Da Vinci's Legacy [AltHis-Steampunk/Fantasy|OOC|Open]

by **Tracian Empire** » Fri Mar 22, 2024 10:05 am

Da Vinci's Legacy

OOC Thread

A Steampunk and Fantasy Roleplay

“Once you have tasted flight, you will forever walk the earth with your eyes turned skyward, for there you have been, and there you will always long to return”

–Leonardo da Vinci

Welcome to Da Vinci's Legacy, a steampunk and fantasy alternative-history roleplay set in 1648. This is Earth - but not our world, instead, a world which mankind has shared since times immemorial with the art of magic and with other races. Through wars and much bloodshed, humans had already taken control of much of the Old World, but in the 15th century, the rediscovery of ancient knowledge which had almost been lost brought with it the Renaissance, a great age of progress for all human realms. The rediscovery of the aeolipile led to the invention of the steam engine and to an explosion of technology which allowed great minds like Leonardo da Vinci to put their dreams into practice. With new ships, vehicles and great new devices of flight, alongside the power of their mages, humans expanded once again in an Age of Discovery and Conquest. The year is 1648, and a precarious balance between magic and steampunk technology exists in most of the developed nations. Europe, the main center of this new age, has been weakened by religious wars and tensions between mages and scientists, while rumors of ancient monsters hidden in the shadows bring fear into the hearts of men, fear that is often directed against the remains of the other races. In the Americas, the colonies of the Old World wage a seemingly never-ending struggle against the native states, human and non-human, for supremacy over the new continents and their resources. Asia, once a realm of stability and tradition, is battleground of ancient magic and gunpowder empires, with the Europeans lurking at the edges. The dreams of an enlightened future, with peace and technology for everyone, are long gone, and it is clear that the future will one of blood, magic and steam...

General Rules

1. The OP reserves the right to be subjective and will have the final world in all matters.
2. The Co-OP will enjoy the same prerogatives in the absence of the OP.
3. All site-wide rules apply.
4. No OOC writing in the IC.
5. No godmodding, metagaming, or other similar actions
6. No flaming, trolling, or harassment in the OOC or in the IC

Roleplay Rules

1. There is no single, strict PoD. This is alternate history, so you can go with anything that you want, including real life nations, as long as it has a basis in history. While the addition of fantasy races and of magic, and later of steam technology makes this world radically different from our own - the humans in particular developed in similar ways compared to real life.
2. Some important historical events can not be changed and will need to be respected. The existence and expansion of the Roman Empire, the spreading of Christianity, the Sunni-Shia Split, the Age of Discovery, the Protestant Reformation are among them, but the OP reserves the right to add or remove such unchangeable events depending on the needs of the roleplay.
3. Non-human races, like Elves, Dwarves, and others have existed alongside humanity since ancient times, but are much smaller in numbers, even if they usually have longer lifespans. Humans have gradually expanded and form the majority throughout most of the Old World, where such races are minorities that are often discriminated against - so non-human majority countries will usually not be accepted in Europe and Asia and would be subject to the OP's approval. Non-human races exist in larger numbers in the Americas, where relations between the races were more peaceful, but that has changed ever since the discovery of the continent by the Europeans. Monsters have also existed, but a lot of them have been hunted into near extinction throughout the Old World, while others, like dragons, were domesticated. Vampires were also confirmed to exist but are thought by most to be extinct - with their remains usually remaining in hiding. Specific details in regards to the types of non-human races and monsters, their numbers and presence regardless of the place is up to the players as long it respects these guidelines, but the OP will of course have the final world.
4. Magic has similarly existed since ancient times, and in its most simple definition, it is the manipulation of the magical energy of the world, known as aether or as quintessence, to change the material world or to interact with the spiritual one. The use of magic depends on one's ability to hold and manipulate aether, which is an inherited quality. Few people, compared to the entire living population, can use magic, and even fewer can use it easily. Non-human races like the Elves are much more naturally attuned to the use of aether, but humans have pushed the use of magic forward through their developments of spells. Within the human realms, magical bloodlines are the most preeminent - with mages carefully seeking to create descendants that can still use magic, while also keeping their own specific spells and magical traditions secret. Even with the advent of new technology, mages are considered to be highly important in society and are in many ways treated as a resource. Within the roleplay, this will translate to limits on how many mages a nation can have, and to magical specializations - areas of magic that each nation is focused on.
5. The Renaissance and the steampunk revolution that followed started in Italy and Greece and in the exchange of knowledge and documents from Antiquity that marked that period. A parallel revolution, but focused more so on gunpowder happened in Asia. Multiple centers of innovation and modernity could have developed afterwards as nations and monarchs attempted to attract the brightest mages and scientists, but obviously not every nation in the world will have such a center, similar to how technology has developed in real life. Players should take this into account, and being at the forefront of steampunk technology, while clearly an advantage, does have its limits. The development of technology also usually leads to a stagnation or a limitation of magical development.
6. Steampunk technology will be left up to the players and their imaginations, but the main source of inspiration is represented by the ideas of Leonardo da Vinci and of similar inventors. Steam trains, tanks, ships, helicopters and airships all exist, but they are all still somewhat unreliable, and there are limits on what the technology of this world can achieve.
7. Colonies and other historically autonomous areas can be applied for, however, realism will still be maintained - colonies can't rebel against their home countries on the second day of the IC. Players applying for such areas would require the consent of the player in charge of the nations that owns the colony or the autonomous areas, and players can deny such requests without justification.
8. Political and rebel groups and organizations can be applied for, however interested players should take into account the fact that such groups are most often in an inferior position and that they can usually not achieve their goals without foreign backing or government weakness. Players who wish to play such groups need to obtain the consent of the player controlling the nation in which their group would be operating.
9. The map is an estimation and may not be constantly updated, make sure to also check the list and do a cursory search of the OOC before reserving.

Nation Application

Organization Application

Reservations

by **Tracian Empire** » Fri Mar 22, 2024 10:06 am

Accepted Nations

Last Updated: 09.04.2024
Intermountain States - Great Goryeo State - (대고려국)
Remnants of Exilvania - Holy Roman Empire of German Nation - (Heiliges Römisches Reich Deutscher Nation)
Tracian Empire - Roman Empire (Βασιλεία Ῥωμαίων)
Reverend Norv - United States of the Netherlands - (Verenigde Staten van Nederland)
Sao Nova Europa - Rat Empire - (Ratren Imperium)
Cymrea - Holy Kingdom of France -(Saint Royaume de Français )
Theyra - Lĩnh Nam Empire - (Lĩnh Nam chích quái)
Dragos Bee - Alid Caliphate - (خلافة علوية)
The National Dominion of Hungary - Kingdom of Rus - (Pо́усьскаѧ землѧ́)
Great Confederacy of Commonwealth States - Nordheim
Pragia - Holy Kingdom of Albion - (Teyrnas Sanctaidd Albion)
Ambassingh - Beleguanze Tribal Council
Intermountain States - Papal State - (Stato Pontificio)
Khasinkonia - Ōyabōrei - The Great Domain of Many Webs

Accepted Organizations

Last Updated: 09.04.2024
None

Reservations

Last Updated: 09.04.2024
Union Princes - Tuscany
Asturies-Llion - Crown of Spain

by **Tracian Empire** » Fri Mar 22, 2024 10:07 am

Reservation

Nation Name: Roman Empire
Territory: Greece, Bulgaria, Albania, North Macedonia, Dobrogea, Turkey, the Levant and Egypt, as per the map
#ODQHVVF (Do not delete this, it is used to keep track of the apps)

*Note: Reservations will last for 48 hours. The OP reserves the right to be subjective in regards to accepting and removing reservations.

by **Remnants of Exilvania** » Fri Mar 22, 2024 10:11 am

Reservation

Nation Name: The Holy Roman Empire of German Nation
Territory: Well, the Holy Roman Empire of German Nation as per the peace of Westphalia
#ODQHVVF (Do not delete this, it is used to keep track of the apps)

*Note: Reservations will last for 48 hours. The OP reserves the right to be subjective in regards to accepting and removing reservations.

by **Intermountain States** » Fri Mar 22, 2024 10:19 am

Reservation

Nation Name: Great Goryeo State
Territory: Real life borders of Korea
#ODQHVVF (Do not delete this, it is used to keep track of the apps)

*Note: Reservations will last for 48 hours. The OP reserves the right to be subjective in regards to accepting and removing reservations.

by **Theyra** » Fri Mar 22, 2024 1:26 pm

Reservation

Nation Name: Lĩnh Nam Empire
Territory: Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Thailand, Myanmar, Malaysia(Mainland) and Singapore
#ODQHVVF (Do not delete this, it is used to keep track of the apps)

*Note: Reservations will last for 48 hours. The OP reserves the right to be subjective in regards to accepting and removing reservations.

by **Great Confederacy of Commonwealth States** » Fri Mar 22, 2024 1:47 pm

Reservation

Nation Name: China
Territory: China
#ODQHVVF (Do not delete this, it is used to keep track of the apps)

*Note: Reservations will last for 48 hours. The OP reserves the right to be subjective in regards to accepting and removing reservations.

by **Great Confederacy of Commonwealth States** » Fri Mar 22, 2024 1:49 pm

So, I would like to create a China ruled by dragons, but if there is a rule against dragon sapience, then I would be fine with dragon riders. But I would love to explore the first.

by **Remnants of Exilvania** » Fri Mar 22, 2024 1:55 pm

Tracian Empire wrote:
Reservation

Nation Name: Roman Empire
Territory: Greece, Bulgaria, Albania, North Macedonia, Dobrogea, Turkey, the Levant and Egypt, as per the map
#ODQHVVF (Do not delete this, it is used to keep track of the apps)

*Note: Reservations will last for 48 hours. The OP reserves the right to be subjective in regards to accepting and removing reservations.

ACCEPTED!

Intermountain States wrote:
Reservation

Nation Name: Great Goryeo State
Territory: Real life borders of Korea
#ODQHVVF (Do not delete this, it is used to keep track of the apps)

*Note: Reservations will last for 48 hours. The OP reserves the right to be subjective in regards to accepting and removing reservations.

