Shadow Over Gael [OOC] [TWI]

[Balnik]

Shadow over Gael

OOC|IC

IC

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The once prosperous and peaceful region of Gael is now facing unrest of unseen heights in recent decades as well as a bleak and unsettling future. The nation of Roendavar has suffered a catastrophic terror attack while distrust of their government spreads. Several factions within struggle for power, including some militant and extremist factions. The nation of Balnik has recently awoken from its long slumber, mobilizing its forces to take the Faronna Islands, two strategically placed islands west of Gael. Balnik has also funded terrorist activity within Roendavar, using these groups to drop spies and agents within the country to destabilize the situation further while the nations of Gael anxiously look on towards two nations increasingly growing hostile with each other.

OOC

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This RP is focused around espionage and spy thriller stuff, all centered around the recent actions of Roendavar and Balnik regarding the cult of the Arrangement and the Faronna islands territorial dispute. Balnik wishes to establish its presence over Gael and wants to use to use Roendavar's unrest to justify itself using military force over its neighbor.

The mission of this RP is quite open ended, and will involved agents accelerating or even preventing hostilities between the two nations as the waters slowly heat to a boil. Most RP will be done using agents and operatives, however other mediums can also be sued if they are appropriate to the storyline.

There is no end goal to this RP and it will be quite freeform and will be influenced by the writers and players involved, the only set goal will be a government change in Roendavar and Balnik exerting its control of the Faronna Islands. All nations of the isles are free to join, however the RP is primarily focused in Gael. Feel free to shoot us ideas in the thread and join in on the RP.

Nations Involved

Balnik

Roendavar

[Ostehaar]

Very interested.

Ostehaar's stance on this would be pretty simple - a mess around the islands is a perfect opportunity to insert a few operatives and upgrade intelligence collection on Balnik. That could go on to include sabotage of Balniki infrastructure or preparations for wartime covert ops.

[Dormill and Stiura]

Checking in!

As I've detailed before in private, this is going to present a very interesting situation for D&S based on how things pan out but in general, there are going to be two major competing interests in the Doraltic Intelligence Community over how to respond.

1. Morality: The United Republics and Roendavar have a long history of interaction, both for good and for ill. However, in the modern era, Roendavar is a trusted neighbor and partner to Dormill and Stiura, and a key component in the broad Doraltic foreign policy strategy of keeping potential sources of conflict as far away from Dormill and Stiura as possible in order to provide prosperity for the nation. The situation in Roendavar, therefore, presents a major issue for Dormill and Stiura. Given that Roendavar has no military to speak of and its own intelligence service is even less developed than the Bureau (especially by comparison to OVAST), Roendavar being a target for Balniki aggression opens up a significant portion of the Doraltic northeast that cannot be effectively covered. The clear and moral choice is to respond to this threat by coordinating with partners in Gael and abroad to undermine Balniki efforts to escalate the conflict further by any means necessary.

2. Realpolitik: It's clear that Roendavar is going to be unprepared for any conflict against Balnik. It's clear that the Balniki military will have a field day pushing aside any effort of resistance before Dormill and Stiura can show up in force. It's clear that for the moment, the Doraltic military isn't ready for large-scale operations for at the very least another 4-6 months. So, how can the United Republics answer this? By arming Roendavar. Not only will arming Roendavar provide Dormill and Stiura with a new military partner that has the capability to be a useful supplement in the defense against Balnik, freeing up resources for the United Republics to further stretch its influence; this will also be a boon for the Doraltic economy, as a new Roendavarian military will need equipment, equipment Dormill and Stiura can readily provide. To this end, the Intelligence Community may instead simply stall Balnik for long enough for D&S to convince Roendavar that it has to arm itself against this threat, and that its valuable eastern ally will be all too willing to provide. Whether Dyson can stomach the idea of betraying both his morals and the morals of all Roendavar is up for debate, but it may also be out of his hands entirely.

In the end, a few things are certain. Like Ostehaar, Dormill and Stiura will obviously array itself against Balnik, up to and including actual military force. The matter of the Faronna Islands is not something Dormill and Stiura wants to start a fight over, it's too early for Dormill and Stiura to throw its military resources around with the army still getting orientated. Whether Dormill and Stiura should take the high road and use its resources to get Balnik to stand down from its aggressive path sooner, as to avoid a situation where Roendavar has to arm itself; or later, where Dormill and Stiura can profit from Roendavar breaking its neutrality and pacifism to arm them, remains to be seen (and is honestly something I'm still debating internally).

