance's innate mobility. For the average deertaur traversing a hundred miles is something they can already do on their own. In addition the large deertaur body makes developing efficient cars troublesome. Inventions like rubber tired rollerblade shoes did make road traveling convenient and there are many unique deertaur contraptions made for them. Militarily this issue is compounded further by the fact that most automobiles can't traverse rough terrain like a deertaur and their pack animals. As such while Federal Phoenix Force is interested in mechanization it didn't get very far yet.

- Creauset Mle. 1911 Autochenille: Halftrack transport truck developed with explicit military demand. It has increased size and more powerful engine compared to older models while remaining cheap. These are chiefly used to ferry supplies but can also function as tractors. Of course compared to significance of railways or pack animals their presence is somewhat negligible.

- Mogamber de chenillé Mle. 1903: Mogamber is a type of motorized 3 to 5-wheel platform which replaces motorbikes in Fénise. They are a mix between a scooter and skeleton of a car with the frontal trike wheel tasked with the purpose of steering. In spite of their skeletal appearances these vehicles are remarkably stable and could compete with contemporary vehicles. Yet this vehicle is a step further from bikes, adopting caterpillar tracks for anything but the front wheel. This and the large 20kW engine makes it a versatile scout and utility vehicle with the top speed of 45km/h. The single deertaur rider places their legs in special rests while picking up the collapsible steering bar which is directly connected to the steering wheel. The engine is started with a solarite spark plug and the front leg rests also have a pair of brake pedals connected to each side of the tracks. Also called as the MCh 03 these are used by logistics personnel to transport goods or even tow anything up to 3 tonnes of weight.

- Sollac Autoblindé 1912 "Triens": The "armored car" of Fénise, some may call it a very early form of tank. Though the idea of armored cars circle around since the turn of the century, the Fenisian military experts weren't too impressed by any of these. As such they pursued the idea of high-speed armored tractors. The Sollac Steel Works company finally came up with the Triens, a small armored tractor with 3 individual caterpillar tracks. It is powered by a Celestial-made 60kW rotary engine which provides road speeds up to 30km/h. It has the crew of two deertaurs and a pair of gnome assistants and its only armament is a turret mounted machinegun. Its sheet metal 5mm armor is sufficient to resist rifles. The vehicle was accepted in 1912 and since then they are produced at a slow rate.

Artillery Overview

Fénise has a decent industry and famous for gunmaking. Through this focus their forges have a great lead in developing artillery. In spite of the fact they build a good portion of the battleship gunnery in the Celestial Sphere the Fenisian military doctrines have a borderline aversion to heavy artillery. Their army doctrine is obsessed with mobility and hence they refuse to accept guns that are unable to keep up with the rest of their forces. Their overall strategy relies on open battlefields where a large number of small artillery are far more effective. If they need more firepower the Fenisian military wants to utilize railways. In particular they invested a considerable amount in railway artillery, turning their network of rails into a mobile fortress system. The idea of using rails for offensive purposes is likely impossible but the strength of the railway guns for defense shouldn't be underestimated. As such the Federal Phoenix Force currently acknowledges 3 classes: Fast Artillery, Field Artillery and Railway Artillery.

Fast Artillery

Very light type of artillery designed to be easily portable by deertaur artillerymen. They are almost always lighter than 500kg which means they can keep pace with the rest of the army.

- Canon de 55 Toussaint: Light gun made in the Toussaint National Armoury firing 55mm high-velocity shells. It has a hydro-pneumatic short recoil system and automatic breech for rapid fire capability. It fires elongated 55mm shells which have less range and less than half the weight of typical 75mm shells. This is compensated to a degree through the utilization of special tubular shells which fly much faster and thanks to the solarization devices these can explode to cover infantry in a spray of shrapnel. Indeed, the main purpose of the 55mm guns is to lay down shrapnel and rapidly decimate the enemy. With such projectile the gun actually has the range over 10 km and almost comparable shrapnel effects to the larger 75mm guns. Of course when it comes to pure destructive power the 50mm gun is largely inferior. Canon de 55 Toussaint has two models, M98 and M08. The latter model is cheaper and more refined. More importantly it can be quickly broken down into several pieces and reassembled on the field, thus giving another convenient means of transportation.

