United Dinosaur States Factbook (MT Version)

[Saurisisia]

Introduction

Greetings, outsider. You are about to read the detailed factbook of the United Dinosaur States of Saurisia, one of the few nations on the entire planet to be populated largely by sapient Dinosaurs. You will learn all about our geography, culture, government, people, economy, history, and military. I sincerely hope you will enjoy reading all about our great nation. Patria Stellionum Magnorum.

[Saurisisia]

Geography

First off, Saurisia is a largely island nation, or should we say, islands nations, since most of Saurisia is composed of assorted continents, islands, island chains, and atolls scattered about all around the world's oceans, with a few colonies located on continents that are home to other countries/colonies.

The core of Saurisia's territories is what is known as "Saurisian Proper", basically an assorted group of continents and islands grouped together in a close proximity of each other. In the center of the island group is the continent Reptilia, a continent 8,459,293 sq mi in land sized. Surrounding it are the continents Drakónia (7,891,459 sq mi), Mesozoica (7,502,784 sq mi), Jurassica (6,935,602 sq mi), and Triassica (6,634,300 sq mi) as well as the large islands Khalkia (2,458,645 sq mi), Khazad (970,568 sq mi), Pomeria (780,322 sq mi), Mammalia (726,451 sq mi), and Cetacea (234,360 sq mi), along with a multitude of smaller islands dotting the seas surrounding these huge landmasses.

For the most part, most of these landmasses are tropical, covered in thick jungles, vast savannas, rolling forested hills and mountains, and hot, sticky swamps. Triassica is a notable exception, being mostly consisting of deserts, savannas, and arid forests. Reptilia and Drakónia's forests consist largely of broad-leafed trees, unlike Triassica, Pomeria, Jurassica, and Mesozoica which are dominated by tropical conifer forests mixed with the occasional broad-leafed tree here and there. Khazad is particularly mountainous, being renown for its huge towering mountain ranges. Khalkia is also largely swampy, with jungles here and there. Cetacea is also renown for its largely flat land, large amount of beaches, as well as its relative lack of native wildlife on land.

The highest point in Saurisia is Zirakzul in central Khazad, which stands at 34,561 feet and is interestingly enough the mountain under which the primary Dwarven city, Mazardum, is located. It is barely a foot taller than the second-highest mountain, Hathgar peak in central Drakónia.
The lowest point in Saurisia, on the other hand, is the Atiqan Depression in western Triassica, which is 543 feet below sea level and has traditionally been avoided by the nomadic Triassican tribes due to its inhospitality.



A view of the Atiqan Depression

The seas surrounding the Home Islands are shallow and are home to abundant wildlife, much of it also quite dangerous for people to traverse. Thus, boats must cross these waters with caution, for hungry and aggressive beasts lurk below the waves. The Saurian Sea is notable for its abundance of Marine Reptile wildlife, from massive Mosasaurs to mere sea snakes, much of which somehow survived the great K-T Extinction Event; whales do occasionally venture into these seas though they often do so with great caution considering they are a primary prey for the larger marine reptiles which can easily slice through the average whale with relative ease.

Natural hazards include Earthquakes, floods, volcanic eruptions, hurricanes, and the wildlife. The former is quite frequent on Mammalia and citizens there are advised to be absolutely ready. Floods are common in most places, especially in the tropical regions, due to heavy amounts of annual rainfall during the Wet Season. Volcanic eruptions are rare, usually occurring only once every one to five hundred years, but they are nonetheless devastating. Thus, many people living near volcanoes are prepared to evacuate if there's a danger of eruption. Hurricanes are quite frequent, especially in the tropical regions. Nowadays, they cause few fatalities, though they can wreak a grievous amount of damage. And finally, the wildlife can be especially dangerous, considering the huge abundance of Dinosaurs, Pterosaurs, Marine Reptiles, large Lizards, Crocodiles, Snakes, and even Dragons that live in Saurisia's lands. All of these ensure that people must be cautious when in rural areas and it can be a danger if one or more of these creatures wanders into an urban area.

Saurisia is also home to an abundance of natural resources, which the country exploits to the fullest. These include coal, oil, gold, silver, uranium, zinc, copper, iron, and some others. As a result, the local mining industry is a large and powerful one indeed.

Land use consists of 36% Urban Area, 30% Jungle and other inarable land, and 24% Arable land.

Environmental issues are overpopulation and resource management. The former is one which can be simply addressed by expansion into new lands and even into space in the coming decades. The latter, on the other hand, is a more challenging issue and corporations have to take care of how they manage resources.

[Saurisisia]

Economy

The Saurisian economy is a very powerful and a very large one, due to the limited amount of government interference and regulation and the free enterprise culture. The GDP is a total of $105,044,000,000,000 while the GDP per capita is a total of $45,545.46. The total percentage of people under the poverty line is 13% while the unemployment rate is 5%. There is no income tax, instead there is a Flat Tax that is at 5% and a tax on all imported goods (except those from most Reptilian-dominated countries) that is at 8.5%. The federal budget is a total of $12,007,000,000,000 while the government waste is $365,011,000,000.

The primary industries are software, manufacturing, farming, logging, mining, and defense. The primary agricultural products include crops such as wheat, tomatoes, corn, apples, mangoes, bananas, sugar, chocolate, and coffee as well as meats like cow, duck, chicken, pig, goose, sheep, goat, and Hadrosaur. The primary exports are Software, vehicles, weapons, fur pelts, lumber, crops, and meat while the primary imports are woodwork and a few other such products.

The currency of Saurisia is the Dino Dollar, adopted in 1795, replacing the gold, silver, and bronze coins used before that time. Its currency code is SDD and its symbol is DD. The exchange rate for the Dino Dollar is 1 Dino Dollar = 2.76 US Dollars.

[Saurisisia]

History Part 1: In the Beginning

Some 250 million years ago, a group of Reptiles living in what will become Saurisia emerged into prominence. These creatures, having major advantages over their more primitive competitors, came to dominate the land by the end of the Triassic period, with the competing Synapsids driven to extinction, with the exception of a small population in what is to become Triassica. Those creatures who were now dominating the environment would become known as: the Dinosaurs.

Over the next one hundred million years, the Dinosaurs and their relatives grew and prospered as they came to dominate the land, the sea, and the air as part of a long period known to science as the Age of Reptiles. As the Jurassic Period gave way to the Cretaceous Period, the Dinosaurs became more diverse, with new genuses and species appearing. They spread all across the land, with some even living in the colder regions to the north, in the process adapting by becoming warm-blooded and in some cases even growing feathers all over their bodies to protect them from the cold.

However, some 65 million years ago, the Dinosaurs' reign ended when some sort of catastrophic cataclysm occurred, wiping out the Dinosaurs and most of their relative species. At least, most of them, for there were still Dinosaurs still living in the land that will become Saurisia.

The Dinosaurs continued to thrive in the lands of future Saurisia even as the mammals began to take over elsewhere on an Earth recovering from one of the most devastating extinction events in history. At some point approximately 57 million years ago, a group of Reptiles emerged out of the Order Dinosauria. These Saurians were predominately quadruped and most had wings that grew out of their backs and spines that went down their necks and backs all the way to their tails. What really set them apart from other Reptiles was their unique ability to breathe fire and other elements. Intelligent and crafty hunters, these Reptiles were to become the Saurisian Dragons, ancient rivals to the Dinosaurs.

Then, at some point approximately 25-20 million years ago, the Dinosaurs and indeed most of the other species living in the land began to change. Some of them began evolving, developing more advanced intelligence and the ability to stand on their hind legs, even for those who hailed from quadrupedal species. At some point, these species developed sapience, the beginning of a new era for the Dinosaurs and other Reptiles of Saurisia.

At first, the members of these new advanced species began living in caves or out in the open, though later they began making their own shelters from plant material as well as the skin of some of the animals they hunted. At around 10-15 million years ago, they began settling down, developing agriculture and later building cities. Eventually, approximately 8-14.5 million years ago, the first civilizations began appearing, Drakoa in Drakonia, the Ragnas Civilization in Khalkia, and the Talonus civilization in Mesozoica.

The sapient species of the land began developing their civilizations as they continued to prosper and advance. However, they were divided and very much afraid of the outside world and whether they were truly alone in the land or not.

[Saurisisia]

History Part 2: Founding a City

By the dawn of the 6th century BC, the lands of what were to become Saurisia were splintered into many different smaller city-states, kingdoms, principalities, duchies, tribal confederations, and the like across the different continents and islands that dotted the Saurian Archipelago. These different states warred with each constantly over land, food, water, political and international disputes, and ancient rivalries and blood disputes.

In 660 BC, the city-state of Thera, located in the north of the continent Reptilia, began one such war with its neighbor and rival, the city-state of Herbus. This conflict lasted two years and was but one of many such wars between the various states. However, it had deep impressions on one soldier of Thera who was haunted by the violence.

That soldier was Julius Sharptoothus, a young male Tyrannosaurus who was the son of a rich merchant. Julius was horrified by the terrible bloodiness of the war and by how he and his fellow subjects and soldiers were treated by their leaders, specifically the King. Eventually, he realized that he was better off living on his own, under his own rule and authority. He soon began making preparations to leave for the wilderness, all the while telling his friends and family about his newfound convictions.

