Links in the Chain (OOC Thread; ATTN GD/Gholgoth)

[Ghant]

OOC Thread

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A Thread By

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“The chains that break you, are the chains that make you. And the chains that make you, are the chains you break.” ― Anthony Liccione

The following thread may contain scenes of implied adult situations. Reader discretion is advised.

(IC Thread)

[Ghant]

Hello all and welcome the OOC thread for my upcoming RP, Links in the Chain! This RP is a joint Gholgoth and Greater Dienstad following the events of Titanomachy and Never the Twain Shall Meet, continuing the events of both and serving as a continuation of those events within the shared canon of those two regions, with the blessings of both. Here’s a brief plot synopsis of where the RP begins (please feel free to correct me if I've made a mistake in the following summary):

The year is 2026. Gholgoth and Greater Dienstad have descended into war and chaos, punctuated by the ongoing war between the Gothic Scandinvan Empire and the Dienstadi Golden Throne. While the Golden Throne formed an alliance known as the Triumvirate with the Kingdom of Imbrimium and the Empire of Stevid, the nations of Gholgoth scrambled to salvage their own crumbling Gothic Alliance, divided on numerous issues, lead by the continued Scandinvan occupation of Shen Amaru and the machinations of the Kraven Reich.

In Citadel City, capital of Havensky, a series of reforms known as the Gothic Reforms were spearheaded by Skyans in an attempt to revitalize the pact between Gothic nations. These reforms included the creation of a Gothic capital city, known as Pax Gothica, a series of Gothic Fortresses to safeguard the fringes of the region, and a program known as the Praetors, a soldier from each nation appointed to serve their nation’s interests.

Additionally, Emperor Nathan IV of Ghant was elected by his fellow Gothic Lords to succeed Damien Dreadfire of Automagfreek to serve as Gothic Executor, a position that weighs heavily on the middle-aged Emperor. He views it as his purpose to bring peace to Gholgoth, by resolving the dispute over Shen Amaru before it leads to all out war, conducting diplomacy with the Kraven Reich and to help bring a peaceful resolution to the Golden Throne-Scandinvan War before it expands into a larger and more deadly conflict.

Meanwhile, the Ghantish lands have been scrambling to take advantage of the conflict and safeguard themselves from potential invasion by ambitious, opportunistic powers. Both Henoor Zaldua, High Steward of Gholghant and Balabar Bordugas, Lord Protector of Dienghant have entered into various agreements with the Golden Throne in order to advance their interests. While Zaldua sought marriage pacts with the Golden Throne and Jagada, Bordugas has employed and equipped pirates, who make the criminal outfits of Dienghant rich from the slave trade.

Such are the circumstances that surround the lives of the next generation of Ghantish Imperials, led by the Emperor of Ghant’s eldest children, Crown Prince Nathan and Princess Imperial Sara and their counterparts, including Crown Prince Julianus of Kylarnatia, Crown Prince Zlobeskar of Aldarminia and his sister, Princess Sophyana. Whatever the outcomes of their parents endeavors may be, it will fall upon their children to deal with the consequences, good and bad.

So it is that several events, past present and future between two regions are linked, the fates of nations, their leaders and their peoples hanging in the balance. Where one event ends, another begins, and so it goes, on and on. These are the Links in the Chain.

In essence, this thread is meant to follow-up the events of Titanomachy and Never the Twain Shall Meet, and continue the events of those threads into the future, leading up to some threads that community members have planned for the future, thereby bridging the events of the past and future threads and presenting what happened in between. As such, the thread will cover several IC years, and explore a wide array of subplots from the points of view of several characters. It is an ambitious roleplaying project, expansive in scope, but certainly doable given the talented roleplayers that intend on participating.

This thread is open to anyone in Gholgoth, and semi-open to anyone in Greater Dienstad. If you are in Greater Dienstad, please feel free to post your interest in this thread, or contact me via TG or on Discord with a ping so we can talk about what you would like to do in the thread.