[Aruia]

Love it
There are two options on how Aruia would be involved.
1. Get pulled in by Balnik wanting to prevent use of foreign bases that exist un Aruia
2. Aruia acts like a red cross envoy sort of deal.

[Balnik]

Overall my plan is going to be split into two parts. Have my agents interact within Roendavar, how they fuck with the government remains to be discussed, from there they will be directly against D&S, Oster, and Roendavarian agents, a tall order but still doable. The other part will be at home in Balnik, I'm using this opportunity to provide character to provide character to Andre Chernobog who will be pressured by his council of generals to fight Roendavar, he will be faced with the choice of continuing his expansionism or purging his generals, leaving the military without veteran and competent staff leadership.

[Balnik]

Love it
There are two options on how Aruia would be involved.
1. Get pulled in by Balnik wanting to prevent use of foreign bases that exist un Aruia
2. Aruia acts like a red cross envoy sort of deal.

I could send agents to Aruia if you'd like that to be a side story.

[Doravo]

This sounds quite fun.

Doravo would almost certainly throw its full support behind Balnik in every aspect from providing intelligence assistance, anti-guerrilla forces, and of course diplomatic support.

[Alteran Republics]

Whilst I can't promise I'll be able to join the RP; I would very much like Altera to be including in the lore somehow.

I believe Altera would be strong supporters of Balnik; knowing that democracy isn't exactly the greatest way to support and develop a nation - especially since they have a lot of economic and social ideals which we can draw similarities with. Whilst maybe not the greatest overt supporter, Altera would do all it can to assist Balnik with matériel, equipment and intelligence.

If you'd like to mention Altera within your posts, I'd summarize our possible support in:
> Corporate assistance from the big players in Altera; Noble Bank (finance), eXpress Parcel Systems/Baersk (logistics), Horizon (data and computers), PanIsle Petroleum (take a guess!)
> Intelligence services (most notably Altera's Public Security, Section 6 (ISR unit), Section 7 (cyber warfare) and Section 9 (international intelligence gathering/enforcement)
> Military material; namely Verhun Defense Systems (VDS), Alteran Aerospace (AAe)

Anything else and just give me a shout, I'm pretty much green lighting any mention of Altera; though a TG letting me know of your plans is welcome.

Edit: Baetylus can always be mentioned, as we gave Balnik a lot of financial, medical/military (and possibly other) support in the aftermath

[Balnik]

Glad to hear, thanks for contributing.

[Athara Magarat]

Keeping an eye from Argus.

[Dormill and Stiura]

Posting this from now since it's going to relate to further IC goings-on. I'll be posting in the news in a few moments with the main story being D&S condemning the joint exercise in Faronna by Balnik and Doravo and calling on the League proper to open a dialogue on the matter.

[Almorea]

Almorea would support D&S diplomatically against Balnik/allies, although Almorean rationale or willingness to actually intervene is nil.

Almorean economic involvement with Gael nations would provide the main reason for me to do anything beyond harsh words in the League, so we shall see how it develops... perhaps a freeze of Balniki assets held in Almorea (such as they are?) would be in order.

[Aruia]

Love it
There are two options on how Aruia would be involved.
1. Get pulled in by Balnik wanting to prevent use of foreign bases that exist un Aruia
2. Aruia acts like a red cross envoy sort of deal.

I could send agents to Aruia if you'd like that to be a side story.

If Aruia is kept outside the warzone then luvtar or Del'Ivo can act like spy\agent resorts to play the intelligence and dossier game.

[Balnik]

So I've drawn up a rough plan (while suffering in a freezing trench throughout the week).

-Balnik infiltrates Roendavar and Aruia.
-Balnik is met and fights with foreign agents.
-Balnik helps national military groups within Roendavar to prompt militarism and tries to organize transit through Aruia in case of war.
-TBD

How does that sound.

[Roendavar]

Just realized that I haven't really posted my ideas here yet.