Over the years, as he made his preparations, Julius gained a following of individuals who sought refuge in his beliefs and hoped that he would lead them to a better, less oppressive life. Finally, in 592 BC, they were ready and thus set off after dark, all the while slipping past the soldiers who guarded the outskirts of Theran territory.

Julius, now eighty-five years of age, led them deep into the wilderness. They trekked through the uninhabited lands deep within the heart of the continent, dodging the vicious wildlife, terrible floods, and violent volcanic eruptions. After weeks of travel, they had arrived along the shores of a vast bay on the western coast of the continent, unsettled and fertile. Seeing the area around the bay as a perfect spot for a settlement, they established themselves here.

At first, they lived out in the open, prime targets for dangerous animals on the hunt. Eventually, they began erecting structures made out of grass, reeds, and sticks. A village appeared beside the calm water of the bay where the settlers hunted for fish and shellfish. Julius's followers were eking out a living in this harsh wilderness.

However, they soon realized that they wouldn't be left alone, for scouts reported seeing a sizable army heading towards their settlement. Apparently, the King of Thera, Brutus Talus, was infuriated by Julius's exodus and had his scouts follow the group before alerting the King of Julius and his followers' settlement. He then sent an army of 25,000 to march across the continent and wipe out the settlement.

Horrified what was about to befall them, those inhabitants strong enough to bare weapons (even females) gathered up what arms they had brought with them and, with Julius in the lead, set out to fight for their families and their very lives. They set up an ambush in a thick forest northeast of the settlement where they surprised the Therans and slaughtered many of them before the rest retreated.

Determined to crush the village, the King sent more troops out, however they were intercepted by the armies of a coalition of different city-states, duchies, and principalities united in their hatred of Thera's growing power and arrogance and their will to defend this tiny helpless settlement. The armies of Thera battled it out with the coalition and the forces of the settlement, which Julius had named Saurus, for another two years before finally, King Brutus called off all attacks against the village.

By this time, Saurus had grown into a sizable town, now composed of brick buildings, and was growing steadily by the day. The town was engaged in lucrative trades with the states who had aided it in its triumph over the Therans. This led to the tiny town growing more and more prosperous, especially as it sold crops, meat, minerals, and other products found in the area to other states across the continent.

By the end of the conflict, Julius had declared himself King of Saurus, as suggested by his grateful followers and at the behest of both friends and family. He continued to rule over the prosperous town until his death in 483 BC, at the extreme old age of 194. He was succeeded by his son, Brutus Sharpii who was age 63 at the time he took the throne.

The nation continued to prosper over the next few centuries, growing from a small town into a prosperous city of stone and marble which rivaled any other in Reptilia. The inhabitants grew rich from the trade and diversified as more and more migrated from other states and even from across the ocean itself.

It seemed that the state was at peace as it continued expanding its borders, eventually absorbing Thera itself after a bitter war. However, there were dark clouds ahead in the future of Saurus.

[Saurisisia]

History Part 3: A Country in Upheaval

The city of Saurus grew and prospered for nearly four centuries, acquiring more territory through conquest as well as peaceful annexation and expansion. The tiny state was prosperous under the Kings and all was peaceful.

However, that peace ended in the year 193 when, fed up with years of inept rule under the irresponsible young King Saurus Tyrannus Grippo, the people rose up in rebellion and overthrew him. The young King and his immediate family were sent into exile to the far north, yet the rest of the old gens of Tyrannus were allowed to remain in Saurus due to what Julius and Saurus's predecessors had done before. They were never able to reclaim the the old throne of Saurus.

In the place of the Kings, the people of Saurus formed a Republican government as suggested by Marcus Brachio. Under the new government, the country, now known as the Saurian Republic, flourished at first. However, towards the end of the 2nd century BC, the first signs of fracture began to appear. The Senate continuously devolved into an endless circle of arguments, slandering, and corruption as Senators spent more time screaming at and plotting against their political rivals rather than really and truly getting the job done.

As the Republic began to fracture and devolve into political chaos, powerful individuals within the nation, politicians, generals, merchants, and nobility, began to conspire against their political foes, adding to the chaos. In addition, the Republic was continuously pressed against from all sides by enemies seeing the chaos in Saurus as an opportunity to gain more power for themselves at the expense of their hated Saurian enemies. The Republic lost countless wars with thousands of troops being slaughtered by her enemies while only barely holding off her neighbors from truly devastating the country.

It was in this time of upheaval that one Dino rose to prominence in the middle of the 1st century BC who sought to bring order where there was chaos. His name was Reptilius Julius Talius, a famous General who was greatly distressed by how far the Republic had fallen and was determined to restore honor to a once-proud country which was now the laughingstock of Reptilia.

The first thing he did was reform the Army, which since the days of Saurus' early beginnings was comprised merely of citizen-soldiers, most of whom had been conscripted into the Army and were ill-disciplined and ill-trained. Julius made it into a powerful fighting force of well-trained and well-disciplined professional soldiers who were highly-motivated and well-equipped. This ensured that the Army was more effective in combat and indeed managed to trounce its enemies in several battles that were fought after the Reforms.

Next, Julius sought to regain the Republic's prestige and honor by waging a war of aggression against the nation's most bitter foes, the Mosan Empire and the Kingdom of Pterra, as well as to exact vengeance against those whom had taken so many Saurian lives. So from 54 BC onwards, he launched multiple campaigns against the Mosans and Pterrans and engaged with them and their allies in numerous battles until at last emerging triumphant in 51 BC, with the final enemy city taken and the two nations being absorbed into the Republic.

With the enemies of the Republic gone, Julius and his exhausted army of combat-hardened veterans returned to Saurus. He was now determined to turn his focus against the Senate, the center of corruption and chaos which had plagued the nation for nearly a century, where some Senators were increasingly critical and suspicious of Julius, fearing his growing power within the Republic. Seeking to crush his political enemies, Julius marched his army right into the capital, which the Senate perceived an act of rebellion and sparked a brutal civil war between various conflicting factions within the Republic, including Julius and his loyal followers.

Over the course of the next seven years, Julius's men clashed with those of other factions in a conflict which had only been inevitable for many, many decades. After countless clashes and thousands perishing, Julius emerged triumphant, having crushed his foes in the Republic. With that, he set out to dissolve the Republic and establish himself as Dictator-for-Life of the new Saurian Imperium in 45 BC.

However, Julius was assassinated the following year by rivals whom had stayed in the shadows, keeping away from the massive conflict which had engulfed the nation. In response to this, Julius's personal student and top general, Gaius Bruticus Fragilis waged a personal war of revenge against the conspirators of the murder and its supporters. Bruticus hunted down his tutor's old enemies and battled their armies wherever he found them. His troops traversed all over the continent, even venturing off it in 42 BC when Bruticus pursued a former Consul, Flavius Ankylus, his most trusted second-in-command (and alleged homosexual lover) Marcus Antirrophus, and his private army of mercenaries, regular army troops, and militias from most of the outlaying provinces within the state.

Bruticus pursued Anklyus and Antirrophus to the island of Cetacea where he and his forces came into contact with the strange smooth-skinned natives who had sent out a warband to challenge the strange foreign Reptiles. Bruticus' troops decimated them and soon found Anklyus's camp, which was under attack by more native warriors. His Dinos stormed the camp, slaughtering all in their path, whether they be native or one of Ankylus's troops. Bruticus himself confronted the two commanders and, after a long adrenaline-pumping swordfight, managed to slay both of them, despite Ankylus's greater size and strength and Antirrophus's agility. It is said that he killed them not just for their part in the assassination of his mentor but also because of their homosexual relationship, which was taboo in Saurian culture. After they were done, they looted the camp and burned it to the ground before departing, a number of prisoners and newly-captured natives marked to be made slaves on board their ships.

The war continued on before finally in 39 BC, there was only enemy left: the treacherous Karchus Struthius, a friend of Julius Tailis since the beginnings of the latter's career in the Army who had betrayed him to his assassins and even was there beside the dying General. Karchus was hiding out in the small principality of Dactylus, which had merely been a Protectorate of the Republic for 77 years, where his lover, Princess Occi, sheltered him for Fragilis' terrible wrath.

Unfortunately for her, Bruticus did not flinch at the thought of invading another nation and this he did with his legions, where he crushed the Dactylan Army at the Battle of Petrae. Panicked, the two lovers fled to the nearby adjacent island of Ornithus where they were protected by the Dactylan Navy. In response, Bruticus amassed his own fleet and set out for the island. They were met by the Dactylan force and the two fleets did battle offshore, with the Saurian fleet triumphing over the Dactylans. However, the two lovers were able to sneak away during the battle on board one of a few number of ships and land at the mainland port of Wingius. There, they committed suicide when they realized that all hope was lost.

Ecstatic, Bruticus annexed Dactylus into the Republic before heading back home to Saurus in triumph. There, he was greeted by a cheering public, happy to see that the years of strife and civil war were over. Indeed, Bruticus reestablished the Republic, merely to ensure that there would be no criticism of his reign, but also ensured that there was only one Consul who was appointed by his predecessor upon retirement. This ensured that the new Republic would be more stable than the old one and ensure the peace and prosperity of the nation.