ACCEPTED!

Theyra wrote:
Reservation

Nation Name: Lĩnh Nam Empire
Territory: Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Thailand, Myanmar, Malaysia(Mainland) and Singapore
#ODQHVVF (Do not delete this, it is used to keep track of the apps)

*Note: Reservations will last for 48 hours. The OP reserves the right to be subjective in regards to accepting and removing reservations.

ACCEPTED!

Great Confederacy of Commonwealth States wrote:
Reservation

Nation Name: China
Territory: China
#ODQHVVF (Do not delete this, it is used to keep track of the apps)

*Note: Reservations will last for 48 hours. The OP reserves the right to be subjective in regards to accepting and removing reservations.

ACCEPTED!

Great Confederacy of Commonwealth States wrote:So, I would like to create a China ruled by dragons, but if there is a rule against dragon sapience, then I would be fine with dragon riders. But I would love to explore the first.

We see no issue with the idea, do go ahead and we'll check out your concept.

by **Intermountain States** » Fri Mar 22, 2024 2:05 pm

Nation Application

Full Nation Name: Great Goryeo State, Empire of Goryeo, 대고려국, 大高麗國

Short Nation Name: Goryeo, Korea (exonym), Samhan (sobriquet), Joseon (historical name)

National Symbols: Royal Flag, Royal Seal

Capital: Gaegyeong (Kaeseong)

Territory: Korean Peninsula, Jeju Island, Tsushima

Form of Government: Absolute Monarchy

On paper, the Emperor rules for life, unlike any of the members of the Three Departments and the Six Ministries and all Emperors of Goryeo descends from the Imperial House of Wang (Gaegyeong Wang Clan) since its foundation. The Emperor commands absolute loyalty from his officials and subjects, but officials are expected to try to guide the Emperor to the right path if the latter was mistaken and Emperors are usually sensitive to public opinions. The bureaucratic element of the government is dominated by Confucian scholars who enter service in the government through the civil service exam. All officials are expected to have passed a series of literary and psychological tests that determine their ability to serve the empire. Theoretically, anyone, excluding women, can take the civil service exams but only the wealthy have the money to afford preparations for the exams. However, seeing a lowborn take and pass the exams are not uncommon and are often celebrated in stories.

Head of State: Emperor Sunjeong (birth name Wang Hon)

Head of Government: Prime Minister Kim Ja-jeom

Population: 13,500,000

Population Description: Goryeo has four social classes: gwijok, joongryu, yangmin, and cheonmin. The gwijok class is the aristocracy of Goryeo made up of highly educated civil servants, high ranking military officials, scholar officials, and members of the Buddhist clergy. Most are landowners and enjoy special privileges such as exemption from taxations. Efforts by the Imperial government to tax the members of the gwijok have often been met with opposition from the powerful aristocracy. The joongyru class is the middle class of Korea, making up petty bureaucrats, scientists, interpreters, mid-ranking military officers, and other skilled workers serving as administrative support for the government. Although not part of the aristocracy, they enjoy better social standings than the lower class of yangmin and cheonmin with their own special privileges. The yangmin class is the lower middle class of Korea, consisting of peasants, heavy laborers, fishermen, metalworkers, shoemakers, some craftsmen, and merchants. They make up the majority of the population and are burdened with military drafts and are subjected to most of the country's taxations. Few own lands and many work as tenant farmers for the upper class. The cheonmin is the lowest class of commoners in Korean society, usually hereditary and have professions seen as unclean to the eyes of the upper class such as butchers, prostitutes, magicians, sorcerers (of the non-approved variety), and jail-keepers. Cheonmins often face discrimination by Goryeo society due to existing Buddhist and Neo-confucian ideals, although many are drawn to the rather egalitarian (by comparison) message of Christianity. A subcategory of cheonmin is nobi which can refer to servants, either slaves or serfs (though nohe is often the term referred to slaves). The nobi class is in many cases, socially indistinct from the lower classes of Goryeo society. Efforts were made by the imperial government to protect the cheonmin or to improve their own living conditions, with various success. The vast majority of Goryeo society are humans with very few, if any, nonhumans living in Korea.

Dragons in Korea are largely beasts but with intelligence and sentience similar to that of elephants. Sentient dragons such as those seen in other countries are rare and may have been extinct, however consensus agreed that they have existed in Korea in the prehistoric through classical periods and are seen with great reverence today. The Imperial family claims to be descended from dragons and mages who practice the elemental arts are said to have distant dragon ancestry.

Technological Description: Korea enjoyed vast scientific and technological achievements during the reign of the Daeryeok Emperor, alongside military developments in gunpowder throughout the dynasty with the establishment of gunpowder offices and the procurement of gunpowder based weapons. Improvements of gunpowder based weapons have been the main policies of the Ministry of War and every conflicts Goryeo found itself in, audits were made to evaluate the performances of these weapons. During the Goryeo-Japanese War, the office pointed to the many shortcomings of chongtong hand cannons and adopted European style matchlock muskets, which would become the primary range weapon of the Goryeo military before the development and adoption of flintlock pistols and muskets in the early 1640s. Breechloading swivel cannons were also developed and used alongside hwachas and traditional cannons. While the military would take part in innovating weapons designs, there would also be efforts at enhancing older weapons where they would have use in a more modern battlefield, such as developing explosive tipped arrows for war bows.

Various war machines were also invented throughout Goryeo's history, such as hot air balloons and steam powered landships such as the Turtle Wagons, although the Turtle Wagons are in few numbers due to the expense and complication.

Magic Description: The system of elemental manipulation is based upon the control of the four elements; fire, water, earth, and air (these can be explained by modern sciences as the four matters of plasma, liquid, solid, and gas) influenced by Buddhism. Subgroups of the four elemental disciplines exist as well such as lightning for fire, ice for water, metal and sand and lava for earth, etc. Those who master a certain elemental discipline may be able to practice the more advanced subgroup, but these are a rarity within a rarity. The mages of the elemental manipulation arts would flourish throughout the many dynasties and kingdoms of Korea, competing with local magic practices based on ancient shamanistic rituals before being centralized during the Goryeo Dynasty. Very few mages would practice all four of the core elements but such men and women were recorded in history. Most mages who practice the art of elemental control usually find themselves within the military as officers or as part of special units. However, a significant number of elemental mages work in civilian affairs as physicians, laborers, merchants, and farmers, putting their abilities to more peaceful use. Most tend to end up part of the gwijok aristocracy or the upper ranks of the joongryu middle class. A very rare subset among the elemental discipline is the practice of blood manipulation. A subset of the water discipline, the blood arts was a very powerful and dark art for a mage to learn. Such power allows a practitioner to treat any living beings as their own puppets to control and was derided as works of witchcraft and those possessed by evil spirits. The practice remained banned since the late Silla period with a systemic campaign launched by the government to wipe out any and all teachings and affiliates of the blood manipulation discipline. Only selected state and Buddhist libraries are allowed to keep books and scrolls of the discipline as part of the archives with discussion of the practice seen as a taboo subject. However, underground teaching of the banned subject exists. The rise of Christianity also enriched the development of the elemental manipulation arts for some of the practitioners, creating a blend of eastern and western elemental magic.

Domestication of Asian sea dragons, fire dragons (dragons whom were thought to be exiled from the heaven due to its ability to breathe fire), cheollima (winged horses), imugi (sea serpents related to sea dragons), phoenixes (bonghwangs), kirin (dragon horse also deemed to be related to dragons), three legged crows (samjoko), and gye-lryong (Korean cockatrice) also exist for military usage, the practice coming from China and the earlier Korean dynasties in the classical periods. Dragons are known for their intelligence (their intelligence has been compared to that of elephants) and newly graduated dragon riders would form strong bonds with either sea and fire dragons as soon as they're partnered with the dragon hatchlings. The domestication of all of these creatures play important roles in military, diplomatic, and agricultural use.

Military Description: The aftermath of the Mongol invasion of Goryeo and the seven year Japanese Invasion of Korea that ended in 1598, saw Goryeo placing more emphasis on the military than ever before. The Goryeo military also enjoys the backing of powerful artillery and rocketry made to decimate enemy lines. The Imperial Army stands at around 169,000 professional personnel stationed across Korea with more being abled to called up during wartime. The Imperial Army is highly experienced from years of warfare. Centuries of fighting the Jurchens and Mongols allowed the Koreans to adopt effective counters to cavalry with war wagons and their cavalry of horses and kirin are drawn from both Korean and Jurchen stock. Development of gunpowder weapons from handcannons, hwachas, cannons, muskets, etc. ensured Korean dominance in range warfare, even establishing their own method of combined with the utilization of pikes, swords, explosive tipped bows and crosssbows, firearms, and benders in formation. Gliders and birds such as phoenixes, samjokos, as well as falcons are also used for scouting, and occasionally for quick combat. Steam powered war machines are also used such as the Turtle wagons, although their numbers are limited to 12 in the entire nation due to costs.

Like the army, the Goryeo Imperial Navy is a highly developed and experienced force on the sea. The Imperial Navy of Goryeo spent decades dealing with Japanese wokou pirates and the Japanese fleets during the Goryeo-Japanese War, utilizing range warfare by peppering enemy fleets with cannon fires and resorting to antipersonnel range weapons such as firearms, bows, and benders if enemy ships are exposed and in closer range. The Navy of Goryeo is the pride of the nation: large, modern, and well equipped. The Imperial Navy, rather than the Army, is the force that projects Goryeo's prowess in the international stage. The Goryeo Navy stands at a size of 51,000 men, including 23,000 marines. Improving on the Navy has been one of the major priorities of the Goryeo Empire ever since the Goryeo-Japanese War, believing that a strong navy is absolute necessity in the nation's defense. Much of Goryeo's fleets are made up of enhanced panokseons and turtle ships although smaller support vessels are also utilized. Plans were made for ships to be steamed powered but designs barely made it past the blueprints due to expense and complications. 47 Korean sea dragons and 48 Imugis are in use by the Goryeo Navy. The Goryeo Navy also maintains a small garrison in the island of Tsushima, working in tandem with the local military there to keep watch of the happenings in Japan.