Roendavar is currently experiencing unrest and discord. Powerful and influential people are taking advantage of Roendavar and are seeking to take power in whatever way they can. The government, meanwhile, are torn between maintaining the status quo or radical reform as the country is plunged into problems both local and foreign (i.e. increased terror attacks, Faronna Islands Dispute, growing influence of fringe groups). The Cricenexinos, also known as the cults of Protacism, are torn between those loyal to Roendavar and those who want to see change happen in the country. The Crown, along with Roendavar's spy organization, is trying to find a middle ground but it is proving to be difficult to temper the whims of the powerful and to move the conservative Roendavareil government.

This unrest will eventually weaken Roendavar and will reveal cracks in the country. This will serve as a major flashpoint for conflict in Gael as I'm assuming that Balnik is militarizing for some sort of invasion or "underground war".

I am changing some of my plans. It wouldn't make sense for Roendavar to support military action either way. Greater law enforcement and calls for some type of martial law can be considered, though the remilitarization of Roendavar goes against the constitution and would require approval from all three (well four) of Roendavar's governments. King won't stand for it, the government is currently controlled by the Nascioneil which are heavily anti-war, and while the Hall of the People might will it, they really don't have any real power.

I'm all up for an espionage war in the meantime, especially in Dociara. It has lax law enforcement, an unregulated underground economy, and the center of power in Roendavar for millennia. Think of Dociara as a wilder, ancient, more "insane" version of "Berlin during the Cold War"-ish. Our aim is to uncover Balniki meddling and purge their agents. Open for other fronts as well though. This would be the best option for Roendavar for now as we are not well-equipped for war.

Though I haven't continued the dispatch yet, espionage in Roendavar is actually well-developed. It's the only thing in Roendavar that didn't get hit by the de-militarization campaign during the 70s as it is crucial for Roendavar to gather information to see threats before it could hit us unprepared. It should be as influential to Roendavar as it was during the GGW and IW1 today. Plus, the HEI, Roendavar's intelligence agency, was put under joint administration by the Crown and the Government so it should be well-funded and can compete with larger nations.

[Biaten]

Biaten would probably take the same approach as Almorea, condemning Balnik's actions publicly, as well as introduce some sort of sanctions such as embargos, but would be reluctant to go to war with Balnik.

[Balnik]

So the RP will mostly take place in the capital? Makes sense, it's easy to build an environment around the city and a lot of the stuff Balnik does can be with government officials and the such.

[Dormill and Stiura]

Going to log this really quick before I have a chance to forget this.

I already have my first post drafted and saved, I'll wait for Roen to set the scene further before introducing my first cast of characters. Additionally, I'm drafting the second one now and figuring what ideas to bring in. At the very least it'll introduce my two main Bureau operatives in Docaria that will act as my protagonists going forward.

Oste - In this second post, I intend to have the two Bureau agents head to the Doraltic Embassy for a meeting with the Ambassador and other intelligence personnel to discuss a gameplan for the next month. I feel this would be a great time to introduce Oster agents as OVAST and HSI would be invited to join as well to coordinate efforts. (Further, any true ally of D&S, those of you with other treaties with me, are also open to join if you want to involve yourselves with this RP)

Roen - I'll be using both of these posts to set up D&S's players in this show, do we have a broad arc we want to follow for this story or should we play this by ear?

[Balnik]

So I was thinking the confirmed presence of Balniki agents would be a meeting/mission going wrong, leading Doraltic and Davari agents to arrive in the scene.

[Dormill and Stiura]

So I was thinking the confirmed presence of Balniki agents would be a meeting/mission going wrong, leading Doraltic and Davari agents to arrive in the scene.

That sounds like a good idea to start off our main story, though what they were up to and how it went wrong is worth discussing so we can start making plans.

[Balnik]

So I was thinking the confirmed presence of Balniki agents would be a meeting/mission going wrong, leading Doraltic and Davari agents to arrive in the scene.

That sounds like a good idea to start off our main story, though what they were up to and how it went wrong is worth discussing so we can start making plans.

I was thinking after we establish ourselves (you and Roendavar with each other and myself meeting with the contact.) Balniki agents would be meeting someone (military or cultist?) and exchanging info in a nightclub. Davari and Doraltic agents would be tracking the person and in turn encounter Balniki agents.

[Dormill and Stiura]

That sounds like a good idea to start off our main story, though what they were up to and how it went wrong is worth discussing so we can start making plans.