A new era had begun, one that would result in the continued growth of the Republic and the future unification of a new nation that would be born from the ashes of the old.

[Saurisisia]

History Part 4: The Republic Grows Onward

After the restoration of the Republic after years of constant civil war, the nation entered a time of relative peace, dubbed Pax Sauriana. This last some 250 years until AD 289 when outlaying provinces bordering other nations on the continent came under constant attack from raiding parties sent by these nations. In response, the garrisons stationed in these provinces attacked the raiding parties and moved into their own territory, wreaking havoc along the way.

Eventually, these raids settled, but not after countless battles had been waged. And there was some quiet until in 410 AD when coastal villages came under attack by new raiding parties consisting of beastly monsters from across the seas. These new raiding parties were quickly beaten off, but not before a new threat emerged.

In 432, an army of 10,000 of these creatures landed 50 miles to the north of Sauropolis. In response, several legions consisting some 13,000 troops marched up to face the beasts. The two forces did battle and after several hours of brutal fighting, the Saurians triumphed, annihilating the monster army.

Peace ensued until 480 when a coalition of nations led by the Barys Republic launched an attack against the easternmost Saurian provinces. The Army responded by sending a number of legions to beat these assaults back. A series of bloody clashes ensued, most ending with the Saurians driving the invaders out, but others ended with the Saurians having to retreat and the enemy continuing on his advance.

The attack grounded to a halt and the coalition forces were quickly pushed back out of Saurian territory and the Legions quickly counterattacked and launched a series of campaigns which led to the destruction of the enemy armies, death or capture of most of their leaders and Generals, and the taking of their capitals. They were soon after annexed into the Republic, which had further grew in size and strength due to the war and now stretched from one side of the continent of Reptilia to the other.

The only other state that was left on the continent herself was the growing Kingdom of Raptoria to the north of the continent as well as a colony of strange creatures beyond the sea whom kept to themselves on the far southern tip of the continent.

With the continent left largely to themselves, the Saurians began expanding outward and establishing more trade with the nations that were beyond the seas. In particular, the mysterious Kingdom of Drakonia, home of the strange Drakonians. The Saurians quickly dubbed the Drakonians 'Dragons', a name that would quickly send shivers through their blood as they came to interact more and more with the Drakonians.

[Saurisisia]

History Part Five: Expansion And Conflict

In the aftermath of the defeat of the Barys Coalition, the Republic continued expanding ever onward. The nation began sending ships out to sea to explore lands beyond the horizon, though travel at this time was merely limited to the islands and continents surrounding Reptilia. Among these was the land that would later become known as Jurassica.

There, they establish a town along the eastern coast, dubbing it Jurassis. At first, the little town prospered, flourishing on trade and hunting. However, the colony quickly ran into problems, not just from the humungous megafauna that was very widespread on the continent but from a nearby neighbor. It turned out that the Drakonians had established a colony only 12 miles to the north of the Saurian one, which they dubbed Gianir.

Soon, the two colonies competed for resources and relations between the inhabitants of both quickly soured. Confrontations between settlers from both colonies were commonplace, so much so that both nations had to post garrisons of troops there to keep the peace. Unfortunately, that only aggravated the situation as soon tensions reached the boiling point due to several small skirmishes occurring between Drakonian and Saurian scouting parties.

At last, the tensions exploded into outright conflict when both amassed armies of roughly equal size, about 25,000 strong, and marched to battle on a vast grassland that stood between the two colonies. The two sides did battle, which lasted nearly the whole day as both armies tried to gain the advantage.

The Saurians sought to use their powerful infantry, fast hard-hitting cavalry, air attacks conducted by Pterosaur skirmishers, and fearsome Attack Raptors to break the Drakonian lines. The Drakonians, on the other hand, attempted to utilize their stronger troops, their use of fire breaths, powerful magic-wielding skills, as well as their fierce Regulus Dragon allies to smash the Saurians. However, with both sides utilizing their battle-tested tactics, the battle soon proved to be a draw with neither side being able to gain the advantage for long. Soon, both armies grew weary as they had fought practically all day with little result to show for it.

Eventually, both armies retreated from the battlefield, returning to the towns exhausted and depleted. When word got out of what happened, outrage swept through both nations. Both the Drakonian Kingdom and the Saurian Republic called up their armies and fleets, preparing to wage war on their newfound enemy.

Both sides launched invasions against the other's outlaying colonies, including both Jurassis and Gianir. However, little fruition came of this as few gains were made at the expense of thousands of soldiers dead. Both nations agreed to a peace two years later, though that would not last long.

Over the centuries, countless wars were waged between the Kingdom of Drakonia and the Saurian Republic. There were even some conflicts against other nations the Republic encountered, particularly the Kingdom of Khalkia. Of course, neither side ever really won any noteworthy gains, though the situation would set the stage for the future unification of a new nation.

[Saurisisia]

History Chapter 6: Path to Union

Over the next millennium, the Republic grew and expanded ever onwards. More and more colonies were established overseas and the people grew prosperous and confident in their nation's future. However, as the Republic's power grew, so did that of her enemies, jealous of her vast wealth. They began preparing to make a move against the Republic. The first of these nations to do so was the Raptorian Empire, situated to the north of the continent. The Raptorians, resentful of the fact that their fellow Dromaeosaurs being under Saurian dominion, launched a sudden attack in 1231.

The result was a long drawn out war between the Empire and the Republic as the latter sought to force out the latter. Finally, the tide turned in 1240, and the Raptorians were pushed back. The Saurian offensive continued, until the final Raptorian stronghold, Deinon, fell in 1243. The Empire ceased to exist and its territories were absorbed into the Republic, its people now under Saurian rule.

Following this hard-fought victory, the Republic continued to look forward to a bright future, with new colonies being established and contact being forged with the other civilizations that inhabited the area. However, in 1258, the Kingdom of Drakonia formed the League of Drakonis, an alliance dedicated to curbing Saurian power and influence. By the end of the century, the Cetacean Federation, Duchy of Canis, Squamat Commonwealth, Croc Empire, Pachys Matriarchy, Serpen Confederation, Principality of Khalkia, Ungulate Union, Kingdom of Clawchester, and the Pteris Queendom had all joined the League.

The League launched a continuous series of wars aimed at stopping the Saurians from becoming too powerful. Over the three hundred years, the two sides fought it out, with neither side gaining an advantage. As these conflicts raged, there were a number of incidents where one side would pull a shocking stunt, hoping to anger the other greatly enough to answer militarily so that they would crush the other side's army. One of the more notable incidents was the sacking of the Saurian colony of Plateus by League forces, in particular the raping of many Saurian females by drunken Canisian soldiers. The most notorious example being the rape of a young noblewoman who had been ganged up on by several soldiers and was sent back home afterwards. The incident caused an upsurge in outrage and the Republic responded by similarly besieging and sacking a Canisian settlement near Plateus, doing the same to the local females as the Mammalian Canisians had done to their own.

It continued on, with no clear gains made, while the native nations on Triassica, Mesozoica, Reptilia, and Pomeria made concerted efforts to forestall foreign incursion into their land. Then, in 1532, the inhabitants of northeast Reptilia, a sparsely populated region inhabited mostly by primitive Saurian tribes, happened to notice strange ships appear off the coast. Watching them dispersed smaller boats filled with various beings, those natives watching the ships could see that they were unlike any other being they had seen before. To these primitive tribesdinos, the creatures were alien in appearance.

In reality, they were men from Spain, sent by the King to explore Reptilia, which had recently been stumbled upon by weary ship travelers. As the explorers landed, the natives fled back inland to warn their villages of the strangers' appearance. Seeing no natives on the beach, the Spaniards set about to claim the land for Spain before heading inland. The natives, upon receiving word of the strange intruders, decided to keep watch on them while messengers would be sent to the nearest Saurian town to spread word about the mysterious newcomers.


Artist's depiction of the Spaniards' landing

The Spaniards cut their way through the thick jungle, their ranks fearful about the strange creatures that seemed to prowl the undergrowth. Toothless birds, winged lizards, featherless birds, and strange swift Reptilian-looking creatures, all caused the men to become nervous, unaccustomed to such wildlife. Nevertheless, they continued onward, their leader, Fransisco Valejara, ever more curious about this land.

Soon enough, the tribal messengers had reached the town and began spreading the word about the strange intruders. Alarmed, the local commander, an Allosaurus by the name of Brutus Allo, led a force of 850 skirmishers into the jungle to track down the Spaniards, aided by the natives. Eventually, they found them, trying to cross a little river. Allo spread his troops out in attempt to completely surround the Spanish to have a more effective field of fire. Once they were in position, Allo gave the order to open fire. A hail of bullets and arrows immediately rained down on the explorers right after the order was given, cutting down many of the men (and horses) in the group. Desperate, Valejara tried to rally his men, but a second volley opened up soon after, taking down many more. Finally, Valejara rallied his remaining soldiers though morale was crumbling, especially as Allo ordered a final charge to completely rout the Spaniards. That did it, as many of the Spanish fled for their lives, trying to get away from the terrifying Dragon-like creatures coming out of the jungle. Those unable to escape or who had been wounded were quickly taken prisoner, among them Valejara, who had taken an arrow to the leg. They were brought back to the town before being escorted all the way to Saurus itself. Allo's men and the natives shadowed the fleeing Spaniards as they retreated back to the coast, where they warned their fellows about the dangerous locals.