For anyone who’s neither in Gholgoth or Greater Dienstad, you are also welcome to contact me in this thread, in TG or on Discord if you’re interested in participating in the RP. Though naturally, since this is a co-regional RP, finding ways for you to fit into the RP may be difficult, but depending on who you are and what your pitch is, we might be able to work something out!

Keep in mind that since both Gholgoth and Greater Dienstad are Post-Modern Tech (PMT) regions, this RP is PMT. If you'd like to learn more about PMT, please check out the PMT Community Thread.

Please feel welcome to tag this OOC thread for interest, post any questions, comments or concerns that you may have and present any ideas that you have for the overall plot of the thread or a subplot idea. In the meantime I hope you're as excited for the RP as I am!

[United World Order]

UWO here also known as (The Ordenite Reich/The Fourth Reich) from Greater Dienstad. I am getting some background for other participants on UWO canon before and after Titanomachy and Twain. Also feel free to either TG or quote me if you want to do anything ICly.

1st Krasnovan War. June 2025 - February 2026 = Ordenite backed fascist rebels fighting the island's ruling communist government have been in a stalemate that worries the Ordenite Reich of who would come on top. A military intervention into the island was approved by a war council and within the next few weeks a entire invasion fleet sailed into a friendly port and began the invasion which made considerable gains through the summer. The communist regime was backed by Mokastana and this assistance provided the Communists the ability to hold the peninsula of the island and survive total capitulation.


2nd Krasnovan War. May 2027 - February 2028 = With tensions reaching a breaking point between the Ordenite Reich and Mokastana, war is declared and a coalition of nations rallies behind Mokastana in a invasion of Ordenite occupied Krasnova in order to liberate the island. The Ordenite defenders prove more determined and well defended and after a limited nuclear exchange a treaty was made and both Ordenite and Mokastana assets and troops vacated the island. The native Union Red Army would reach Chernaya before being deterred from expanding further westward by Krasnovan armies.


Panooly Reunification War. July 2027 - December 2027 = Breaking out only two months into the 2nd Krasnovan War, tensions boil over as a Ordenite invasion into North Panooly comes to fruition with a rapid sweeping offensive that sees Ordenite and Guffingfordi armies outside of Panooly City in just a week. A Macabean-Imbrimium led counter-offensive that came from the North and South in which led to the rest of the war being one of survival for the Ordenites. In December the defenders in Qadesh the capital of South Panooly surrendered to Macabean and Imbrimium forces which ceded the entirety of Holy Panooly into the hands of The 2nd Empire.


Third Krasnovan War. February 2029 - December 2029 = The Union of Eastern Star Soviets had in just two years nearly transformed the land they occupied after the 2nd War. The Ordenite Reich and the Krasnovan Republic put aside their differences and make some trade and military agreements before Ordenite Army Forces were being landed in Sterlya. This would then lead up into a Krasnovan-Ordenite invasion of the UESS which eventually brings the Kysetian warlord of Chernaya joining forces with the Krasnovans and liberating the entirety of the island besides Tuktar and the new Macabean satrapy. Victory was good for morale and propaganda efforts as the Ordenite Reich had been able to reunify most of the island under one government.


Blood And Soil. Feburary 2030-20XX = Blood and Soil is the result of the victory over the communist adversary on the Krasnovan island which has seen most of the island come into the authority of the Ordenite Reich after a quick coup of the Krasnovan Republic. Still alot is needed to be done before Krasnova is fit for the plans that the Ordenites were drafting up. (RP is frozen and is to resume after the Meek Will Inherit Ash RP between me and Aldarminia finishes)

Fourth Krasnovan War. May 20XX-20XX WIP

[Aldarminia]

In no particular order, to summarize, as briefly as possible, the Grand Imperial Cosmocratium of Aldarminia's role in Links in the Chain:

1. To start to restore the Empire to what it was prior to the First Hammer War/Usurper's War/War of Reclamation, and if possible, preferably exceed this measure. (ICly-historically, the population of the Aldarminian Empire was 22 billion with fully-integrated territories in Xituvar and Gholgoth as well as numerous colonies across the world. Clearly, as of Twain, it only has fully-integrated territories in Xituvar and Gholgoth with zero non-integrated colonies/holdings/occupancies outside of Xituvar)
2. To enforce and reinforce the reforms of the Gholgothic Regional Alliance.
3. To secure both its own interests domestically and abroad as well as those of its closest allies in Gholgoth and Greater Dienstad.
4. It will very early on approach diplomacy and the geopolitic with the intent of containing the Golden Throne and by extension the Triumvirate's, but this is will most likely be seen as untenable following events in Twain. As such, the courting of a potential and most-likely-tense alliance with either the Golden Throne or another Triumvirate state will very quickly become a top priority.
5. To further solidify its alliance with the Imperium Antiquum Kylarnatiae.
6. To establish strong(er) bonds of mutual benefit with the Empire of Ghant.
7. To explore the possibility of expanding the Cosmocratic Empire into Greater Dienstad as envisioned ambitiously by the first Grand Emperor and founder of the modern iteration of the Aldarminian Empire.
8. To counter and contain the Kraven Reich
9. To minimize the instability in both Gholgoth and the rest of the world caused by the conflicting interests of slaver and anti-slaver states. This position will also come to be perceived as untenable later on after Twain. Eventually, the Empire will be galvanized firmly and indefinitely-so against slaver-states--mostly because of internal political pressures but also because of those slaver states' choices of alliance.
10. To establish (post-Twain ICly) the Special International Reconnaissance and Enforcement multinational military/paramilitary organization to counter/contain/neutralize the Myrizstrakha terrorist group as well as other radical terrorist groups, piracy, and organized crime syndicates (SICly, only those criminal syndicates that do not serve the purposes of the Empire will be initially listed and especially targeted, but if any of those that are aligned with the Grand Emperor's interests become troublesome, there won't be much Aldarminia can do, so, ya know, they'll obviously get targeted too at some point if the IC circumstance arises.)
11. To champion, defend, and secure the human rights of several groups of people (SICly, in some circumstances, including the Fourth Krasnovan War, this will also be seen as beneficial to expanding the Empire's influence across the world and sometimes even useful for literally expanding the Empire's suzerainty.
12 to n... I might think up more as I go...

So, in regards to the Fourth Krasnovan War between Aldarminia and the Ordenite Reich, the IC chronologically-later portions (Those occurring ICly after Twain and Titan), there will be essentially be a sort of Cold War between the two nation-states that eventually goes hot. Diplomacy and espionage RPing will be split between the Links in the Chain IC thread and The Meek Will Inherit Ash thread. Up to a certain point-in-play, the story of The Meek Will Inherit Ash has been pretty well-plotted as far as what's going to happen. Obviously, the roles of other players and they can influence the story via either that thread or the Links in the Chain is still very much up in the air, to include the general outcome of the Fourth Krasnovan War.

Another thread that has yet to have either OOC or official IC thread is A Draugr Walks. A Draugr Walks is a bit like Links in the Chain in that it will cover a large amount of IC time. The most immediate source of its relevancy to Links is that A Draugr Walks is where SIRE will see a lot of its debut and early action in response to Myrizstrakha, or "Dreads," in Gholgoth, Greater Dienstad, and Xituvar. A Draugr Walks will touch in flashback on some Aldarminian history over the last century or so, but the main points-of-play will be the re-RPing of the First Hammer War (the ICly most-recent in relation to Twain Civil War) as well as cover the rise of Myrizstrakha as a major, global threat. Of course, Myrizstrakha has already made appearances in two other RPs involving Gholgothic and Greater Dienstadi folks, and those are Titanomachy and The Meek Will Inherit Ash. As such, RP'd events in those threads and Links in the Chain will offer opportunities for both regions to RP in A Draugr Walks, and an essential part of ADW's story, the SIRE organization, will be formed in Links in the Chain.