Goryeo's sky force consists of hot air balloons and riders of gye-lryong, Korean fire dragons, and cheollima. The roles of Goryeo's air force differ based on the transportations. Cheollima and gye-lryong riders are largely used for reconnaissance while hot air balloons and dragons can be used for both reconnaissance and aerial support. That being said, the vast majority of aerial transportation are hot air balloons due to the expense and danger of maintaining domesticated dragons. There are 53 fire dragons, 86 gye-lryong, and 105 cheollima riders in use by the Goryeo military as of the reign of the Sunjeong Emperor. In an effort to maintain Goryeo's aerial superiority over their neighbors, the Gwangmu Emperor commissioned engineers and inventors to construct airships; only three are confirmed to be built and are in the testing stage by the reign of Emperor Sunjeong.

Militias known as the Righteous Army have appeared several times throughout the history of Korea when the national armies were in need of assistance against foreign invaders ever with such invasions coming from the Khitans, the Mongols, and lately, the Japanese. Peasants, scholars, former government officials, religious monks, merchants, anyone regardless of background made up such militias. While most of these righteous armies are equipped with hunting equipment and farming tools rather than state-of-the-art weapons employed by the Imperial Army, the irregular militias make up for their equipment shortcomings with patriotic fervor and knowledge of home terrain.

Economic Description: Agriculture remains a major industry in the Korean mainland. In fact, it is estimated that the Korean people consume more than their counterparts in China and Japan. The peninsula is also known for its silk and porcelain production throughout Northeast Asia and it is something valued by many merchants. Outside of agriculture, commerce is also an important source of income for the country as Goryeo continued its healthy trade relations with the world. Mining also plays a role in Korean economy due to the abundance of natural resources in northern Korea ripe for exploitation by both state run and private companies. The mun is the currency of Korea backed by silver although rice grains are also used as income among the Koreans. Major production are brocades, jewelries, ginseng, silk, and porcelain.

Goals: Ensuring an uninterrupted balance of power in East Asia and possible expansion of Goryeo's influence.

Point of Divergence: 1374, Wang Jeon wasn't killed by his bodyguard

History: The reign of Wang Jeon oversaw efforts to reform the Goryeo government first by removing pro-Mongol officials and military officers from his court, reversing the son-in-law status of Goryeo as being a compulsory ally of the Yuan dynasty. Soldiers lead by pro-independence minded generals such as Choi Young, Yi Seong-gye, and Ji Yong-su kicked out the Mongol garrison while merchants and officials attempted to procure and domesticate adult, juvenile, and eggs of sea and fire dragons to match the Yuan's military powers, especially as ways to lessen the gap between Goryeo and China. Merchants and scientists were also tasked in the production of gunpowder as well, to great success. These efforts were not easy tasks but were completed nonetheless, despite opposition from the waning but still influential pro-Yuan officials and aristocrats such as Yi In-im whom still command great power and wealth, including his base of supporters and private army. YI In-im would use his influence to start uprisings against the government in Gaegyeong (with Mongol backing). Generals Choi Young and Yi Seong-gye were called in to crush the rebellion and Yi In-im and other key figures of the rebellions, were arrested and soon executed. With Yi In-im gone, Wang Jeon focused much of his efforts on rebuilding the nation's defenses in preparation against the eventual Chinese response and against wokou pirate raiders. Cannons were built, dragons were raised, soldiers were mobilized, personal firearms were built (much to the efforts of scientist and inventor Choe Museon).

With the Mongols defeated and withdrawn from Korea, King Wang Jeon would declare Goryeo as a fully independent nation, with the title of Emperor bestowed upon him along with the era name of Gaeguk. He would pass away in 1388, given the temple name of Taejong. He was succeeded by his son, Wang Woo as the Yeonbo Emperor. The Yeonbo Emperor would appoint a prominent reformer and Confucian scholar-official Jeong Do-jeon as his Prime Minister. Jeong Do-jeon worked to reform land policy and free many slaves. However, some of Jeong Do-jeon's political thoughts would draw the ire of Emperor Yeonbo for crossing the line towards radicalism and the Prime Minister was a known critic of Buddhism, the nation's state religion. He was dismissed by the Emperor and was replaced by a more moderate figure, Jeong Mong-ju, also a close friend of Jeong Do-jeon. While Jeong Mong-ju would continue promoting some of his predecessor's reforms made to benefit the populace, his more cooperative position on the Three Teachings allowed him to remain in power with support from the Emperor. Emperor Yeonbo passed away in 1403 and was given the temple name of Wujong. He was succeeded by his son, Wang Chang, who reigned as the Daeryeok Emperor.

The Daeryeok Emperor would aim at centralizing the power of the monarchy, with support from Prime Minister Yi Bang-won. The Daeryeok Emperor's first act was to abolish private armies, a privilege enjoyed by many in the aristocracy, effectively severing the ability of lords to muster large-scale revolts. It also drastically increased the number of men employed in the national military, which was growing in power since Emperor Gaeguk's rise to power. The Daeryeok Emperor also worked to revise the existing legislation concerning land taxation and established the Sinmun Office for the commoners to address their grievances to the Emperor. The Daeryeok Emperor would also sponsor expansion up north in the effort of pacifying Jurchen tribes near the northeastern provinces and sent in the Korean navy to suppress pirate activities in the island of Tsushima. Borders were strenthened especially when the court heard of news of China's expansion. The Daeryeok Emperor also encouraged efforts at education, science, commerce, and agriculture. He established a commission aimed at increasing the national literacy, and with the help of prominent scholar officials such as Yi Do, introduced hangul. He passed away in 1453 and was given the temple name of Sejong. He was succeeded by his son, Wang Ok who would declare the era name of Yeongnak.

The Yeongnak Emperor oversaw expansion of the Goryeo Navy to protect maritime trading routes from pirates. As Korea has been largely locked out of mainland trading ever since Emperor Gaeguk's declaration of independence from Yuan China with the exception of the Jurchen tributaries serving as economic middle men between China and Korea, Goryeo has been focusing heavily on maritime trade. Although his predecessor had sent troops to crush the pirates from Tsushima, ensuring safe maritime routes is one of the nation's top priority. The navy would see great benefit from its expansion, including the raising of sea dragons. Expansion of gunpowder based weapons would also continue in fighting pirates and Jurchen raiders, with the Korean government seeing them as important weapons for the nation's defenses. Hot air balloons for military uses were also developed during the reign of the Yeongnak Emperor, initially for reconnaissance purpose. Later development also gave rise to soldiers on the balloon dropping or shooting projectiles on targets (with varying results) or making loud noises to scare the enemy. The hot air balloons would be used to great effect during the 1467 Yi Si-ae's rebellion as the balloons provide great value on enemy troop movements and can be too high to be shot down by rebel artillery (although that comes with the caveat of government balloons having to go lower so that the soldiers on the balloons can hit their targets). It was largely the use of dragons that allowed government forces to defeat the rebels, although gunners, archers, and elemental benders were important in putting down the rebellion. The Yeongnak Emperor would die of sickness in 1483 and was given the temple name of Yanjong succeeded by his second born son, Wang Bu, who would rule as the Gyeongtae Emperor.

The Gyeongtae Emperor oversaw general peace and prosperity in the country, although the military would still fight Jurchen raiders out in the border. The Gyeongtae Emperor passed in 1489, leaving the Empress Consort Jeonghyeon to rule as the Empress Dowager Jasun in preparation for the Gyeongtae Emperor's son Wang Yeok to reach adult age to rule. Emperor Wang Bu was given the temple name of Yejong. Wang Yeok's era name was Geollyung but it wasn't until 1491 when he was able to rule. While Wang Yeok showed promise as an able ruler, he later grew insane and became a tyrannical ruler in 1502, responsible for purges in the military and the court, even imprisoning the Empress Dowager. Wang Yeok would be deposed in a coup lead by his half-brother, Prince Gyeongwon Wang Geum, and General Sin Mal-pyeong in 1503. He was not given a temple name nor would his reign be referred to by his era name, he would instead be known by his princely title of Inmungun. Wang Geum would instead ascend the throne as the Cheongye Emperor. The Cheongye Emperor performed an across the board pardon for most of the victims of Prince Inmun's purges, even elevating deceased officials with posthumous titles. The reign of Wang Geum was largely damage control for his deposed half-brother's reign of terror but otherwise ruled well enough to save face for the imperial family. He passed away in 1536 and was given the temple name of Gunjong. Wang Geum's son, Wang Hwan, ascended the throne and declared the era of Geonmun.

The Geonmun Emperor dealt with a power struggle between the political factions in the Royal Court. During the prior reign of the Gyeongtae Emperor, a faction of reform minded Neo-Confucian scholars called Sarim (Forest of Scholars) would gain power against the conservative Hungu faction. The Sarim faction would suffer setbacks from the purges under the reign of Prince Inmun Wang Yeok but would regain power after the ascension of the Cheongye Emperor, eventually forcing the Hungu faction off of the court. The Sarim faction would instead be broken apart by infightings, eventually splitting into the conservative Westerners camp and the liberal Easterners faction based on the location of the faction leaders' residence. The Easterners would take a step further and was split between the moderate Southerners and the radical Northerners also based on the location of their leaders' residence later on during the Hongchi Emperor. The era of Geonmun also oversaw establishment of trade relations between Goryeo and the European maritime powers, a small growth of Protestant and Catholic missionaries from the European maritime powers, a revamp of the navy in dealing with renewed Japanese pirate activities, and the army being sent to crush border raids by hostile Jurchen tribes and a peasant rebellion lead by Im Kkeok-jeong. The Geonmun Emperor passed away due to ailing health in 1567 and received the temple name of Seonjong after his death. His son, Wang Yeon, ascended the throne with the era name of Hongchi.