Frightened by some of the descriptions of the natives, the Spaniards disassembled their camp, gathered all their men, and headed back offshore, back to their ships. Once on board, the ships set sail, fleeing back to Spain. The prisoners, meanwhile, were interrogated as soon as they reached the capital. There, they managed to dissuade everything the Saurians wanted to know, which they wrote down and stored it away amongst their other records. The Spaniards would remain the prisoners of the Saurians until their eventual deaths and after that, Saurian scientists examined their bodies and inner workings, having dipped them in special preservatives to keep them from decomposing. They wrote down many of their findings and discoveries about the Spaniards' anatomy. Once they returned to Spain, the remaining explorers explained to the King about what had befallen their expedition. The King, not believing their story and angered by their failure, had them imprisoned and all records of the expedition eventually disappeared by the end of the century.

Thus had ended the Spanish incursion and the Saurians' first encounter with the Human race. There would be more encounters over the succeeding centuries, some with dark consequences for the Republic. Today, a bridge stands over the stretch of river where the Spaniards had attempted to cross. A plaque stands at the base on the bank of the river, reachable via foot path, that commemorates Allo's daring and both the tribals and skirmishers who had beaten them off.

The bridge spanning the river, the plaque beyond the picture below

It was also at this time that the seeds would be sown for the next chapter in Saurisian history. In 1554, a clutch of hatchlings were born to a young rural couple living in the plains of central Reptilia. They were Marcus and Julia Horridus, a Triceratops couple living in a small farming village. The oldest of these children, who would grow up to be the smartest of his clutch, they dubbed John. John proved to be surprisingly intelligent, seemingly gifted with wisdom far beyond his years. At first, he helped his father out once he was old enough like his siblings did. But then, seeking something more, migrated to the bustling city of Saurus once he was old enough. There, he made a living working as a merchant's apprentice, eventually taking over the business after the merchant retired.

He soon made a living working as a merchant, eventually gaining a substantial amount of money. It was about this time, 1575, that he began delving into politics. At first speaking at public gatherings, he eventually ran as Senator, an election which he easily won due to his wisdom and success, as well as the incompetence of his opponent. He served in the Senate until, in 1580, he was appointed as Secretary of the Treasury due to his knack with economics and money. Then, in 1589, he was made successor to the Consul, Peter Carolinii, who had retired at age 101. The ordinary farm boy had now become the most powerful being in the Republic and he stood poised to make changes for the better of his country. The road that would lead to Saurisia's unification had now begun.

[Saurisisia]

Chapter 7: Uniting Through Toil

After John took office as Consul, he immediately set out to build up the Army and Navy as well as overhaul the Saurian political system. Over the next twenty years, he had reformed the Army from a motley force of regional state levies and mercenaries with an elite corps of professional soldiers into a modern efficient fighting force keenly adept in the tactics and fighting styles of the era. The new army was largely professional, backed up by levies and mercenaries, for the first time since the early Medieval era. At the same time, he reformed the Navy, transforming it from a poorly-equipped coastal force to a fleet capable of fighting anywhere on the high seas.

He also implemented societal changes, greatly renovating the aging highway system that had crossed the various provinces and was used for speedy travel. He also repaired the Aqueduct system, which had been falling apart for years. Finally, he also put an emphasis on trade, taking a laissez-faire approach to merchants and trade.

In 1617, fearing the recent rise of the new Consuls in the Republic, launched an all-out assault against the Republic and her allies. The newly-reformed Army eventually put a halt to the attack by 1619 and by 1620, was pressing the attack. The bolstered Navy engaged in countless battles against the combined fleets of the League states, trying to gain naval superiority. Despite having the initiative, the Republic's advance proved slow due to stiff resistance as they attack League territories.

In May, 1622, an army of 25,000 troops landed on the western tip of the continent of Cetacea. They pushed through the continent, struggling with the more poorly-equipped but highly-spirited native forces. Eventually, though, they managed to push all the way to the east and captured the capital, Cetacis. Cetacea was deemed fully-secured by mid-July.

In retaliation, the League launched an offensive against Republican holdings in Triassica on July 25th, threatening to cut the Republic state in two. At the last minute, however, they were pushed back at the Battle of Trodo Crossing on September 6th. They were pushed back slowly, before finally retreating offshore on November 3rd.

On November 20th, the Republic launched an attack against the continent of Mammalia, dominated by the League states of the Duchy of Canis, Pachys Matriarchy, and the Ungulate Union. The attack was meant to knock all three nations out of the war, though the attack was slow at first, especially getting through the snow-covered south as well as over the mountains in the center. However, with the aid of skilled engineers from the Kingdom of Khazad from the south (which had broke its neutrality and declared war against the League on October 30), they managed to push through the mountains. However, operations in the south stalled until the Spring, whereby the offensive was renewed against the Duchy of Canis. The pressure against the Duchy intensified with the arrival of a force from Khazad on the south coast on April 18th. With the Saurians pressing from the north and the Dwarves from the south, the Canisians were finally overwhelmed and by April 30th, resistance in Mammalia had finally collapsed.

Meanwhile, on April 24th, the Drakonians, Khalkians, and Squamats landed a force of 30,000 on Reptilia, just 30 miles to the north of Saurus. They pushed their way down to the coast, though they were slowed by the hostile wildlife as well as stiff resistance from locals who simply got out their matchlocks, swords, axes, crossbows, and pikes and ran into the jungle to repel the invaders. On May 1st, when they just 18 miles from the capital, they were confronted by a force of equal strength, consisting of both regulars and levies near the small town of Talonus. After a five-hour clash, the League forces were forced to retreat back north, shadowed by the Saurians all the way. At last, on May 5th, they left shore and boarded ships that took them back to Drakonia, ending their attempt to seize the Saurian capital.

With the League thrown back out of Reptilia, the Republic and her allies went one step further and launched a double attack against the continents of Pomeria and Khalkia in 1624. Both began almost simultaneously, with the attack against Pomeria beginning on May 21st, and the one against Khalkia on May 25th. Both involved a total of 58,000 Saurian and allied troops in all against the forces of Khalkia, the Serpen Confederation, and Clawchester. Both campaigns were hard fights, especially the one in Khalkia due to the incredibly thick jungles and swamps that permeated the continent as well as the Khalkans themselves, who were masters at guerrilla warfare. Clawchester, with the help of the allied Königreich of Pomeria, was finally overwhelmed on June 12th.

In the early Spring of 1625, with most of the League states either completely occupied or having had switched allegiances to save them the humiliation of being subjected to occupation, the Republic and her allies were preparing to launch the final assault against Drakonia. Consul Horridus himself was to take charge of the assault, confident in seeing the final stage of the war draw out and the old enemy of his beloved Patria subdued.

In order to attack the Drakonian Kingdom, however, the Saurians needed to remove their navy from the question. So, a grand fleet of 250 ships was amassed and sailed around the continent in order to entice the Drakonian fleet to come out in full force. Taking the bait, the Drakonians sent out a similarly-sized force and the two engaged in battle at Cape Bluthris off the north coast of the continent. The battle raged for hours and resulted in grievous losses for both sides, but the Saurians emerged victorious. The Drakonian navy was shattered, clearing the way for the invasion of Drakonia itself.


Artist's depiction of the Battle of Cape Bluthris

On March 29th, 25,000 troops were landed on the southwestern tip of Drakonia while another force of 20,000 was landed on the northeast coast and 18,000 were landed on the northwest coast. All attacked near simultaneously, assaulting the Drakonian Army. The Drakonians, utilizing both modern (at least for the early 17th century) and Medieval weaponry. Pikedragons and musketeers fighting alongside swordsdragons, mages, and Paladins (the elite infantry of the Drakonian Army, equivalent to Saurians' knights). The Drakonians also employed heavy use of magic, which inflicted significant casualties to the Allied Army as well as bolstering their comrades. Their Regulus Dragon allies also inflicted some casualties as well, with their elemental and melee attacks. However, they didn't reckon with Horridus, who possessed great cunning. He ordered his musketdinos and crossbowdinos to concentrate fire on the battle mages. He also implemented modified cannons, usually fitted to the backs of Nodosaurs, Ptrotoceratopses, and other similarly-sized Dinosaurs, which were able to fire upwards. Firing grapeshot, they would be able to take the great beasts down. Battle Pterosaurs were also sent up to harass the Regulus Dragons and tear out their wing membrane and wound them enough to force them to withdraw.

Horridus' tactics worked, the Drakonians lost many battle mages and Regulus allies. Eventually, they were pushed back by the Allied force, which was bolstered with an additional 30,000 reinforcements, by April 19th. The Allies pressed the attack, though it was slow-going due to the sheer size of Drakonia compared to the other continents and the ferocious resistance given by the Drakonians. Over the course of four years, the three forces slowly slogged their way across the continent, while the remaining League nations were themselves invaded and defeated.