- Obusier de 81 Modéle 1906 Toussaint:Light howitzer lobbing medium velocity 81mm shells while only weighing 451kg with carriage. It could fire standard HE, smoke and shrapnel shells but for anti-fortification purposes it could also utilize so-called "skeleton shells". These projectiles are hollow with an internal grid structure to support them but thanks to solarization devices the body can turn into an explosive. The end result is a faster shell which flies further and can pierce concrete, dig deep into earthworks before detonating. Just as the M08 this gun is designed to be broken down to pieces and quickly reassembled on the field for easier transportation.

- Affut Fusées M05: While rocket stands are easily portable they have their limit. For more firepower Fenisian designers came up with the modernization of an ages old weapon. Affut Fusées or "rocket mount" is just a simple cart mounting anywhere from 24 (M05A), 32 (M05B) or 48 (M05C) rocket tubes. While relatively primitive this setup allows launching a large volley of rockets in a small package. The relatively short range of the weapon and its inaccuracy still renders it a niche in the Fenisian arsenal but they could be fairly demoralizing for the enemy given the right conditions. In spite of the numerous improvements the rockets are still unreliable and as such they are phased out in favor of fielding more "light howitzers".

- Canon de 27 Contre-dirigeables: Anti-balloon gun meant to destroy lighter than air craft like observation balloons from a good distance. It's a simple yet robust scaled up machine gun firing 27x108mm cartridges. It uses hollow bullets to achieve 660m/s which is more than sufficient to hit a stationary balloon from 6km away. More importantly these bullets are enchanted via solarization devices thus acquiring explosive/incendiary properties. The weapon is fed diagonally upwards from a pair of 15-round magazines and has the rate of fire of 450RPM. Although it's chiefly intended for anti-balloon use the weapon soon found its way on ships and even adopted for the role to fight infantry formations.

Field Artillery

These pieces are heavier but still easy to tow by dire stags and other beasts which Fenisians use for pulling carts. They are often limited to roads thus not fast enough to keep up with the fastest of the army.

- Canon de 95 Modéle 1907 Toussaint: 1.5-ton field gun firing 95mm shells. In a sense it's a heavy gun but for Fenise these are effectively field pieces. Compared to the ubiquous 55mm guns these are only really seen at regimental level and more often at divisional level. They use the same recoil and breech technology as the 55mm, just scaled up. The shells they fire are the semi-tubular type which sports a hollow center but the majority of the projectile is still intact.

- Obusier de 122 Modéle 1909 Toussaint: Towed howitzer firing 122mm shells of various type. It has a much shorter barrel than field guns which alongside other things helps reducing the weight to just under 1500kg, slightly lighter than the 95mm field guns.

- Mortier de 163 Modéle 1911 Toussaint: Shorter range artillery meant for lobbing massive 40kg shells with modest velocities. Unlike the howitzers which fire medium velocity shells at high angles the mortars have less than half the typical artillery range but compensate with pure firepower. These weapons can destroy earthworks with ease.

- Canon de 81 Raoult: Late 19th century breech loading field gun firing 81mm shells. It's slightly lighter than the M03 95mm guns but they are generally fielded just as reserves. Same for the heavier 122mm Raoults which are often found in fortresses.

- Mortier de 220 Modéle 1866 Bozzonet: Modernized variant of the early 19th century "Bozzonet Mortars".They are given a carriage and other upgrades but largely remained unchanged. The border tensions of 1895 warranted another upgrade which added a caplock mechanism and the capability to shoot cylindrical smokeless propellant shells for twice the range. Regardless they have abyssal velocity in the 160m/s range but they are fairly handy for their caliber, only weighing some 1500 kilograms.

- Obusier de 244 Modéle 1882: Heavy howitzer developed in the 19th century for coastal defense, using old breechloader ironclad guns as their basis. It soon also found utility as a siege gun meant to destroy fortifications. In the 1890s they are upgraded to fire with smokeless propellant. Yet they ended up never being used and now they are in storage. While this artillery skirts the heavy side it still has a road-mobile carriage pulled by dire stags.