Emperor Hongchi focused on improving the lives of the common people and introduced various political and economic reforms and his early reign was marked by growth and prosperity. If his reign remained peaceful, he would have been remembered as perhaps a sage ruler or as one of the greats of Korean history such as Supreme King Gwanggaeto of Goguryeo, or Emperor Daeryeok. Unfortunately, Emperor Hongchi's reign saw constant warfare such as was the Goryeo-Japan War that ravaged the southern half of the peninsula. In 1583, 20,000 Wild Jurchen rebels lead by Ni Tang-gae attacked the Six Posts of Goryeo's northern border regions. Although the Goryeo defenders managed to hold out against the organized raiders long enough for reinforcements lead by General Sin Rip to drive the invaders out, the invasion was alarming to the Imperial Court which had seen decades of peace. Add to news of Toyotomi Hideyoshi's unification of Japan, fears of invasion into Goryeo had lead to calls for Hongchi to increase the size of the army to prepare against future threats. Emperor Hongchi later dispatched envoys to Japan to gauge the military capability of Japan and whether or not Toyotomi Hideyoshi was planning for an invasion while sending the nation's top generals and the best military force to the northern borders to prepare against a possible invasion from Jurchen lands, clearly seeing the latter as bigger threats than the Japanese. The Korean envoys returned with mixed messaging. Hwang Young-il of the minority Westerners Party reported that Japan was raising a large number of troops, soldiers that were experienced from years of fighting in Japan during their own Warring States period. Kim Seong-il of the Easterners, on the other hand, downplayed the report and added that the soldiers were likely used not for war against Korea but to establish law and order in the war-torn regions of Japan. He also added that even if Japan was to invade, the Koreans have with them capable generals, advanced gunpowder weapons and ships, and dragons that would make quick works of Japan's invasion force. Due to Kim being part of the stronger Easterner party, Hongchi sided with his report and focused on directing any military buildup to deal with the northern border.

In 1592, Japan invaded Korea and, despite the best effort of Korean defenders, quickly seized a beachhead and taken hold of the port city of Busan. The Japanese made swift advances, capturing the Eastern Capital of Gyeongju after three days of fighting. The Imperial Court would quickly respond by mobilizing soldiers and dispatching generals to intercept the Japanese forces. Riders of the Sky Corps were also sent out, believing that their aerial superiority would dominate the skies and bring the Japanese to heal. Unfortunately, most of Korea's southern forces were unprepared for the battle with most soldiers being conscripted peasants hastily given arms to fight with minimal training. While Korea's southern forces did have access to gunpowder weapons, most were cannons fit for defensive use against sieges and most Korean soldiers used crowssbows and warbows for personal ranged weapons, very few handguns were in service by southern forces. Korean benders, while devastating, were in small numbers and didn't have the range the Japanese muskets enjoyed. Japan's use of combined arms of pikes, muskets, and arrows, negated Korea's cavalry and many of Goryeo's winged chollima and cockatrice riders were taken out by Japanese marksmen when they get too close to be of use. Even fire dragons, Goryeo's trump card in fighting against the Mongols and Jurchen raiders, were strained by heavy Japanese fighting. Most dragons not utilized by the navy were situated in the capital city of Gaegyeong and dragon riders were sent out south to support the southern front. Initial dragon attacks were devastating against the Japanese, allowing the Koreans to maintain a defensive hold on the road to the western capital of Hanseong. However, most dragons sent as part of the punitive forces were young dragons with their scales not fully matured and hardened. Most of them would be flying and fighting with little rest and add to the Japanese capture of the eastern capital of Gyeongju, that also meant enemy access to Korean arsenals, including anti-dragon artillery (each capitals were given anti-dragon weapons as a form of checks and balances to prevent the Imperial Capital from being too tyrannical with their dragons). Many of the dragons sent southward would fall by a combination of fatigue and breakthrough of their armored scales by captured anti-dragon artillery (the mass volley fire from Japanese muskets also didn't help even when dragons were somewhat impervious to the bullets). The Koreans were also unprepared by the strain caused by mass numbers of refugees fleeing up north, causing much needed reinforcements to stall even when fortresses were at their limits. General Sin Rip, one of the nation's top generals, would fall at the Battle of Chungju and Hanseong would soon be captured after three weeks of fighting. The breakdown of Korean defenses at the Imjin River due to the action of an inexperienced General Sin Hal (no relations to General Sin Rip) left Gaegyeong wide open to a Japanese invasion. Emperor Hongchi ordered mass evacuation of the Imperial Capital and half of the Imperial Court fled to the island of Ganghwa. The abandoned city would be captured with minimal resistance by the Japanese while most of the remaining imperial forces and the other have of the Imperial Court lead by Prince Regent Daewon Wang Gyeong set up defenses at the western capital of Seogyang (present day Pyongyang).

That is not to say that there was no hope for Goryeo; naval successes at the seas led by Admiral Yi Sun-sin hampered Japanese supply lines and guerilla warfare conducted by informal militias and reorganized soldiers known as the Righteous Army provided much needed morale boosts for the Korean military. Korean victories at the southern front such as Jinju, Haengju, and Ichi also showed that Korean resistance in the south had not fallen despite the capture of Hanseong, Gyeongju, and Gaegyeong. During the war, engineers, at the support of Prince Regent Daewon, managed to develop and incorporate muskets into its ranks. Military reorganization would introduced a combined arms doctrine of pikemen, archers and crossbowmen, musketeers, and elemental benders if the benders werein the battlefield. Dragon riders and phoenixes would return to engage in air support against the Japanese but would fight in rotation so that they can get some rest of their own. Chollima and cockatrice riders were to abandon any offensives and to use only as aerial scouts to report on enemy troop movements unless victory can be assured. Balloons were also used for support roles by dropping bombs on enemy positions far away from Korean defenses. The Korean units stationed at the northern provinces, those with military experiences and with the best equipment, were sent southwards to reinforce the counteroffensive and joined up with the rest of the military, although a large chunk still remained to prevent any opportunistic attacks from the northern frontiers. The reorganized Goryeo Army, with the support of the informal Righteous Army, retook captured provinces and inflict heavy damage on the tired Japanese forces, recapturing lost cities and capitals. In 1598, Japan withdrew from the peninsula after the passing of Toyotomi Hideyoshi. Although Korea was spared from initial Japanese imperial ambitions, the country itself was ravaged by seven long years of warfare (although the year between 1595 to 1596 was largely a truce with sporadic fighting). Hongchi, devastated by the toll of the war, withdrew from politics and left behind Imperial Crown Prince Wang Gyeong to rule in his stead. He passed away in 1608 and received the temple name of Seonjong. Wang Gyeong, already ruling as Prince Regent Daewon, would declare the era name of Gwangmu.

Gwangmu focused on rebuilding the devasted kingdom by keeping much of the reforms left by former Prime Minister Yu Seung-ryong to spur market and agricultural growth. He also reformed the country's defenses with setting up new dedicated gunpowder offices to improve on designs based on gunpowder weapons such as cannons, hwachas, and muskets. The Gwangmu Emperor was ambitious with his military reforms. The Goryeo Navy was given more attention as Gwangmu saw potential in Goryeo as a naval power with maritime territories and funded official travels to the Indian Ocean. He increased trade with the European powers, being interested in their steam technology as efforts to improve the military and his people's living condition. He also allowed Catholic and Protestant missionaries to set up churches in Goryeo, provided that they follow Goryeo laws and respect local customs. The Gwangmu Emperor also sent an expeditionary force to seize the island of Tsushima after receiving a request from Japanese survivors lead by Imperial Prince Akiyoshi and his retainers fleeing from the troubles in Japan. However, Goryeo's seizure of Tsushima was not out of annexation but a way to better protect the remnants of Japan's royal family as despite the enmity between Goryeo and Japan in the war that happened just decades ago, even Goryeo would find the idea of regicide and rule by demon to be barbaric and unholy. Japan's rump state is ruled by the So Clan and what remains of the Yamato family, questions are in the air of if or when another major conflict would brew between Goryeo and Japan. By the end of his reign, he left Goryeo recovered and stabilized, perhaps much more powerful than before and received the temple name of Imjong after his death. However, most of his sons died due to sickness (or political assassinations) and he passed away without an heir in 1641. Court officials selected the son of Prince Neungyang Wang Je (son of Gwangmu's half-brother Prince Jeongwon Wang Ho), Prince Sohyeon Wang Hon as the next Emperor, declaring the era name of Sunjeong. So far, Sunjeong's rule is seeing some promises as he continued Gwangmu's social and economic reforms. Of course, only time will tell how his reign would end up.

#ODQHVVF (do not delete this, it's for keeping track of the apps)

by **Intermountain States** » Fri Mar 22, 2024 2:11 pm

Great Confederacy of Commonwealth States wrote:So, I would like to create a China ruled by dragons, but if there is a rule against dragon sapience, then I would be fine with dragon riders. But I would love to explore the first.

Wonder how they would feel about Korean dragon riders

by **Pragia** » Fri Mar 22, 2024 2:16 pm

Reservation

Nation Name: The Holy Kingdom of Albion
Territory: British Isles, Brittany, Iceland, Greenland, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland, Bahamas, Jamaica, Leeward Isles
#ODQHVVF (Do not delete this, it is used to keep track of the apps)

*Note: Reservations will last for 48 hours. The OP reserves the right to be subjective in regards to accepting and removing reservations.

by **Zenik** » Fri Mar 22, 2024 2:23 pm

Reservation

Nation Name: Republic of Amalfi
Territory: Amalfi Coast, Southern Sardinia, Cities of Messina and Reggio Calabria, Malta
#ODQHVVF (Do not delete this, it is used to keep track of the apps)

*Note: Reservations will last for 48 hours. The OP reserves the right to be subjective in regards to accepting and removing reservations.

by **Tracian Empire** » Fri Mar 22, 2024 2:24 pm

Pragia wrote:
Reservation

Nation Name: The Holy Kingdom of Albion
Territory: British Isles, Brittany, Iceland, Greenland, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland, Bahamas, Jamaica, Leeward Isles
#ODQHVVF (Do not delete this, it is used to keep track of the apps)

*Note: Reservations will last for 48 hours. The OP reserves the right to be subjective in regards to accepting and removing reservations.