You probably noticed mention of a Xituvar. Well, yeah, the place looks barren right now, but it's full of opportunity for both Gholgoth, Greater Dienstad, and of course the rest of the NationStates Community. I won't go into all the details as I'd essentially be thread-jacking by then, and the last paragraph very nearly did that, but suffice it to say that I can answer most questions via TG, and no, it's not really extant to take from G or GD or any other region--in case anyone got the wrong idea. Via factbook-canon, some!Goths are currently occupying and may or may not have outright colonized or even integrated some territories of one of the places listed under maps. To be precise, it's Voreosia. Gholgoth gets Voreosia pretty much. That will be RP'd soon enough. However, we can get the ball rolling on the Greater Dienstad's influence over what is known as Asthedosia in Links in the Chain. How and why Dienstadi nation-states will establish/want/need/whatever influence and even territory in Asthedosia will of course vary but is also up for discussion and ultimately role-play. If Greater Dienstad's community members are interested, we can discuss the details either here, on Discord, or in TG.*

(Also, pretty much everybody can get in on the Freewaters Archipelagos thing, and we can explore some of that in Links in the Chain as well, so, ya know, telegram, post here, or go to Discord with questions about FA specifically if you're really interested, otherwise have fun of course)

Conditions per Ghant's OP authority over Links in the Chain and my authority as founder of Xituvar relating to the above paragraphs:
(A.) there's sufficient support for the subplot in both G and in GD.
(B.) if it evolves into a war / expansive plot that it achieve its own thread.
(C.) Sufficient backstory in-thread is provided to explain how these lands, in the 21st century, would be so easily subsumed by these foreign powers.

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*Greater Dienstad as a whole and player-members of either region are not obligated by either participation in Links in the Chain or in any other thread involving members of Gholgoth and/or Greater Dienstad to either participate in RP plots and sub-plots, with special consideration to GD's position in Links in the Chain, related to Xituvar, let alone even acknowledge its existence. Right to ignore in-canon/in-character and right of refusal to RP with any part of another player and region's canon will always to be respected by this player and all constituent parts of his nation-state's canon and RPing. In lieu of advisory from this thread's OP, I have decided this topic would be best be broached and the larger concept of GD's influence over Asthedosia in Links be proposed here in this post. However, should discussion of Xituvar and the satellite sub-regions Voreosia and Asthedosia become threadjack-level-predominate in this thread, either before or after the OP's request, I will appeal to Moderation to have a thread created for the explicit purpose of that discussion with relevant posts in this thread being moved, removed, or edited, assuming feasibility. All of this of course extends to Gholgoth as well.

[Solisian Union]

The interest of the Solisian Union in this thread would be summed up as follows:

1. Although Greater Dienstad is indeed a mix of right, centrist and left nations, the Solisian Union is devoted to the defense and the survival of Greater Dienstad.

2. Solisia feels threatened by the forces of Gholgoth and shall contribute their men and women to fight and work for GD.

3. Despite the fact that GD has the Golden Throne, Solisia, despite being left, is for the Throne for reasons of convenience and unity but most of all, Solisia feels there is a greater obligation to stand for their fellow nations united under the Throne against an outside foe.

4. Solisia wishes to test their new forces and to exercise their own power and to find their own place in GD. For a while, Solisia was a newcomer to the region of Greater Dienstad. But after quiet development and existence, Solisia wished to get involved for good.

[Dephire]

I would like to keep tabs on this. Much of it will have influence on the future of Dephire.

[Ghant]

IC Thread is up. I hope you enjoy the prologue to the Links in the Chain Gholgoth/GD RP! Please post here if you have any questions, comments or feedback.

[Morrdh]

Since this is right on my doorstep, I'll throw my hat into the ring.

Have one or two ideas, but need to think when I've actually had some sleep.