Railway Artillery

Fénise has extensive railways and they capitalize on this via using trains as war engines. Railway artillery are usually but not always are naval guns repurposed for artillery work.

- Canons des 122 Modéle 1908 sur Affût:Modified railway cars mounting heavy artillery on rotating pedestrals. Depending on the size and type of the car it could mount anywhere from one to four guns in this fashion. As for the weapons while built like cannons they had the mounting of howitzers, allowing high angle fire for long range, in excess of 20km.

- Canon de 300 Modéle 1911 á Berceau: Fénise is known for producing large-caliber naval guns and their most common product is the 300/55 Mle 1903 cannons, used by many dozens of warships (also known as the BL 12-inch Mk. IX. in Dastria). As such Fénise has a considerable surplus of these barrels which they used in various ways. One of these included mounting the 70-ton gun in various train car designs until the army chose to standardize them under the Modéle 1911 and ordered conversion of each piece to this new standard. As expected from a 300mm piece it has dreadful firepower and thanks to the new mount and extra propellant charge it could reach out for about 45 kilometers. Of course without a robust loading mechanism its rate of fire suffers but its reach and terrifying power keeps it effective.

Air Force Overview

It simply doesn't exist.
Deertaurs like speed but also want their feet planted on the ground. Combine this with the fact that deertaur bodies would have an awful time to pilot these tiny airplanes and it seems obvious why they didn't invest much if any in the idea of aeroplanes. Even airships didn't have much luck due to the stagnating Fenisian economy. What the Federal Phoenix Force has is just a Balloon Corps tasked with early warning and observation. Aside from the standard one man balloons the Fenisians also invested in kytoons. The latter are a merge of balloons and kites, with the wing surfaces providing lift and stability in windy conditions while the balloon portion keeps the craft afload during calm weather. The Balloon Corps itself is surprisingly large, with many hundreds of tiny observation crafts. Their service rifle of choice is the Chapuis M08 medium-powered semi-automatic carbine.

Navy Overview

Fénise only has a modest coastline and a fleet which is only held up through sheer pride and to protect their commerce fleet. The Federal Phoenix Fleet is overall a decent navy with an approach which uniquely focuses on speed. They love destroyers and married into the idea of a squadron of small ships defeating capital vessels. Fénise only possess a handful battleships but great amount of cruisers and surprising amount of destroyers and similar small vessels for a county of this size. Fénise has no plan to become a major naval power but they can ensure their opponents think twice before plotting naval aggression.

Small Ships

- BM242-class Motor Patrol Boat: Small 35m long 80-tonne class speedboat fit for multiple roles. It was originally devised as a light "submarine chaser" meant to fan out and catch enemy submarines near the coasts. As such its octuple inline petrol engines are capable of speeds in excess of 24 knots and it comes armed with three machineguns, a 55mm gun and later a pair of 27mm autocannons. Yet they more often found place as general patrol vessels meant ward off pirates. The class was so successful it became the most common military speedboat in Fenisian use.

- Champlain-class Aviso: Avisos are multi-purpose ocean-worthy corvette sized vessels. They are originally meant to be messengers (hence their name) but currently they are gneric gunships fulfilling various goals. The Champlain-class is a 69m long 500-ton avisio armed with a single 135mm L/55 gun, four 27mm autocannons and 6 machineguns. It has a modest speed of only 22 knots which improves its fuel economy, allowing it to match cruisers in range. As an avisio it also has room for a company of troops, including logistics and light artillery pieces.

- Lagune-class Monitor: Small ship with shallow draft and a specific duty to patrol the rivers or provide fire support at the coast. It sports an unique turret with triple 122mm L/60 guns which can be raised up to 50 degrees. This provides adequate firepower while the long guns can also serve for shoreline/riverside bombardment tools. For self-defense it has four 27mm rapid fire guns and a pair of pedestral-mount 55mm guns. As a riverine monitor the Lagune-class can only achieve 17 knots of speed which doesn't neccessitate possession by fire elementals.