I'd rather not cut off Brittany from France just yet considering the difficulties we had last time with splitting it, but if no one else claims France in the next few days you can include it.

The rest of the claims are alright though, reservation accepted

by **Tracian Empire** » Fri Mar 22, 2024 2:25 pm

Zenik wrote:
Reservation

Nation Name: Republic of Amalfi
Territory: Amalfi Coast, Southern Sardinia, Cities of Messina and Reggio Calabria, Malta
#ODQHVVF (Do not delete this, it is used to keep track of the apps)

*Note: Reservations will last for 48 hours. The OP reserves the right to be subjective in regards to accepting and removing reservations.

Accepted

by **Dragos Bee** » Fri Mar 22, 2024 4:58 pm

Reservation

Nation Name: Alid Caliphate (Shia)
Territory: Arabia, Iraq, Persia, Azeribaijan.
#ODQHVVF (Do not delete this, it is used to keep track of the apps)

*Note: Reservations will last for 48 hours. The OP reserves the right to be subjective in regards to accepting and removing reservations.

by **Dragos Bee** » Fri Mar 22, 2024 5:06 pm

Nation Application

Full Nation Name: al-dawla al-alawiyya/al-Khilāfah

Short Nation Name: Alid Dynasty/The Caliphate

National Symbols: The Green Flag.

Capital: Kufa.

Territory: Arabia, Mesopotamia and Persia.

Form of Government: Theocracy with a nominal Representative Assembly acclaiming the Caliph whenever a new one succeeds.

Head of State: Caliph Hasan VI

Head of Government: Caliph Hasan VI.

Population: 20 Million.

Population Description: 79% Human, 10% Djinn, 4% Desert Elf, 4% Dwarf, 3% Other.

80% Shia Muslim (Djinn can be Muslims according to Islamic Metaphysics if they accept God's guidance; Elves and Dwarves are ruled as Djinn or Humans depending on what interpretation of Islamic Law prevails in the region), 10% Christian, 5% Jewish, 4% Zororastrian, 1% Sabians/Communities identified as Sabians.

More on Djinn here.

Technological Description: The Alid Caliphate never lost the love for mathematics, clockwork, and science that characterized the Golden Age of Islam, and in this age of new sciences deploys a little bit of clockpunk technology, some mixed with Magic, to supplement its civilian and military forces. The use of clockwork automata among the upper class, and to a larger extent, the adoption of widespread steampunk automation in agriculture and mining, has reduced the prevalence of slavery by a small but noticeable margin (steam-powered pumps in mines are an example). This in turn is supplemented with more Steampunk inventions from the lands held by the Infidel, which the House of Wisdom and its translators seek to transcribe and record so that the Caliphate's craftsmen can exceed them.

Inspiration Here.

Magic Description: Magic in the Alid Caliphate is strictly confined to either the Sufi Orders, or the House of Wisdom's Greek-influenced scholars and philosophers, many of whom barely avoid formal charges of heresy or even apostasy due to how useful their Magic is. Both organizations focus on Astrology, Alchemy, and Numerology, while the Sufis embrace a Mystical view of Islamic Metaphysics that sometimes breaks with the Caliphate's Orthodoxy. And of course, the high number of Djinn in the Empire granted the Alids an advantage in areas where they might otherwise be outflanked by the Greeks and other unbelievers, such as the manipulation of the Elements.

Military Description: After the loss of Syria and Egypt to the Greeks, the Alid Caliphate has reformed its armies to include more handguns and cannons, but its traditional reliance on Sufi Mystics riding flying carpets and Djinn shapeshifting into birds, as well as the occasional domesticated Roc, has weakened its air force during a time when its potential enemies are building blimps and ornithopters and other flying machines on a wide scale. Therefore the Caliph has authorized attempts at reverse-engineering Airship Tech and encouraging defections from The West to overcome this gap in capabilities. A new navy has also been constructed to guard the pilgrim lanes leading to Mecca and Medina from potential Infidel depredations.

Here is a more in-depth description of the Military Forces of the Caliphate:

The Ground Forces: The Infantry of the Caliphate are a mix of tribal levies, urban militia, and the 'Core Army', a professional force meant to act as a reinforcing and counter-offensive 'hammer' of the armed forces.

The Tribals are mostly armed with javelins, bows, and scimtars, with very few having Muskets, while the Urban Militias favor kite shields, long spears that are nevertheless less long than pikes, and more of them have Muskets and every tenth Urban Militiaman has pots filled with boiling crude oil/naphtha that can be thrown at enemies at close range.

As for the Core Army, each of these is armed with a Musket and a Scimtar, and every fifth man has a long Western-style pike, while the officers have pistols and one grenade of either gunpowder or naphtha to be desperately thrown at a foe.

These are in turn reinforced by Cavalry and Camelry, with the Caliphate boasting some of the best Light Horsemen in the world. Artillery is also a science refined by Arab and Turkish alchemists and mathematicians, with investments made in cannons mortars, and serpentines capable of firing at slow-moving airships. Here are the Numbers:

- 125,000 Infantry (40,000 Tribals, 60,000 Urban Militia, 25,000 'Core Army'.
- 70,000 Cavalry.
- 15,000 Camelry.
- 3000 Artillery Pieces of various types.

The Navy: Ever since the loss of Syria and the Levant, the Caliphate has lacked good timber in its heartlands, although the Caspian Region has enough forests to support the construction of a fleet large enough to keep the straits of Hormuz and the all-important Bab-el-Mandeb clear of threats to commerce and Pilgrimage. Note that the fleet also has a slightly justified reputation for slave raiding and trading, but the Caliph makes sure to control his Admirals lest they provoke a general war between his Nation and the West or the Cholas or both at the same time, which would be unwinnable. Here are the numbers:

- 10 Western-style Men-of-War.
- 20 Western-style Caravels.
- 55 Dhows.
- 80 Galleys.

The Air Force: As mentioned, the Caliphate has a very weak air force that is barely enough to cover its territory in the face of European Air Power, and this weakness stands between it and wider dominance. Here are the Numbers:

800 Djinn who can shapeshift into small birds, none larger than an Albatross or faster than a Peregrine Falcon.
400 Sufi Mystics riding Flying Carpets.
30 Roc Riders riding domesticated Rocs.
9 Djinn capable of shapeshifting into Rocs and breathing fire.

Economic Description: Mesopotamia never got ravaged by the Mongols, and its irrigation systems work fine even today. Agriculture and Proto-Industry flourished in the Caliphate, and Islamic Banking and Finance took off under the careful supervision of the Caliphal authorities and the Ulema. Slavery's role in the economy has declined due to the introduction of Steampunk techs, but an illicit trade continues due to the demands of the 'world's oldest profession'. Even then, the increase in economic prosperity ensured that the rights of slaves to have free medical care from their masters were more strictly enforced by the Caliph, who has been suspected of using this to deliberately squeeze out the institution of slavery further...

Goals: To bring all the world under the Dar-Al-Islam so that there would be prosperity and peace for all, under One God, One Nation, One Creed, but if that proves impossible, to coexist in peace with its neighbors unless given undue provocation.

by **Dragos Bee** » Fri Mar 22, 2024 5:09 pm

Point of Divergence: The Battle of Siffin (657 AD) ends when a sudden thunderstorm, believed to have been invoked through Magical means (this was never proven), prevents the rebellious Syrian armies from attempting to use pages of the Quran to cover a call for arbitration so that they can save themselves from the forces of the rightful Caliph, Ali ibn Talib. Mu'awiya is killed during the last stages of the battle, thus sealing Ali's victory and allowing him to continue his purges of governmental corruption and relatively egalitarian policies towards the people of the Caliphate for some decades more.

Mu'awiya's family and other members of the Banu Ummaya flee to Egypt, then North Africa and maybe Iberia, establishing the Sunni Branch of Islam, which is much weaker in this timeline.

More on these here.

History: Eventually, Ali died after a long and happy life, and his son, Al-Hasan, ruled for a decade (690 - 700 AD) until he was succeeded by his brother, Husayn (who in IRL died much earlier in the Battle of Karbala) who formalized his father's policy of embracing Non-Arab Muslim Converts as equals, as per the Prophet's Farewell Address (or one of its translations). This allowed the Caliphate to expand even further into North Africa and even most of Iberia in his lifetime, but his successor, Ali II, had the misfortune of losing the Siege of Constantinople (the analogue of the historical one) to the Byzantine defenders, checking the Caliphate's expansion.

During that time, Sindh was conquered by the Caliphate and Islamized, forming a base for a future invasion of Northern India later in the late 700s which was defeated and repulsed, although further expeditions were successful in establishing some Islamic Emirates in the subcontinent. After that was a cycle of raids and counter-raids as the Byzantine front stabilized, expansion into Europe slowly petered out, and the interior of the Caliphate's domain experienced unprecedented prosperity and development as both Magic and Science were encouraged by the ruling class, although the former was kept strongly limited by Islamic Law and its Jurists.

However, as the Christians regained strength, Crete and Cyrpus were reconquered by the Byzantines as the Caliphate's original triumphalism gave way to internal conflict, love of luxury, and decadent complacency, with many regional governors in Spain, North Africa, Northern India, and Central Asia declaring independence from the Family of Muhammad, with a few even forming their sects of Islam (Sunni, Other forms of Shia, and Ibadi). This fragmentation was why prototype Clockpunk, when it was invented by Ismail Al-Jazari or an alternate timeline equivalent, was soon seen only as a curiosity, then lost and only rediscovered in the Renaissance centuries later.

The First Crusade in the 1080s worsened the situation for a while but reminded the Caliphs just why the need for unity was important, and so in the following few decades, a series of Grand Vizers began corraling reluctant provincial Governors, stamping down on corruption, crushing heretics, and eventually reconquering Jerusalem in 1187 under Grand Vizier Salah-ad-Din, who repelled future attempts at Crusading for the next few decades.