Finally, on April 10, 1629, after years of battling it out with the stubborn-as-Tertiarius Drakonians, the Allied Army had finally arrived before the gates of Drakonis, the capital of Drakonia. Laying siege to the city, the ancient walls proved no match for the modern cannons employed by the Allied forces, as they quickly punched a number of holes into the city's defenses. This allowed the Allies to storm the city, flooding within and battling the defenders. After four days' fighting, the city was at last taken.

However, Horridus, as he inspected the lavish hallways of the Drakonian Royal Palace, knew that the main Drakonian Army was still in the field. He realized he could set up a trap for the Drakonians, so he moved the bulk of his forces into the field outside the city. Dividing his forces up into smaller units, he positioned them at different points around a ford in a large river which the Triceratops had gambled would be the one the Drakonians would have to cross. He put most of his forces on the side of the river that faced the city, with one standing behind the ford, while the others flanked it on both sides, though one was behind the first as reserves. He had also positioned forces on the other side of the river, hidden in a nearby forest, so as to catch the Drakonians by surprise. Finally, he had one force, consisting entirely of Marine Reptiles further up the river. Stripping off all their armor and most of their gear and weapons, they were to cross the river at the right moment, hide behind the enemy, and attack them from the rear.

Eventually, the Drakonians arrived, and John immediately sprang his trap. The forces across the river fired on the enemy just as they were crossing the river. Then, they charged across the ford to engage the Drakonians, who were regrouping on the other side of the river. The fighting lasted for hours, before Horridus, seeing his troops starting to falter, led a charge across the river with his personal bodyguard unit as well as the Praetorian Guard, the elite of the Saurian Army.

At the same time, the aquatic troops, who had crossed the river during the intense fighting, sprang out and charged at the Drakonians while those troops hiding in the forest opened up on the Drakonians. Horridus and his forces slammed hard into the Drakonian front lines and engaged in fierce melee combat. Then, the Drakonian King Arkon III himself, who had been leading the Army, was wounded by a bullet that had hit him in the abdomen and slashed by a Saurian attack raptor. Terrified at seeing their King wounded, the Drakonians faltered and then routed, carrying their King with them. The Allied soldiers cheered at their victory while their leader was supremely confident that the end of the horrible war that had been dragging on for more than a decade was finally near its end.

His presumption proved correct when, on April 18, two days after the battle, the wounded King Arkon arrived at his temporary home in the Royal Palace and surrendered. Rather than take him captive, Horridus calmly assured the Monarch that he would still rule his people as a semi-autonomous state, though it would now be under the jurisdiction of Saurus. In addition, all Drakonian military forces would either be integrated with the Saurian Military or become regional levies or militias. Arkon agreed to these terms and a week later, Horridus and his Army returned home to Saurus as heroes.

On May 15th, the leaders of the various nations that had partaken in the war all met together in Saurus. There, they signed the Treaty of Saurus, thus ending the war at the expense of all of their nations becoming part of the Republic. Allied states were also annexed, though allowed to keep a degree of autonomy. All the nations in the land now were part of the Saurian Republic and the war was finally over. Now, Horridus had one thing left to do...

On June 23rd, over a month after the treaty had been signed, all the preparations were made and thus, Horridus gave the announcement that the Saurian Republic was no more. In its place was a new entity: The United Dinosaur States of Saurisia. A nation where all the peoples of the lands were now united under one banner and would now universally seek the goals of freedom, justice, and security for themselves. A new era had begun, but it would be filled with as many trials as the Republic had to face throughout its history in the road ahead.

[Saurisisia]

Chapter 8: United As One

The nation was now one, a single entity with all the different societies and species united under a single banner. And with John Horridus in power, the nation had a bright future ahead of her. He began by overhauling the systems and infrastructure of the various lands now under Saurisian dominion. They were updated and improved in order to ensure they met the qualities and standards of the Saurians. The government also had to repair the damages left by nearly two decades of war and destruction.

However, the first true test for the nation came in 1645 when a group of ships suddenly appeared off the eastern coast of Reptilia. Their origins unknown, with strange markings on their hulls, sails, and flags. The only ones who watched the ships offshore were a handful of primitive tribal natives who quickly disappeared as the ships sent boats to shore. These boats were full of Humans just like the ones who had arrived onto the continent over a century before. But this time, they weren't adventurous Spaniards looking for gold or silver in these undiscovered lands, but young men coming from all walks of life from every corner of the European continent who had traveled God-knows-how-many-miles to this savage land in order to purge or convert the demons who dwelt here in the name of Christ. Their leader was a mad Priest from France who was embarking his own crusade in order to slay the Dragons who lived in this evil land, all without the permission of the Pope.

For months, the Priest had gathered an army of over 30,000 strong near the ports along the western French coast. It was no easy task though, for as the Thirty Years' War was winding down, men were desperately needed for the titanic struggle that had been entering its final stage. Nevertheless, on April 17th, 1645, the ships earmarked for carrying the Crusading army set sail, headed for the sinister land that the Spaniards were unable to penetrate 110 years ago.

Now, once on shore, the Crusaders marched forward, cutting their way through the thick jungle. Armed to the teeth with muskets, cannon, pikes, and swords, they were ready for whatever the natives had to throw at them. And soon enough, they began to face ambushes by the native tribesdinos, who managed to take down a number of the Crusaders before being chased off, with some of their own being cut down by the Crusader fire. Nevertheless, they pressed on, unfaltering at the ambushes. They marched their way through the countryside, killing any native they saw and burning down all villages in their path. Many were killed, captured to face eventual execution or slavery, and some females were even raped. Some managed to slip by to warn other villages in the area of the oncoming intruders.

For days, the Crusaders marched their way through the jungles, leaving a devastated trail in their wake with many unfortunate Dinosaurs, both Humanoid and non alike, lying dead or dying. They marched north, to where their scouts said was a nearby town. The Crusaders headed north, pillaging, burning, slaughtering, enslaving, and raping their way through thick jungles, flat open grasslands, and villages along the way.

Having heard of the destruction, the Saurisians sent a force of 35,000 troops north to meet the oncoming threat. They set out from the city of Velocirus near the center of the continent and within five days reached the area under threat from the Crusaders. They were appalled at the extant of the devastation and did what they could to aid the sick, wounded, and those unfortunate females who were the subject of interspecies rape. That strengthened their resolve, to find and confront the Crusaders and atone them for what they did. In particular, Tyrannus Scalio, the Saurist High Priest who was also leading the army into battle. He was appalled by what he saw, which he felt went against his own religion's teachings of kindness, compassion, and mercy and was thus determined to bring the Crusaders down.


What the devastation wrought by the Crusaders may have looked like

He got his chance three days after confronting the horrors of what he saw, when his forward scouts reported spotting the Crusader army some fifteen miles to the north, some ten miles from the town of Tertarius. He split up his forces into smaller groups and had them march fast through the jungle in order to catch them by surprise. Within a matter of hours, his troops had encircled the enemy the enemy army, ready to launch a strike that was sure to devastated them. At last, Scalio gave the order and his troops attacked, surging out of the trees that surrounded the Crusaders, firing muskets and screaming and chanting in Saurian, Drakonian, and many other languages spoken by the various species and cultures in Saurisia.

Caught offguard, the Crusaders let out a Hail Mary and surged into battle with their non-Human foes. They were brave and very determined, the Humans were quickly cut down, with many losing heart in the wake of the fearsome appearance of their foes as well as some of the tactics and weapons that were employed, such as the use of Attack Raptors. The battle lasted several hours, with many Crusaders being cut down while the Saurisians, consumed with rage, slew every Human that stood in their path, even killing those lying wounded or at least unable to get up off the ground. Aided by native tribal warriors and town guards and armed citizens from the nearby town, the Saurisians turned the tide, sending many to flee into the jungles. Many others were cut off from their escape route and were either killed out of rage or taken prisoner, sure to face harsher treatment than that which befell the Spanish explorers more than a century before them.

Among them was the mad Priest, Charles, who was, along with other Crusader leaders, taken to Saurus to atone for his atrocities. A week after his capture at what became known as the Battle of Tertarius, Charles and his cohorts were put on trial by a council of wisedinos acting as judges for the horrible things they and their soldiers had done to the natives. All but three were sentenced to death, five by hanging, five by beheading, and two by burning. Charles was given the especially brutal treatment of being trampled to death by a wild Stegosaurus. Before his death, he defended himself by saying he was justified in his actions, claiming he did it for God in order to purge the minions of Satan. The response sent Scalio, who was among the judges, into a snarling rage and nearly killed the Human until his colleagues managed to calm him down.

With the defeat of the main army, tribal warriors and Army forces pursued those Crusaders fleeing, most were retreating back to the landing, though some got lost in the jungles and eventually perished. The pursuers cut some of the Humans down, though most made it back, and quickly managed to dismantle operations on the beach and head back to the ships. On board, the ships fled back to Europe, starting the long journey back home, though many of these ships were intercepted en route by the Saurisian Navy and thus sunk. Only a handful returned to Europe, the survivors never speaking about their experiences. And thus, ended the Second Human Incursion.