Escort Ships

- Tigress-class Torpedo Ship:Destroyers in Fénise are split into two categories: torpedo ships and vessels that are meant to destroy such. The T family of torpedo ships are the former. Following the reforms of 1907 every "destroyer" class is arranged by letters which was effective retroactively. The Tigress is the first ship in the T-class of torpedo vessels, as such it's also called the Tigress-class. It's a 72m long vessel with 640 tonnes of displacement. Its main armament is a twin 95mm L/50 gun turret with only a trio of 27mm autocannons as auxiliaries. Its most important weapons are the 488mm torpedo tubes in 2x3 arrangement. Thanks to its fire elemental possessed steam turbine the Tigress-class can achieve speeds at around 36 knots.

- Chercheuse-class Torpedo Destroyer: Large 108m long destroyer with full displacement exceeding 2000 tonnes. Unlike the other class of Fenisian destroyers (torpilleur) the letter classifications for torpedo destroyers (contre-torpilleur) started over from the letter "A". Chercheuse being the first ship of the C-class torpedo destroyers also became its namesake. It carries the same 95mm L/50 guns but using a trio of triple turrets in 3x3 arrangement (2x3 aft, 1x3 stern). This is further amplified by six 27mm autocannons on pedestal mounts. As a destroyer it also carries 4 single 488mm torpedo tubes. Most amazingly though the elemental-possessed steam turbine provides it with blinding 40 knots of flank speed, allowing it to chase down any vessel.

- Dévastation-class Battleship Destroyer:A very unique kind of destroyer derived from the hull of the Chercheuse-class. Instead of contre-torpilleur (anti torpedo ship) its role was defined as contre-cuirassé (anti-battleship) and it's meant to overcome the Fenisian disadvantage in terms of capital grade firepower. They reinforced the destroyer's hull, pushed the funnels to the very back alongside with most machinery to make room for a pair of 300mm L/60 guns within a casemate mounting. While limited to +45/-45 degrees of horizontal traverse the guns have decent elevation and feature loading mechanism almost comparable to battleships. Of course in the age of dreadnoughts a single pair of big guns is no longer enough so they needed something more. This is how the Spirit Table Network was secretly developed. This linked the individual ships together to a central spirit table usually found within cruisers and capital vessels. This constantly relayed the relative position of vessels while gyroscopes helped out with the rest. The end result was a squadron which could act like a single battery. With this a group of 4 destroyers and a cruiser could deliver the same firepower as battleships. Of course this meant that the Fenisian navy invested in destroyers that technically had nothing to do with their original role. As such Fénise started pumping out even more conventional destroyers to compensate. The Battleship Destroyer is overall a novel concept but isn't without significant drawbacks. First off, the ship only has a quartett of 27mm pedestral mounts for self-defense. Second, the ships need to orient towards their intended target before firing, "Crossing the T" is exactly what you want to avoid. Lastly the increased mass and structural changes brought down the ship's speed significantly, just barely enough to keep up with cruisers.

Capital Ships

Unlike the small ship classes which are mostly freshly built vessels the majority of the Fenisian capital ships are at least a decade old if not something out of the 19th century. This list, like the rest, is only mentioning the most significant classes.

- Loudet-class Light Cruiser: Bordering the gap between cruisers and the larger destroyer this 4500-tonne warship is Fénise's most recent cruiser design, made to fill up gaps left after mass decomissioning all unarmored cruisers still on primary fleet duty. The SGS Loudet was laid down in 1908 and incorporated a number of new features which shaped naval designs since. It also pioneered Fenisian obsession with quad-gun arrangements and it sports an impressive array of 3x4 guns of the 122mm caliber. Its auxiliary armament includes four 55mm guns and ten 27mm autocannons all on pedestal mounts. In addition it sports a 5-tube torpedo system mounted on a turret to enable launching from both sides. This is accompanied with a doubled set of the C-class destroyers' power plant and propulsion to achieve impressive 31 knots of speed. Overall the Loudet-class is a very capable cruiser for its size, although somewhat anemic when compared to anything more substantial. By early 1914 there are 29 Loudet-class vessels which makes up almost half of Fénise's fleet of capital ships. Each vessel is named after a particular town or city of the country.