It was lucky that the city of Otrar in Central Asia had just recently pledged allegiance to the Caliphate, just before 1218, which was when The Mongols or their equivalent sent a trade delegation, which instead of being slaughtered, was instead negotiated with in good faith, thus allowing for trade relations to be established. When the Mongols did invade, it was two decades later, in 1238, and while Otrar and most of Central Asia were lost, the invaders were eventually repelled deep in Iran. Nevertheless, further Mongolian campaigns and more intrigue by rebellious governors distracted the Caliphate enough that the Palaiologoi Dynasty of Byzantium managed to wage a campaign that eventually led to the loss of the Levant, still unruly after the Crusader occupation, and more importantly, Egypt.

This was the greatest disaster that the Muslim World had encountered so far.

In response, the Caliphate finally began a series of reforms to re-centralize the Empire, adopt Gunpowder into its armed forces, and rediscover Al-Jazari's Clockpunk technology to aid in its remilitarization drive. Gone are the days of fractious tribal chiefs and rebellious provincial governors; the House of Islam was cleaning house.

Nevertheless, it took centuries for this process to fully bear fruit, and decades more for this renewed prosperity to translate to prestige and military might. Nevertheless, despite the peaceful nature of the current Caliph, Hasan VI, a rematch with their Roman/Byzantine Neighbors seems to be inevitable...

#ODQHVVF (do not delete this, it's for keeping track of the apps)

by **Cymrea** » Fri Mar 22, 2024 5:13 pm

Reservation

Nation Name: Holy French Empire (Saint Empire Français)
Territory: France, Corsica, New France
#ODQHVVF (Do not delete this, it is used to keep track of the apps)

by **Cymrea** » Fri Mar 22, 2024 7:53 pm

Nation Application

Full Nation Name: Saint Royaume de France - Holy Kingdom of France

Short Nation Name: France

National Symbols: Fleur-de-lis, sun in radiance

Capital: Paris

Territory: France, Corsica, New France, Dar of Algiers, Dar of Anaffa (Casablanca)

Form of Government: Absolute monarchy

Head of State: King Louis XIV, Le Roi Soleil

Head of Government: King Louis XIV, Le Roi Soleil, advised by the Dauphin Council

Population: 18 million

Population Description: The French population is socially stratified by wealth/class, though particularly meritorious individuals may raise their station and that of their House. At the bottom is Le Troisième Domaine, the Third Estate, comprising peasants, wage workers, service workers, military, artisans, and merchants. Above is Le Deuxième Domaine, the Second Estate, made up of the nobility. At the top is Le Premiere Domaine, the First Estate - the powerful Church of France and the Royal House of Bourbon. Increase in status and station follow exemplary service along one of three paths: clerical, military, or academic. Faithful service in the Church, from the pulpit to the chevaliers of l'Ordre du Soleil (the Order of the Sun); valorous service in defense of the realm, perhaps among the King's Own chevaliers of l'Ordre de Mérovingie (the Order of Merovingia); or contributing to the might and grace of France through advancements intellectual/scientific, magical, technological, industrial - all can lead to fortune and glory in the Holy Kingdom of France.

This applies only to the human citizens of the kingdom. Elves, dwarves, and other non-human races do live within France, but they are concentrated almost entirely within the ghettos established for them in Paris. Only citizens have rights and non-humans cannot be or become citizens. And while these disaffected populations are barely tolerated, their presence is a convenient scapegoat for the Crown and the Church. As a pressure release and occasional placation of the human supremacist population, non-humans are "encouraged" to migrate to the New World. Those that choose to accept the option are shipped at minimal expense to Montreal, where they are required to strictly adhere to French Law or be banished into the wilds. The humans believe this a punishment and relief, but most non-humans take the opportunity to escape French oppression.

Technological Description: Da Vinci's influence on the French Renaissance has been profound. Exploration of flight has gripped France especially; balloons are the subject of endless development and innovation. The advent of the steam engine has thrust France into a dovetailed technological paradigm: manufactories and artisan guilds work together in an uneasy balance of modern production and craftsmanship, lending a baroque flair to French machines. Dazzling arrays of attractions bring crowds of French people to the travelling faires end grand foreign exhibitions. Naturally, the destructive martial arts and sciences have also progressed, arming knights of the realm with blackpowder weapons to supplement their holy magicks. Wondrous as the new technologies may seem, France remains focused on magic, which is seen as a gift from God.

Magic Description: The sun has long been a symbol of the French people, as far back as the Gallic tribes of the ancient world. Combined with the zeal of French religious faith, French magic has developed three strong specializations: fire, metalwork, and healing. The Sœurs de Grâce (Sisters of Grace) are a militant order of nuns that specialize in the medical and healing arts, accompanying French armies on the battlefields. French hospitals and chiurgeons keep the French populous hale and healthy. A curious tangent of French healing magicks has produced Le Collège Vert (the Green College), agrarian specialists that ensure bountiful crop yields and renowned cultivars of fruits and vegetables and spices.

The Orders of the Sun and Merovingia employ incendiary spells and their ranks include battlemages and alchemists, arcane adepts of pyromancy and combustion. Inventive methods of employing fire magicks are a hallmark of L'Inquisition du Lys (the Lily Inquisition), zealous scourges of heretics and the myriad enemies of the Church. Related to the pyromantic abilities developed by French mages, metalworking, in the form of a primitive kind of welding, employs fire-based magic to fuse metals together in a strong bond.

Magic in France, the ability to harness benisse, called aether or quintessence in other nations, is considered to be directly provided by God. As such, magic and its practitioners fall under the authority of the Church. From the smallest villages to the crowded winding streets of France's great cities, the Church seeks out and tests all human children of the Third Estate for the ability to wield benisse. All who are found are taken from their families - who are generously compensated for their noble and loyal sacrifice - and enrolled in the Triskelion Academy to be properly educated in faith and the arcane arts. Noble families enroll their children voluntarily, as they have since the Academy's founding. French mages owe their allegiance and service to the Crown and Church of France and employed in one of the various Orders based on their individual talents. Mages are encouraged to marry each other and produce children of their own; most of mageborn children are inherently talented, often more so than their parents. More than a century of this practice has produced Houses of nobility that are exceptionally talented in the arcane arts, some founded by formerly peasant children who rose to nobility through service. Prominent Houses include Bourbon, Flambeau, Leoncoeur, Orleans, and Valois.

Military Description: The martial history of Europe is long and seemingly interminable. Long before the formation of the French nation or identity, the Gallic people have been in a state of conflict. The uncounted skirmishes, battles, and wars with neighbors and the concurrent development of weapons and warcraft have provided France with a strong military presence. Combining blackpowder weapons with pyromantic magick, La Grande Armée is among the most powerful military forces in Europe. Musketeers, Chiens de Guerre, cavalry, and cannon artillery, are supplemented by battlemages and alchemists, and small clockwork aerodynes called sprites.

By 1627, the French Navy was not ready to challenge the Albionite fleet, which led to the construction of a seawall at La Rochelle. Composed largely of merchant vessels, hastily loaded with cannons, under-crewed and poorly handled, the Marine Royale needed improvement. With newly built ships, designed as ships of war and crewed by sailors and trained gunners, fighting experience was gained in battles with neighboring nations and the Thirty Years' War with notable victories at the Battle of Cádiz in 1640, won by France's first Grand Admiral Jean Armand de Maillé-Brézé, son of Marshall Urbain de Maillé-Brézé and nephew of Cardinal Richelieu. The Navy built a French empire, conquering a Nouvelle France along the St. Lawrence River in Kanada.

Dragons
In the air, French dragons patrol the skies, scouting and supporting infantry and cavalry, transporting small units to strategically important locations, and combating other dragons. Dragons came to Gaul in the centuries of the Roman Empire and have been meticulously bred and husbanded since. Dragonnaires are few, but fearless and proud - and insane, some say. Their contribution to communications in the theater of war is invaluable and the small number of dragon units are well-cared for and highly prized.

More selective breeding in the age of Charlemagne has developed three distinctive French clades. From the Roman breed called Incensio, the French produced the Cendresse. Mainly grey in color, mottled with pale orange, the Cendresse is typically smaller in size, faster than most breeds, and able to fly far afield. Cendresse are daring and courageous beasts, occasionally given to recklessness, and utilized in scouting and delivery of communications, a role well suited to them. Not without defenses, Cendresse can expel small fireballs from their throat, often in bursts of three. They typically choose captains with matching brashness and a penchant for derring-do.

The Berciel clade was developed from mid-sized dragons native to the French Alps. Berciel are sky blue with cream-colored undersides and significantly larger than the Cendresse. Their flight style is steady, not particularly fast, but at a determined pace. Combined with their stoic nature, Berciel make for excellent transport beasts, bringing supplies and small units of musketeers where they're needed most. An attempt was made to breed a form of firebreathing into Berciels; while that continued effort has failed, Berciels possess a powerful exhale capable of knocking down and tumbling men and horses, useful in disrupting enemy formations and even in fouling the aim of some blackpowder weapons. They tend to choose captains of equally steadfast temperament.

The largest of the French dragons is the Alouette. A particularly belligerent breed belying its gentle name, the Alouette is the product of crossing a Sangdiabol - a vicious breed of biters native to the rugged St. Lawrence coast - with the massive famed reds of Welsh stock. The result is the recent emergence of the Alouette as France's premiere fighting dragon. A deep blood-red coloring marked with long stripes of black, the Alouette breathes a wash of flames to make any inquisitor squeal with delight. Alouettes, however, are notoriously difficult to breed, so solitary and cantankerous that they're reluctant to pair and mate or care for a brood of eggs. As such, Alouettes are the also the rarest of the French breeds. Their chosen captains are typically men and women possessed of a towering iron will.