With the second wave of Humans beaten off, the nation returned to normal. Saurisia returned to the business of running the country, improving the infrastructure, and so forth, though now, the people had to aid the tribes and villagers hit hard by the devastation wrought by the Crusaders. Much food and other supplies was sent to them to help them recover and rebuild their ruined homes.

Within twenty years, the area had recovered. The forests grew back, the villages rebuilt, and the tribes and towns rebounding in their population. The nation was beginning to look outward, beyond the vast sea. However, it suffered a blow that would set it back decades. In 1678, John Horridus, who had proclaimed himself President some 49 years earlier, died. His death was determined by modern scholars to have resulted from heart failure. The nation mourned the death of a great leader, a Dinosaur who had united the various warring states, and who had shaped a new unified nation in their place. Without him, the nation was helpless, unsure of where to go from there without his guidance and wisdom. In his place, Marcus Styraco, a prominent merchant and politican, took over as President. He was paralyzed in his actions, and it would not be until the dawn of the next century before the nation would look outward again and begin its expansion into the nation it is today.

[Saurisisia]

History Part 9: Looking Outward

In 1695, nearly two decades after Horridus' death, Styraco began launching a series of expeditions intended to explore what was beyond the seas that stretched beyond the horizon. From 1695 to 1721, these expeditions were launched with considerable success, having discovered multiple landmasses to the south, east, north, and southwest. Over the next half-century, these lands were further explored and then colonized, claimed for Saurisia.

It was in that time that the UDS encountered other nations that dwelt beyond the seas. They first contacted the Redwing Empire in 1698, later to be the first of many states that were encountered by Saurisian colonizers and explorers. Relationships varied, from friendly to outright hostile and a number of colonial wars were fought, with differing results. Of course, the Saurisians clung onto their colonial holdings, with the Drakian Kingdom being the only country to have seized Saurisian holdings.

In 1764, the inhabitants of a Saurisian colony on an island far to the north discovered an adjacent colony that belonged to a Human nation. Tensions mounted, with both sides wary of each other before finally exploding. The Human nation launched a surprise attack against the colony which was at first successful before it was beaten back by regular Saurisian troops. They then went on to attack the enemy colony, taking it after considerable fighting.

The war continued, with the Humans launching more attacks against Saurisian colonies, with these assaults being beaten back by Saurisian and allied forces. They, in turn, assaulted the enemy colonies, with varying results. Eventually, they sent the Humans packing, especially after several spectacular defeats of their navy. After three years of war, the Human nation sued for peace and Saurisia continued to expand onwards.

The rest of the century was rather unremarkable, beyond territorial expansion, exploration, contact with other nations, and a number of colonial wars. However, in May, 1812, unexpected visitors in the form of French forces arrived off the coast of Mesozoica, seeking to establish a base away from the prying eyes of the Coalition in Europe. However, a British force similar in size established a similar base nearby, intending to keep an eye on the French outpost. Over time, both nations built up their forces until they had a combined total of 63,000 troops. Finally, in September, after months of building up and repeated skirmishes, the two forces did battle.

The Saurisians were well aware of the newfound intruders and had been keeping an eye on them for months. Now, they sent an army of 65,000 forward to combat this huge force. They arrived late in the day and began battling both armies simultaneously. The two European armies, both reeling from the day's fighting and terrified at the sight of the strange Reptilian army that had just appeared, retreated. They were chased off to their bases by contingents of Saurisian troops, who besieged them until finally, both the French and British departed. They boarded their ships and quickly left for Europe, leaving their abandoned forts and settlements to be plundered and burnt by the victorious Saurisians.

The end of the brief Saurisian involvement in the Napoleonic Wars marked the end of the era of rapid colonization and expansion and heralded the beginning of the 19th century and the challenges that lie ahead.

[Saurisisia]

History Part 10: A Century of Turmoil

After the defeat of the British and the French, things settled down in Saurisia. After a century of colonization and conquest, the people were content with the territory the country currently had. Saurisia was prospering, with resources and products coming in from the new territories and ensuring the economy was kept aflame.

Over the next few decades, the nation changed with the Industrial Revolution: factories sprouted all over the nation, people moved into the cities in droves to find work, and new methods of transportation and communication arose. With the new changes came new problems; poverty rose as did the crime, the cities became clogged, crowded, and polluted, and in the country, foreigners had to be brought in to till the farms abandoned by those who left for the cities, and health problems skyrocketed.


A typical city during the height of the Industrial Revolution

Unfortunately, the social problems weren't the only things plaguing Saurisian society. With the new changes, people had to forgo some cultural aspects in order to function in modern day life. For example, mothers had to leave their children in the care of others so they could work in the factories while children themselves did the same to help provide for the family. These societal changes and the problems that they caused led to a growing movement that opposed industrialization. They came to be known as Wobbites, after young textile worker Robert Wobb was arrested after smashing several machines in a factory in 1829.

And that wasn't all, for the number of individuals of so many species being crammed into such tight spaces as the factories and cities led to confrontation. This was not helped by the terrible conditions most were faced with. Thus, from 1812 to 1889, the number of interspecies conflicts, struggles, and incidents skyrocketed from 75 in 1810 per year to 371 in 1870 and that was just Saurus City alone. There were numerous reported incidents of interspecies fights, robberies, thefts, assaults, murders, rapes, kidnapping, and other forms of conflict throughout the mid-19th century.

Relations were especially tense between the so-called "furred" Mammals and the Reptiles, particularly amongst the Lupines and Vulpines. They resented the Reptilians and being governed by the Reptilian government, considering the longstanding distrust they had for Reptiles which were returned by the Reptiles themselves. Across the country, and especially in the Mammalian-dominated regions, violence and civil conflict was frequent. Numerous times, female Reptilians reported being raped by groups of males and male Reptilians retaliated by doing the same to Vulpine or Lupine females.

On July 15th, 1858, decades of heightening tension finally exploded when a group of angry Mammals, in retaliation for the murder of several Vulpines in cold blood the week before, attacked a small Reptilian-dominated village in the tropical north of Mammalia. The attackers killed, raped, or captured nearly every resident there, with only a handful escaping the slaughter. The nation was outraged and demanded that the perpetrators be punished. After the Governor of Mammalia demanded that posses be formed to hunt down the miscreants who had carried out the horrific massacre, his mansion was stormed by an angry crowd of Mammals, mostly canines. The Governor was put in chains and was humiliated in front of a crowd before being thrown into a prison along with all government officials in the city while the Mammalian convicts were freed. They then officially announced secession from the Union and other Mammalian-dominated states followed. Altogether, a total of 8 states seceded and they formed the Democratic States of Mammalia That led to an outright effort by the Saurisian government to crush the Mammalians once and for all and bring them back into the Union.

Thousands were controversially drafted into the Military while factories cranked out weapons for the Government to use. Many Ponies, Humans, Dwarves, Gnomes, Cetaceans, and other Mammalians who remained loyal to the Union found themselves being drafted as Auxiliaries, meant to bolster the Saurisian ranks. The two sides soon did battle within months of the formation of the DSM in the Summer of 1860, with the fighting proving to be a stalemate. After 8 years of fighting, the Demoratics were eventually crushed, their state was dissolved, the states reverted back into the union, and their leaders exiled or imprisoned. Some 768,000 had perished on both sides, a costly reminder of how the Industrial Revolution changed war itself.

That was not the end of the troubles, unfortunately, for in 1878, a new President came to power after the previous, Lewis Carroll, retired due to failing health. His name was Peter Brooks. At 52 years old, the Archaeopteryx was a career politician and was Carroll's protege, hence why he was appointed as his successor. Immediately, he began making massive reforms, replaced the old government structure, which had been little changed since the days of Bruticus nearly two thousand years ago, with a more democratic one. In addition, he instituted a form of welfare for the common sapient as well as restricting the economy more, instituting new economic and business regulations.

Needless to say, this greatly upset many Saurisians who were happy with the old government. In particular, one group of right-wing Senators, military officers, businessdinos, and proud patriots were quite irked by Brooks' pro-democratic and pro-socialist agenda. Not surprisingly, Brooks' policies led to an economic slump as businesses lost revenue due to the new regulations. In addition, his cronyism led to many political and business interests who shouldn't have even been listened to having his ear.

The right-wing group together formed the Dinosaurs First Party which opposed Brooks' left-wing policies. They soon gained a number of seats in the newly-reformed Senate and soon began openly criticizing the Brooks Administration. Irked, Brooks and his regime attempted to intimidate the DFP by threatening to ban them but this instead drove them further.

On September 8th, 1885, the Party's private militia stormed both the Congressional Building and the Executive Mansion, aided by both regular military troops and civilian militias, in a coup that was largely bloodless save for several skirmishes between the Nationalist forces and Brooks' guards and loyalist troops which left 50 Loyalists dead, 62 Loyalists wounded, 31 Nationalists dead, and 40 Nationalists wounded. The coup was successful: President Brooks, his administration, and all members of the government loyal to him were removed from power and forced into exile on Helena, a small isolated island in the middle of the Saurian Sea where they were kept under watch by DFP guards.