[Kylarnatia]

During the course of Chains, I intend to explore a number of narrative threads - some critical, others mostly just interesting flavour - that occur during the timespan of this RP. The overarching theme will be Kylarnatia's - and by extension, the Caesar's - growing pivotal role in preparing for the inevitable conflict that's coming with the Kraven Reich. Having been a vocal proponent of the recent Reforms alongside Ghant and Havensky, the Imperium Antiquum will be investing a lot of time and effort in doing what it can to prepare the region and perfect it's strategies and forces. Throughout all of that, there will be a lot of diplomacy, tying in a lot of events happening in other threads such as the conflicts in Varathron and Shen Almaru, and looking to the future from both a geopolitical and also more character-based standpoint. If I had to choose one word to describe the overarching theme, it might be Legacy.

To that end, some of the things I intend to explore in this thread (subject to change, and certainly not limited to) are the following:

• Caesar's 40th Birthday and 15th Ascension Year / Imperial Address: Set directly after the conclusion of Twain, Caesar's Birthday will likely be the opening story for me in Chains, mostly as an opportunity to introduce key characters and maybe get the ball rolling on diplomacy. The 15th 'Ascension Year' celebrations and subsequent Imperial Address will be where the Caesar sets out her plans for the next five years, and some of those plans will likely feature as future subplots in this RP. Prime Minister Atticus of Havensky is going to be the Caesar's Guest of Honour, though other foreign dignitaries are welcome. If you come to the B'day celebrations, bring a gift, especially if you want to use this as a springboard to start relations.
  
• The Courting of Princess Sara of Ghant / 'Making an Emperor': Leading on from events in Twain, Chains will be a change to explore the young and flourishing relationship of Princess Sara of Ghant and Haeres Julianus Kain Silvanus, heir apparent to the Caesar. This will likely feature a state visit from the Ghantish Royal Children and their mother the Empress to Krytopia, which will also allow exploration of the personal friendship and diplomatic partnership of the Empress of Ghant and Caesar, and will also see Caesar attempt to make a good and lasting impression on young Crown Prince Nathan, aka Bebe.
  
• Hyperion and the Praetors: Dux Imperator Hyperion has taken a personal interest in the Praetor programme, and in the events of Twain, proposed helping to train the young Prince Ryslander of Aldarminia alongside the Skyan Praetor Gavin Squall and the Lamehkian Praetor Serana Malus. This means he's likely to be entangled in varying degrees with what goes down with the Praetors throughout the roleplay, and will likely see him form bonds with them (particularly the former three mentioned), also as a way of expanding an otherwise mysterious yet omnipresent character.
  
• Semper Certans, Gholgoth: As mentioned, a lot of what probably goes down will pertain to Kylarnatia's attempts to strengthen the resolve of the Gothic Alliance. This will likely explore a lot of the diplomatic ties and personal relationships between the Caesar/Kylarnatia and characters/nations, in particular Emperor Nathan/Ghant, Atticus/Havensky, Emperor Dalikharl / Aldarminia (pending a return), Tristan Skragg / Dephire, The Anax's and Archpriestess / Telros, Basilissa Renuane al'Maw / Jagada and likely more.

Again, by no means a final list, but those are definitely some ideas that have been discussed on the Discord / with various players so far. There's also likely to be some curveballs / "one-shot" type events thrown in. If any of you - in particular those of you from Dienstad - have ideas on how you might like to interact together throughout the course of Chains, you can either hit me up here or over at the Gholgoth or GD discords and we can definitely hash something out.

As I'm busy with my thesis right now it's unlikely I'll have a post up super soon, but at the absolute latest once we get into May things should start clearing up for me. I'll hopefully have something going before then though.

[Deutschess Kaiserreich]

That is one long OP. Will take me a while.

[LOVE DOG]

As a new member of Gholgoth and GD, I'll have to find a way into this. Just going to have to find the time to post and catch up on the rp.

[CoraSpia]

I will have to fit this in and around a tight schedule, but this rp might lead to me actually doing something in ns.
Velstrania, in its precarious position as a large power in Varathron will be looking to strengthen its position, and make new friends given the political hostility it has with both main combatants.