Economic Description: One of France's primary aims is the expansion of global trade, focusing on opening foreign markets and providing an exchange of goods between disparate parts of the world. The economy of France has been, for the first half of the century, marked by dynamic demographic growth and developments in agriculture and industry. Agricultural production of a variety of food items expanded. After 1500 New World crops appeared such as beans, corn (maize), squash, tomatoes, potatoes, and bell peppers. Lyon is the center of France's banking and international trade markets. Market fairs occur four times a year and facilitate the exportation of French goods, such as cloth and fabrics, and importation of European goods.

Goals: Expansion of trade and colonial possessions.

Point of Divergence: Advent of magic and dragons.

History
Gaul
In 600 BC, Ionian Greeks from Phocaea founded the colony of Massalia (present-day Marseille) on the shores of the Mediterranean Sea, making it one of the oldest cities in France. At the same time, Celtic tribes arrived in the eastern parts of France, but this occupation spread in the rest of France only between the 5th and 3rd century BC. Long before any Roman settlements, Greek navigators settled in what would become Provence. The Phocaeans founded important cities such as Nikaia (Nice), bringing them into conflict with the neighboring Celts and Ligurians.

Covering large parts of modern-day France, Belgium, northwest Germany and northern Italy, Gaul was inhabited by many Celtic and Belgae tribes whom the Romans referred to as Gauls and who spoke the Gaulish language roughly between the Oise and the Garonne (Gallia Celtica), according to Julius Caesar. Gaul was later divided into several different provinces. The Romans displaced populations to prevent local identities from becoming a threat to Roman control. Thus, many Celts were displaced in Aquitania or were enslaved and moved out of Gaul. There was a strong cultural evolution in Gaul under the Roman Empire, the most obvious one being the replacement of the Gaulish language by Vulgar Latin. Gaul remained under Roman control for centuries and Celtic culture was then gradually replaced by Gallo-Roman culture.

Frankia
In 486, Clovis I, leader of the Salian Franks, defeated Syagrius at Soissons and subsequently united most of northern and central Gaul under his rule. Clovis then recorded a succession of victories against other Germanic tribes such as the Alamanni at Tolbiac. In 496, pagan Clovis adopted Catholicism. This gave him greater legitimacy and power over his Christian subjects and granted him clerical support against the Arian Visigoths. He defeated Alaric II at Vouillé in 507 and annexed Aquitaine, and thus Toulouse, into his Frankish kingdom. Clovis made Paris his capital and established the Merovingian dynasty but his kingdom would not survive his death in 511. Under Frankish inheritance traditions, all sons inherit part of the land, so four kingdoms emerged: centered on Paris, Orléans, Soissons, and Rheims. Over time, the borders and numbers of Frankish kingdoms were fluid and changed frequently. Also during this time, the Mayors of the Palace, originally the chief advisors to the kings, would become the real power in the Frankish lands; the Merovingian kings themselves would be reduced to little more than figureheads. In 732, the mayor of the palace, Charles Martel, defeated a Muslim raiding party at the Battle of Tours and earned respect and power within the Frankish Kingdom. The assumption of the crown in 751 by Pepin the Short (son of Charles Martel) established the Carolingian dynasty as the kings of the Franks.

Carolingian power reached its fullest extent under Pepin's son, Charlemagne. In 771, Charlemagne reunited the Frankish domains after a further period of division, subsequently conquering the Lombards under Desiderius in what is now northern Italy, incorporating Bavaria into his realm, defeating the Avars of the Danubian plain, advancing the frontier with Al-Andalus as far south as Barcelona, and subjugating Lower Saxony after a prolonged campaign. In recognition of his successes and his political support for the papacy, Charlemagne was crowned Emperor of the Franks by Pope Leo III in 800. Charlemagne's son Louis the Pious kept the empire united. France became a very decentralized state during the Middle Ages, however. The authority of the king was more religious than administrative. The 11th century in France marked the apogee of princely power at the expense of the king when states like Normandy, Flanders or Languedoc enjoyed a local authority comparable to kingdoms in all but name. The Capetians, as they were descended from the Robertians, were formerly powerful princes themselves who had successfully unseated the weak and unfortunate Carolingian kings. The Capetians, in a way, held a dual status of King and Prince; as king they held the Crown of Charlemagne and as Count of Paris they held their personal fiefdom, best known as Île-de-France.

Rise of the Monarchy
The monarchy overcame the powerful barons over ensuing centuries, and established absolute sovereignty over France in the 16th century. France in the Ancien Régime covered a large territory but political power was widely dispersed. The law courts (Parlements) were powerful. However, the king had only about 10,000 officials in royal service – very few indeed for such a large country. The different estates of the realm — the clergy, the nobility, and commoners — occasionally met together in the Estates General, but in practice the Estates General had no power, for it could petition the king but could not pass laws. With the death in 1477 of Charles the Bold, France and the Habsburgs began a long process of dividing his rich Burgundian lands, leading to numerous wars. In 1532, Brittany was incorporated into the Kingdom of France.

In the 15th century, France engaged in wars with neighbors, which marked the beginning of early modern France. Economic historians call the era from about 1475 to 1630 the "beautiful 16th century" because of the return of peace, prosperity and optimism across the nation, and the steady growth of population. In 1559, Henry II of France signed two treaties: one with the monarch of Albion and one with Spain. This ended long-lasting conflicts between France, Albion, and Spain.

Religious Conflict
The Protestant Reformation, inspired in France mainly by John Calvin, began to challenge the legitimacy and rituals of the Catholic Church of France. French King Henry II severely persecuted Protestants under the Edict of Chateaubriand in 1551, the same year the Crown established the Lily Inquisition. Renewed Catholic reaction — headed by the powerful inquisitor Francis, Duke of Guise - led to a massacre of Huguenots at Vassy in 1562, starting the first of the French Wars of Religion, during which foreign forces intervened on both Protestant and Catholic sides. Non-humans sided mainly with the Protestants in an expression of rebellion against the rising human-supremacy movement in France, leading to the inclusion of non-humans in inquisitorial persecutions. Even those elves and dwarves and fae folk who sided with the Catholics were not immune.

King Henry II died in 1559 in a jousting tournament; he was succeeded in turn by his three sons, each of which assumed the throne as minors or were weak, ineffectual rulers. In the power vacuum entered Henry's widow, Catherine de Medici, who became a central figure in the early years of the Wars of Religion. She is often blamed for the St. Bartholomew's Day massacre of 1572, when thousands of Huguenots were murdered in Paris and the provinces of France.

The Wars of Religion culminated in the War of the Three Henrys (1584–98), at the height of which bodyguards of the King Henry III assassinated Henry de Guise, leader of the Catholic league, in December 1588. In revenge, a priest assassinated Henry III in 1589. This led to the ascension of the Huguenot Henry IV; in order to bring peace to a country beset by religious and succession wars, he converted to Catholicism. He issued the Edict of Nantes in 1598, which guaranteed religious liberties to the Protestants, thereby effectively ending the civil war. Henry IV was assassinated in 1610 by a fanatical knight of the Order of the Sun.

When in 1620 the Huguenots proclaimed a constitution for the "Republic of the Reformed Churches of France", the chief minister Cardinal Richelieu invoked the entire powers of the state to stop it. Religious conflicts therefore resumed under Louis XIII when Richelieu forced Protestants to disarm their army and fortresses. This conflict ended in the Siege of La Rochelle (1627–28), in which Protestants and their supporters were defeated in gruesome fashion and subjected to the ministrations of the Lily Inquisition to serve as a decisive statement of Catholic supremacy in France. The following Peace of Alais (1629) confirmed Catholicism as France's sole state religion and expelled Protestant belligerents from the country. At the same time, the not-quite-forced migration of non-humans to Nouvelle France began.

Thirty Years' War
One of the longest and most destructive conflicts in European history, the Thirty Years' War began in 1618 and has only just recently ended. Fought primarily in central Europe, millions of soldiers and civilians died as a result of battle, famine, or disease. The Thirty Years' War eroded the power of the Catholic Habsburgs. Although Cardinal Richelieu had smashed the Protestants, he treacherously joined the war on their side in 1636 because it was in the national interest. Imperial Habsburg forces invaded France, ravaged Champagne, and nearly threatened Paris. Richelieu died in 1642 and was succeeded by Cardinal Mazarin, while Louis XIII died one year later and was succeeded by the current Sun King Louis XIV. France was served by some very efficient commanders such as Louis II de Bourbon, Prince de Condé and Henri de la Tour d'Auvergne, Vicomte de Turenne. The French battlemage and dragon forces won a decisive victory at Rocroi in 1643; the Truce of Ulm and the Peace of Westphalia brought an end to the war.

An uneasy peace has settled over France and Europe. Relations with the Holy Roman Empire remain frosty and the Pyrenees provide a quieted border to the Iberian peninsula. Albion is seen as a potential friend and ally with their Catholic predominance and shared spirit of nobility. Farther east, dark rumors of evil and unholy things inspire the French people to cleave to their faith and their king. The Church stands strong, its holy Orders and Lily Inquisition acting as sword and shield to the faithful. Notions of a Crusade in eastern Europe persist from the public taverns all the way up to the lofty Dauphin Council. The non-humans toil and grumble in their ghettos or take passage to the New World. Above all, the Sun King reigns.

#ODQHVVF (do not delete this, it's for keeping track of the apps)

by **Pragia** » Fri Mar 22, 2024 9:02 pm

Nation Application

Full Nation Name: Holy Kingdom of Albion

Short Nation Name: Albion

National Symbols: The Sword, The Crown, and the Chalice

Capital: Camelot (RL Salisbury) De Jure, London De Facto

Territory: British Isles, Iceland, Greenland, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland, Bahamas, Jamaica, Leeward Isles, Coastal New England, Virginia Colony, Carolina Colony, Maryland, Delaware, Bermuda

Form of Government: Feudal Monarchy

Head of State: High King Uther III Pendragon

Head of Government: High King Uther III Pendragon

Population: 11 Million

Population Description: The People of Albion come from 3 primary ethnicities: Anglo-Cymric, Irish, and Pict-Scots who all fall under the wider Albionite identity which has formed over the last thousand years of mostly-peaceful coexistence. Industrious and Innovative, they are predominantly Catholic, though in some corners the old gods of pagan druidic faith are still followed. The society is still decidedly feudalistic, though recent technological developments have begun to result in token reforms towards a society increasingly interested in the growing urban populations. Albionites keep a strong sense of moralism and justice, which has earned them renown as an upright and honest people.