The DFP immediately took over and reversed all policies established by Brooks which resulted in the nation become stable again politically and economically and the old style of government was restored. And the DFP has remained in power ever since, seen as guardians of the Constitution and defending the country from the evils of Marxism, Big Government, and Human Supremacism as well as the stupidity of Democracy. To this day, Brooks remains the worst President Saurisia had seen and the Dinosaurs First Party remains dominant to this day.

In the mid-1880s, as the nation's economy recovered and Brooks' policies were being repealed, the DFP were faced with more social uprisings from the Ponies, Humans, Cetaceans, and other Non-Reptilian groups demanding equal rights in the wake of the recent Civil War. In 1885, not long after taking power, the Party granted equal rights for Lupines and Vulpines, the primary species involved in the Mammalian Secession. Faced by mass riots in New Equestria, Cetacea, and various other Mammal-dominanted states and territories, the DFP granted Ponies and Cetaceans equal rights in 1886, Ungulates in 1887, Sharks in 1888, and, finally, Humans in 1890.

At the same time, the social problems that had been plaguing the country since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution in Saurisia were being addressed. Reforms led to cities being cleaned up and new housing was built to accommodate the many who were moving into the cities. Permanent Police units were established to suppress crime, aided by vigilante groups and watchraptors. Charities and religious groups helped donate money to families in need while education was firmly established to ensure that the population was educated and didn't have to struggle in low-class jobs. Finally, the Wobbites were fading in power by the end of the 19th century, becoming less prominent as the years go by before fully disappearing shortly before the end of the century.

All in all, while the 19th century was full of political and turmoil, it ended calmly like it began it. Of course, it was not the same country, for at the beginning of the century, it was a largely agrarian nation with only a handful of cities having factories while at the end, it was a modernized and industrial nation with many modern enmities. What no one at that time realized was that the next century would bring far more change, turmoil, and conflict than the next and it would be even more devastating, both for the nation and the culture of Saurisia itself

[Saurisisia]

The Flag



The flag of Saurisia is the symbol of the Saurisian nation and represents both it and its people. It is highly regarded by the Saurisian people and, for that reason, the purposeful desecration of it is illegal. In 1629, the flag was adopted right after the end of the Unification War, when John Horridus dissolved the Saurian Republic and formed the United Dinosaur States of Saurisia from the lands of the Republic and those of its annexed allies and conquered enemies. It remains the national flag, with little difference in appearance, to this day, though it was based on much older designs dating back to the days of the First Saurian Republic.

The T-Rex skull stands for the nation's population of Dinosaurs, who represent the dominant majority in society. The red stands for the blood the people have shed to defend their country and its values. The gray represents the sorrow experienced by many in the fight to defend Saurisia's freedom. The black depicts Saurisia's dark past and how the nation must leave it behind but never forget it at the same time. And finally, the D stands for Dinosaurism as well as the union between Dinosaurs and Drakonians.

[Saurisisia]

National Anthem

The national anthem of Saurisia has changed several times over the past four hundred years. In the days of the Saurian Republic, there was no song that considered a de facto anthem though the Kingdom of Drakònia had a musical piece which can be considered a national anthem by the 16th century. That changed after John Horridus became Consul in 1589 and began implementing his reforms that would beef up the Saurian War Machine and streamlining national organization. In 1620, in the wake of victories gained by the Saurians and their allies in the Unification War, Horridus wrote a musical piece he dubbed Pride of a Reptilian Nation but it wouldn't be until 1640 before it was adopted by the government as an official national anthem.

It remained the national anthem until 1878 when Peter Brooks came to power as President. He abandoned the piece as national anthem and instead adopted a piece called Our Great Democracy. After the reinstatement of the old government in 1885, that song was replaced by Die Wacht am Rhein, symbolizing the defensive stance of the new regime. In the 1930s, after Oscar Moore came to power, a new piece became the anthem, titled Land of Prehistoric Species though that was outlawed by Leonard Damon's regime. Pride was restored as the anthem after Damon's government was overthrown and remained until 1959 when Land of Prehistoric Species became the new anthem.

In 2009, a national contest was held to choose a new anthem for the nation. Some two hundred entries were submitted, but the winner was written and personally composed by child prodigy David Howe of rural Jurassic, dubbed Jurassic Eternal which is the current national anthem of Saurisia.

[Saurisisia]

Military Marches

Examples of general march music
Army/National Militia March
Armor March
Walker March (FT Only)
Pony Forces March
Navy Marches
Marine Corps March
Air Force March
Submarine March
Airborne March
Light Infantry March
DNS Marches
Life Guards March
Anti-Communist War March
Military Conquest Victory March
More general march music

[Saurisisia]

Appearances of Saurisia

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A typical rural highway

Laramia Highlands


Mount Bataar

Typical forest

Creek winding through a forest

Colis Falls on the Hanno River

Forest floor

Typical forest

Typical Sauropolis street

Sauropolis overhead

Executive Tower


Old City from above


Old City Street View


City suburbs

Hellas Creek

Jurass Skyline

Talonton

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Dwarven outpost

Catacombs underneath the Drakonian capital


Mina Tirth

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Old Town

Apeche City

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(Credits to the artists on DA for their works)

[Saurisisia]

History Part 11: A War Begins

The twentieth century started off optimistically enough after the turmoil of the previous. The nation had recovered from the chaos that Saurisia had endured in the final decades of the 19th century. Now, the people looked forward to a new century full of progress and achievement.

Unfortunately, on July 14th, 1913, all of that ended when Archon Blaktis, Crown Prince of the United Kingdom of Wyvernia, was assassinated by Komodan separatists secretly funded by the Federal Republic of Wellington, a rival nation of sapient verapsids which sought to help the liberation of their comrades under Wyvernian dominance.

This led to declarations of war upon Wellington both by Wyvernia and several allied states, including Saurisia. In turn, several of Wellington's allied states, the Drakian Kingdom, Dominion of Carchara, Whitetip Hegemony, and the Zebron Empire. Things escalated further and the Dwarven Commonwealth, Empire of Kalada, Pachyderm Matriarchy, Canine Confederation, Tursiops Republic, and the Principality of Delphis eventually all declared war on one side or another and by August 1, nearly two dozen nations were at war with each other.

The two sides formed different alliances in order to better coordinate their respective faction's efforts. On one side was the Grand Alliance and comprised of Wellington, the Canine Confederation, Tursiops Republic, Dominion of Carchara, Drakian Kingdom, Zebron Empire, among others. On the other side was the Scaled Entente, which comprised Wyvernia, Saurisia, the Dwarven Commonwealth, Duchy of Unicron, Republic of Orcia, Empire of Kalada, and the Equinan Union, among others.

The first scenes of fighting were various small skirmishes at sea, mostly fought between small flotillas. It wasn't until August 12 before land combat developed and that was between the Empire of Kalada and the Thalnor Dominion, both nations predominantly consisting of Humans (though the Empire was reptilian-friendly whereas the Thalnor were biased towards Mammalians). The two nations, which shared a border on the Fisnarian continent, started operations though it was the Empire that made its first moves. On August 14, a massive invasion of the Dominion was launched, with 300,000 troops committed to the assault. The Imperials gained quick ground but soon began meeting stiff resistance by the 20 before largely grinding to a halt by the 25. The Thalnor put up a strong defense in the Zalsnor Mountains which separated the barren borderlands in the north from the rich heavily populated center of the country.


Imperial soldiers resting during the mass advance

On August 28, the Wellingtonians, Drakians, and Canins landed 300,000 troops in the far eastern sector of Wyvernia and they made some progress, tearing through ill-equipped reserve and militia units posted in the area. By September 10, however, their advance was put to a halt by more well-prepared Wyvernian forces as well as small numbers of allied troops sent by the Delphis, Orcians, and Dwarves. The allies made some progress pushing the Alliance back east until they were bogged down by reinforcements coming in from Wellington.

Meanwhile, the Saurisians, Dwarves, Unicronians, and Equinans launched a mass multi-front invasion of the Confederation in order to knock the powerful Mammalian nation out of the war and make it unable to aid its allies much. Unfortunately, that too bogged by the 5th of October considering the Saurisians were generally unable to cope with the temperate environment of the Confederation during the Fall and their allies favored no better as they faced fierce resistance from Canin forces.

All across the lands and seas, the nations were logged in mass warfare unlike anything seen before. The reason so many mass offenses swiftly became bogged down was due to the fact that, given stiff resistance, the attack would fail due to the many soldiers that get cut down by the relatively-new rapid-firing artillery and rifles as well as the newfound machine guns which were able to cut down entire units of infantry and cavalry with only a handful of troops operating their weapons. The introduction of chemical weapons by the Saurisians on the Canin Front in mid 1914 further emphasized the deadly reality that war now was.

It was because of these deadly new weapons and the stalemate they created that soldiers started digging trenches in order to protect themselves. By the middle of the war, vast networks of deep trenches had been dug, zigzagging across the wartorn wastelands and battlefields. Many nations added commodities to the lines that were further back from where the bulk of the fighting was, with indoor plumbing and lighting ensuring that the soldiers posted there were generally luckier than their comrades who were posted up at the front.