- Faure-class Protected Cruiser: Dastrian vessels bought between 1894-1899. They started their life as a Nino-class protected cruisers but they were intentionally unfinished. Following that they are given guns and machinery of Fenisian origin thus creating the G.A. Faure class, named after the 18th century Fenisian navy officer. The original weapons layout included a pair of twin 244mm guns and twelve 135mm secondary guns. The retrofits soon after the turn of the century changed this to a semi-dreadnought arrangement twenty 135mm guns where the large bore cannons were replaced by a modern quadruple 135mm turret (so it's 2x4 + 6x2 in terms of gun placement). It also has 2x2 95mm guns and 4x2 55mm guns, both using twin-mount turrets. In addition it carries six 27mm autocannons but usually only four are mounted up at the time. The ship also occasionally carries the typical 488mm torpedoes in four individual tubes. Thanks to its relatively recent retrofit and design which was already meant for turbine propulsion the Faure-class can approach 27 knots of speed.

- Quinotaur-class Armored Cruiser: Cruiser hull designed in Fénise but produced by Dastrian shipyards in 1906. The heaviest cruiser in Fenisian use they are armed according to the new "dreadnought" idea and are meant for cheaply supplementing Fénise' lacking fleet of battleships. For this purpose it's armed with 4x3 212mm guns in a triple mount arrangement. Combined with the elemental turbine enabled speed of almost 30 knots this ship can actually be fearsome against cruisers and could challenge battleships if given the opportunity to get close. Of course with the new doctrines distancing battleships as much as possibly accomplishing such feat is generally out of question. In terms of auxiliary weapons the Quinotaur-class ships have 4x2 secondary 95mm guns in twin mount turrets, 4x3 55mm triple mount turrets and twelve 27mm autocannons in just pedestal mounts. While the original draft had torpedo armaments these were quickly discarded to make room for the fourth main battery. Quinotaur is a type of magic monster occasionally showing up in the Fenisian seas. Generally, all ships of this class are named after various sea monsters.

- Formidable-class Semi-Dreadnought: Pre-dreadnought laid down in 1903. It had a 142m long hull with the displacement of 15,000 tonnes. It was the most impressive battleship for the grand total of one year before rendered completely obsolete by the Dastrian Dreadnought-class vessels). In spite of this it remained the mainline battleship of Fénise for years. During this time it received a number of improvements, new boilers, new turrets and so forth. Thanks to these the Formidable-class is effectively a semi-dreadnought. It has four twin 244mm "secondary" batteries while its main battery is replaced by a pair of quad-mount 244mm turrets. This provides the Formidable-class with an array of 16 guns. The machinery upgrade meanwhile pushed the old vessel in the range of 25 knots.

- Fédération-class Battleship: The crown jewel of Fénise, the Fédération-class embodies their vision for the future. It's a 207m long battleship with surprisingly low displacement of around 28,000 tonnes. It achieves that by a new armor scheme focusing at long range encounters instead of point blank range brawls. Its aft space is filled with 24 boilers each with their own fire elementals which provided pressure for 8 steam turbines geared to 4 screws. This arrangement allows the Fédération-class to achieve top speeds of around 33 knots. In terms of armaments the Fédération-class mounts sixteen 300mm L/60 Mle. 1909s in quad-gun turrets in a 4x4 array. The caliber might be underwhelming but the sheer volume of fire is commendable. It also has eight win 122mm gun turrets, eight 55mm gun pedestals and twelve 27mm autocannons. The Fédération-class doesn't have any torpedo lunching capabilities, nor it is designed to get within torpedo range. These features overall make the Fédération-class more like a battlecruiser than a proper first rate battleship. Its speed and firepower makes the vessel especially deadly against enemy cruisers while against the latest battleships it might perform worse. The Fédération-class embodies the Fenisian naval doctrine with all its positives and negatives.

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