Technological Description: The Albionites are a decidedly advanced nation, boasting considerable steel-forging capacity and a good understanding of steam technology that is not as tied to the dictates of the Italian wonderworkers. Airships and Steam Ships maintain her fledgling colonial holdings. The growing industrial interests have clashed with older social structures, but the High Kings have taken considerable efforts to incorporate both new engineering and increasing urbanization.

Magic Description: In its storied past, Albion was once a land of magic of all sorts, where miracles were wrought, sorcerers practiced arcane crafts, and druids communed with the powers of the natural world to wield it to their will. These traditions all can find successors in the modern age. The High King presides over the Knights of the Round Table, an order of alchemically augmented knights who have healing and battle magics, whose number rises now into the hundreds. Holy Orders such as the Order of Saint Cuthbert and Saint Patrick serve at the crown’s assent as mendicants and inquisitors.

Merlin, he who guided the line of Pendragon, has established a school of wizardry in Sarum not far from Camelot wherein all who practice the arcane are welcome, one of the most prolific and powerful schools in the known world. He still lives as an impossibly old sage who occasionally consults the headmasters and the High King, few have seen his countenance, but many live and learn in the hopes of aspiring to his ideals.

The druids of the isles have been in decline for centuries, the persecution of holy orders following the death of the fair king Mordred was thought to have wiped them out, but they still live in secluded places. Though no longer the target of the church’s ire, they live lives outside the authority of the Crown, for only those of God are his subjects. The fey creatures they consort with are of tremendous power, and sometimes prove to be at odds with the rise of cities and human dominance. Elves still live in the emerald isle alongside both Christian and Pagan, similarly not under the crown.

Military Description: The military structure of the Kingdom is still feudal in nature, the King maintaining his own army and his vassal lords obliged to raise their own regiments in times of conflict. The nature of these regiments vary greatly on the region they hail from, from titanic highland warriors bearing runic greatswords to mounted pistoleers who rain lead and grenades upon their foes. The Academy provides battlemagi in support, and even uncalled regiments of the fey will come in dire times to aid the noble kings in their times of need. Mounted knights will ride alongside steam-powered siege engines, and pike formations will provide a leading edge for musket-armed line infantrymen with longbow skirmishers.

Truly in this new age those who will heed the call of the Pendragon are manifold, united under their lords and in service to the righteous cause of the Kingdom. The primary force at the High King's direct command is the Royal Navy, which operates a titanic sea and skyfleet to patrol and enforce its maritime empire.

Economic Description: A vibrant and developed economy has grown on the isles. With the last couple centuries being ones of peace and prosperity under their benevolent kings, cities have grown teaming with artisans and artists, and bellies remain full. Idyllic countrysides basking in the magics that suffuse these lands are truly ones to behold, and much of the isles are bathed in the light of God and things more ancient.

Goals:
Strike Down the Unjust: Albion stands as a nation which prides itself on chivalric value, champions of faith, and protectors of the weak. As storms gather on the horizon they will stand brazenly against the darkness.

Quest for the New World: There are a great many unknowns in these new lands, and adventurer-knights have a long-held tradition in Albion. New peoples to meet, and new lands to settle mark a decided optimism for the future.

Press into the Future: Albion is poised to develop tremendously in terms of technology, as well as ancient magics and plots slowly coming to fruition.

Point of Divergence: ~500 AD, where the Roman General Uther Pendragon united the Angles and the Welshmen into a single nation.

History:The Story of Albion begins with the founding of the line Pendragon by Uther, who is regarded as the first High King of Albion, and by all tales a great defender against the predation of the Saxons. Upon his death, there was a period of uncertainty before his illegitimate son Arthur took up his father’s sword from the anvil and led the lesser kings of Albion to rally a victory. Under the guidance of Merlin the boy-king would grow into a titanic figure who would define Albion as a nation.

He would form the Knights of the Round Table, and the finest and most noble knights would pledge themselves to his cause as equals. Their quests are many and legendary, but it would be Sir Galahad who would attain the Holy Grail through his purity. He would return the Chalice of Christ to Camelot, but by the time he returned, Arthur's son Mordred had usurped his Father. Consumed by regret, the sinful King was offered to drink from the chalice and repent. Mordred's penance was to continue his line and abdicate his power. The Legendary King Arthur would be taken to Avalon, and Albionite myth claims he will one day return to drink from the chalice and rule eternal.

Following this age of legend, Mordred's son Arthur II Pendragon would dedicate himself to the christian ideals that guided the greatest knights of his grandfather. He would adopt Catholicism as the religion of his kingdom, and invite missionaries to proselytize to the pagan knights and push beyond his own lands to teach the isles. This decision would be a first step to the creation of a unified Albion, as the Picts and Irish accepted the Word of Christ readily. This would result in a more complicated relationship with the fey creatures who called Albion home, but the wise King was quick to entreat with pagan lords, creating an amnesty and ancient treaties to ensure peace.

The Kingdom would begin to centralize as great knights settled into feudal lordships, and lands beyond began to form larger tribes and petty kingdoms. By the guidance of the Chalice and the Sword they would have only minor conflict for the next century until in the late 600s the northmen came in force, raiding monasteries and towns in the north. Their presence would be resisted ardently for centuries to follow, and through combined struggle the good High King Albert I would forge a bond in marriage to the fey sorceress-queen of Ireland. This union would allow for the Albionites to liberate the scots and unite the Britonnic Isles by 833.

From here, the Albionites would enjoy a long and grand peace for nearly 3 centuries, a sleepy and prosperous unity as the lands were tamed and the High Kings enjoyed a loose control. Faith in Christ became slowly ascendant over the older ways, and Albionites became ascendant. The knightly orders would grow restless, and the calls for crusades were answered gladly to restore the land of Christ. Indeed, Albionite adventurers and explorers were well known across Europe as extrajudicial paladins of zeal but ultimately chivalrous temprament.

1327 would see the first truly aggressive action by the Albionites under Rhys I Pendragon against the northmen, whose predations had since weakened. Building a grand fleet of sailing ships, they would take the northern lands of Iceland and Greenland to contain the northmen raiders to the Faroes. Iceland would be rechristened Rhysland and Greenland Tegwynland to honor the conquests of the High King.

These new holdings, coupled with the natural adventurism of the Albionite people, would result in the creation of a booming nautical tradition. This would be pushed further by starsages and seasages from the academy who had deduced that the world was round. This promise would result in the first expeditions commissioned by Arthur III in 1398 to Newfoundland under Dylan the Navigator of House Gwynyn. This New World would be christened Avalon for the land their King was taken to, and further exploration would continue.

The wars of religion did not reach Albionite shores, as the church's more lax grip on society meant that dissent did not escalate to mass violence. Truly, the righteousness of the Catholic King who drank from the Cup of Christ and his enlightened clergy was evidence enough of Papal authority. If anything, Albion faces more martial opposition from Fey who felt that growing cities were encroaching and polluting their lands. These confrontations were rare, but it did result in urban centers being further away from the great woodlands.

Albion was initially skeptical of DaVinci's machinery, preferring their water mills and horses to steam monstrocities. It would take the patronage of the High King Falwyn I establishing a separate school for engineering in London, and commissioning the first steam ships for the Royal Navy, who were enjoying booming successes on the trade winds to Avalon. Much of the carribean was being colonized, as well as coastal colonies on the northern continent.

Presently Albion is enjoying a culmination of a millenium of prosperity. The promise of the New World in their eyes, the promise of modern steel in their hands, and the promise of God in their hearts. While their sights are looking forward, the darkness behind them is not lost. The brutal conflict on the continent has been felt as distant, but some claim that their intervention to restore the light of Christ is necessary.

#ODQHVVF (do not delete this, it's for keeping track of the apps)

by **Utceforp** » Fri Mar 22, 2024 9:20 pm

Reservation

Nation Name: Ēxcān Tlahtōlōyān/the Triple Alliance
Territory: Mexico, Guatemala, and Belize
#ODQHVVF

by **Tracian Empire** » Sat Mar 23, 2024 1:39 am

Dragos Bee wrote:
Reservation

Nation Name: Alid Caliphate (Shia)
Territory: Arabia, Iraq, Persia, Azeribaijan.
#ODQHVVF (Do not delete this, it is used to keep track of the apps)

*Note: Reservations will last for 48 hours. The OP reserves the right to be subjective in regards to accepting and removing reservations.

Utceforp wrote:
Reservation

Nation Name: Ēxcān Tlahtōlōyān/the Triple Alliance
Territory: Mexico, Guatemala, and Belize
#ODQHVVF

Cymrea wrote:
Reservation

Nation Name: Holy French Empire (Saint Empire Français)
Territory: France, Corsica, New France
#ODQHVVF (Do not delete this, it is used to keep track of the apps)

Reservations accepted

by **Cymrea** » Sat Mar 23, 2024 7:58 am

The Fallen Nations server on Discord has disappeared from my Discord list. Is that the same for others, or is there something weird with my Discord?

Also, sentient dragons is going to be a pretty significant update to my app. And awesome. Albion's too, I expect.

by **Intermountain States** » Sat Mar 23, 2024 8:15 am

Cymrea wrote:The Fallen Nations server on Discord has disappeared from my Discord list. Is that the same for others, or is there something weird with my Discord?

Also, sentient dragons is going to be a pretty significant update to my app. And awesome. Albion's too, I expect.

I think Thrace deleted the server and will be making a new one for Da Vinci.

Da Vinci's Legacy [AltHis-Steampunk/Fantasy|OOC|Open]

Da Vinci's Legacy [AltHis-Steampunk/Fantasy|OOC|Open]

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