Saurisian Human soldiers resting on the Canid Front, circa mid-1914

The war continued on for another three years with little sign of much progress. Tens of thousands of lives on both sides were thrown away in mass infantry charges that were swiftly cut down by machine gun, rifle, and artillery fire. Life became dreary for the average soldier on the front line, regardless of allegiance. That is, until the early months of 1915, when the Saurisian Army fielded a new weapon that would change warfare forever. It was a slow-moving vehicle that ran on tractor treads that resembled a giant box or oil tank. It was for this reason that the first examples of these vehicles were dubbed 'tanks'. Other nations on both sides were also developing tanks themselves, but it was the Saurisians who first fielded this weapon.

The new weapons were utilized for the first time on April 25, when a massive offensive was launched against Canid forces entrenched in and around the small town of Furringham. The offensive quickly sputtered out with approximately 150,000 casualties sustained in only a week of fighting, with similar numbers suffered by the Canids. The 100 tanks that were employed did not fare well in this early engagement for their heavy weight proved detrimental in the ground, which had been torn up and reduced to dirt and mud from two years of constant artillery shelling. Many bogged down in the mud or trenches, were destroyed or disabled by enemy artillery, or were simply captured because they were too slow to outpace enemy soldiers.

Despite the failure of the April 25 Offensive, it showed the potential of the tank as a weapon of war. Over the following months, more offensives were launched with a committed body of tanks participating. However, all results were the same, they all failed after weeks of fighting and only a small fraction of land having been seized from the enemy. By October of that year, the War Department was greatly stumped, for the new weapon was proving to have gained little success over the spring, summer, and early fall. They debated on a course of action on what to do, though no one had the answer.

That is, until one young officer gave a bold suggestion to the High Command: launch an assault specifically designed around the tanks. By now, the powerful industrial base of Saurisia had produced hundreds of tanks more advanced than the models originally used in the Spring. But the Generals who commanded the troops in the field were greatly reluctant, for they were unsure if the tanks were capable of launching offensives on their own but the officer stated that they were proving generally incapable in infantry support roles.

Eventually, the Secretary of War, Norwin Bissel, gave into pressure in the wake of increasing unrest with the ongoing stalemate in the war and ordered the bold plan to be carried through. The officer, Colonel Caligula Tucker, was put in charge of a 300-strong tank force that was soon amassed in the fields 30 east of Furringham by October 20. The 300 tanks would be supported by 15,000 infantry which would advance behind the armor and secure whatever ground was seized.

In the early hours of October 23, the offensive was launched with the three hundred tanks advancing across the fields, which were located south of the village of Lincoln. The location was selected due to its relatively solid ground and open fields, perfect for armored vehicles. By the end of the day, the Saurisians had taken some 80 miles of enemy ground in exchange for only 3500 casualties and 40 tanks lost. The success was further aided by new infantry-artillery tactics that had been developed prior to the battle but never fully tested. Unfortunately, the Canids launched a counteroffensive the next day which retook most of the lost ground before it finally ground to a halt. Nevertheless, it proved to the Grand Alliance the great potential of the tank as a decisive weapon on the battlefield.

An example of a Saurisian Mk. 415, the nation's first tank, affectionately known as the Turtle due to its slow speed and thick armor (for the time, anyway); by the Battle of Lincoln, these composed half of the tank force that was deployed though newer tank models completely replaced it by the end of the year nonetheless

[Saurisisia]

History Part 11: The War Continues

After the end of the Battle of Lincoln, the war in the Canid Confederation settled down for the year while the war had similar results on other fronts. It was in the air and at the sea that the war was at its most exciting in this time. The navies of the various powers involved engaged in titanic struggles for control of the vast seas that surrounded the nations involved. A total of six battles of notable size had already been fought by late 1916 as the various powers fought for dominance of the seas and the assurance that their transport of troops and cargoships would go unharassed by enemy vessels.

Of these battles, the Saurisian Navy was involved with three, the first occurring on May 28, 1914. A squadron of Saurisian armored cruisers engaged with a combined Thalnor-Zebronian force of destroyers, cruisers, and pre-dreadnoughts off the southern coast of the Kaladan homeland that had been raiding Entente merchant shipping. After two hours, both sides retreated, having sustained considerable losses. Three Saurisian and four Allied warships had been sunk, five Saurisian and four Allied ships heavily damaged with most of the remaining vessels sustaining damage of varying sort.

The second occurred on August 5, 1916, where 30 Saurisian ships joined a combined Entente fleet of over a hundred vessels from the navies of all the major member nations as it joined battle against an Allied fleet similar size eighty miles west of the Canid continent. The two massive forces dueled in the mighty Battle of the Valpes Sea which saw 21 Entente (including four Saurisian) and 30 Allied ships sunk. The Entente had damaged the Allies' war efforts and saw to it that their maritime forces could never again gather in such a powerful combined force.

Of note during this battle was that the flagship of the Saurisian portion of the Entente fleet, the super-dreadnought UDSS Glorious, sank with over a thousand crewdinos lost (including the captain, Julius Bough, and the aging Admiral Duncan Whitmore). The flagship had been battered by Wyvernian and Wellingtonian warships for nearly an hour before, burning with all her guns knocked out, finally succumbing and slipping beneath the waves. Only 120 of her crew survived to be plucked out of the water by Saurisian ships after the Wyvernians and Wellingtonians had fallen back to a location a few miles to the north after the Glorious was sunk. After her sinking, command switched to the dreadnought Independence, commanded by Preston Ferguson, who led the Saurisian ships to aid their comrades for the duration of the battle.

The Glorious several months prior to the battle

The final major naval clash occurred in the Battle of Woodland Shoals on October 9, 1917 when the powerful Canid Fifth Fleet encountered Task Force 32, a scrappy naval force consisting of destroyers, light cruisers, and pre-dreadnoughts which was guarding the rear flank of the ships supporting an Entente land force which had landed on along the Vancouver Peninsula nearly a week earlier. The Canid ships were tasked with destroying the vessels supporting the troops on shore, plowing through any resistance they encountered. Confident of their eventual triumph, the Fifth Fleet rushed ahead, charging right at the Task Force while in a disorganized array. The commander of the Saurisian Task Force 32, Commodore William Harris, ordered for the pre-dreadnoughts and light cruisers to engage the Canid warships head on while the destroyers flanked around and performed hit-and-run torpedo attacks on the enemy vessels.

The battle truly began at 0750 when the lead Canid battleships and battlecruisers opened up on the older Saurisian battleships which returned fire. Soon, a general melee occurred as the Canid vessels tried to coordinate their individual attacks while the Saurisians acted with individual initiative and bravado to close in and perform lethal hits on their larger and more powerful opponents. In particular, Harris had his ships concentrate on the Canid flagship Millersylvania, reckoning that sinking or even damaging the vessel would help further disrupt and disorganize the enemy fleet.

After two hours, at least, the Millersylvania was left a burning wreck, going down with all but 114 of its 1235 crew. The battle went on for half an hour before the remnants of the Canid fleet retreated, badly bloodied though the Saurisian task force was in no shape to give chase and inflict more losses on the enemy.

[Saurisisia]

A brief introduction to Saurisia: Jurassic Park
Saurus City: Epicenter
Saurus City (Old City): Minas Tirith
Saurus Rock: Floating Population
Drakonis: Ancient Stones
Raptoropolis: Capitalist 1
Mina Tirth: Men of the West
Hells Creek: Broadway
Jurassicville: Electric City
Cities of Khazad: Dwarven Mining Town
Cities of Tempertia: Hiawatha Peace Theme - Ho, Ho, Watanay
Suburbs: Happy Go Lively
Royal Palaces: Castle Stormcloaks
Government Offices: Castle Imperial
Saurian Jungle: Vanishing Grace (Childhood)
Drakonian Countryside: Under An Ancient Sun
Tempertian Wilderness: Spirits of the Ice Forest
Saurian Legacy: Augustus Peace Theme
To War: Hearts of Iron Overture
Mobilization: Lone Wolf
War Theme: Tip of the Spear
Victory is Near: One Final Effort
Toils of War: Bismarck War Theme
A Nation at War: Elizabeth War Theme

[Saurisisia]

Chapter 12: Victory, Armistice, and Upheaval

The year 1917 was a troubling one for the Saurisian Army; while the Navy suffered tremendous success battling the navies of the Grand Alliance and Marine units were aiding allied forces gradually push the Alliance back on many fronts across the world, the Army's principal forces were bogged down in the fields of southern Vulpinia with most of its major offensives in that year ending in disaster. Worse, the outbreak of civil war resulted in the military's resources getting stretched as it had to supply the troops stationed in numerous different countries in addition to those back home fighting off the Reds' continuous offensives against the major cities in Mesozoica, Reptilia, Triassica, and other states. The offensives in the Vulpinian Front were indeed an attempt by the High Command to so bloody the Vulpinians that they would surrender, freeing their troops to aiding the forces holding back the Communists back in Saurisia.

The first of these offensives was the Battle of Walpole, which began on January 17, and lasted two weeks before