I was thinking after we establish ourselves (you and Roendavar with each other and myself meeting with the contact.) Balniki agents would be meeting someone (military or cultist?) and exchanging info in a nightclub. Davari and Doraltic agents would be tracking the person and in turn encounter Balniki agents.

This idea I like, now what draws us (as in Roen and I) in is up for debate, either a shootout or some kind of altercation that brings in the police just hours after HEI and the Bureau start integrating with the locals in order to start putting the clamps on the cultists.

Speaking of the cultists, and I already asked this of Roen personally, it'll probably be smart to establish a "common" look for a section of these cultists that our intelligence agents can pick up on and start their investigation from, as this whole RP might lean on the detective side as we all try to put the pieces together of some kind of plot, the Shadow over Gael so to speak. According to Roen, at least tentatively until we get it proper in this thread "Traditional-leaning clothes and garish jewelry is true. They're a proud people so they usually leave behind marks or things that would identify which of the deities they represent. They also usually carry these traditional daggers with grooves and expensive hilts."

[Belantica]

Hope you don't mind another Gael nation possibly joining in on the fun.

[Dormill and Stiura]

Hope you don't mind another Gael nation possibly joining in on the fun.

Biaten would probably take the same approach as Almorea, condemning Balnik's actions publicly, as well as introduce some sort of sanctions such as embargos, but would be reluctant to go to war with Balnik.

Sorry for not getting back to y'all on this on the thread, I hadn't noticed and I thought Roen or Balnik would've handled it first.

At the present moment, the situation on the ground is that the Bureau (that's my intelligence agency) and HEI (that's Roens') are keeping track of cultist activity after the attacks in January. Meanwhile, Balnik is attempting to sow trouble by using the cults against us. Given neither of you are yet Gael Four members, D&S does not have an obligation to share information with either of you in the same way it is with the other G4 members, but there are ways to get the both of you involved.

Biaten: I could see a situation where Biatenian agents, or really just regular people, who aren't focused on the cultist situation like D&S and Roendavar are could see past the rouse and realize Balnik is getting involved, and uses that to get inside the intelligence circle of the Gael Four. You could even use this as a bargaining chip in the Gael Four Commission to get D&S on-side with approving a full membership with promises to share everything Biaten knows about Balniki activity in Roendavar.

Bel: You've already pitched me a Belantic-Doraltic alliance in the context of the Balniki Civil War, and while the Dyson Government would have problems with whatever government Queen Pearson forms in the aftermath of her revolution, he will have to accept that Belantica would be a very valuable partner in further containing Balnik. To that extent, you could have a few Belantic foreign intelligence agents shadow/ride-along Doraltic and Roendavarian counterparts as the case goes on. How far you want to take that is up to you.

[Belantica]

Hope you don't mind another Gael nation possibly joining in on the fun.

Biaten would probably take the same approach as Almorea, condemning Balnik's actions publicly, as well as introduce some sort of sanctions such as embargos, but would be reluctant to go to war with Balnik.

Sorry for not getting back to y'all on this on the thread, I hadn't noticed and I thought Roen or Balnik would've handled it first.

At the present moment, the situation on the ground is that the Bureau (that's my intelligence agency) and HEI (that's Roens') are keeping track of cultist activity after the attacks in January. Meanwhile, Balnik is attempting to sow trouble by using the cults against us. Given neither of you are yet Gael Four members, D&S does not have an obligation to share information with either of you in the same way it is with the other G4 members, but there are ways to get the both of you involved.

Biaten: I could see a situation where Biatenian agents, or really just regular people, who aren't focused on the cultist situation like D&S and Roendavar are could see past the rouse and realize Balnik is getting involved, and uses that to get inside the intelligence circle of the Gael Four. You could even use this as a bargaining chip in the Gael Four Commission to get D&S on-side with approving a full membership with promises to share everything Biaten knows about Balniki activity in Roendavar.

Bel: You've already pitched me a Belantic-Doraltic alliance in the context of the Balniki Civil War, and while the Dyson Government would have problems with whatever government Queen Pearson forms in the aftermath of her revolution, he will have to accept that Belantica would be a very valuable partner in further containing Balnik. To that extent, you could have a few Belantic foreign intelligence agents shadow/ride-along Doraltic and Roendavarian counterparts as the case goes on. How far you want to take that is up to you.

That would make the most sense by having some of our agents shadow yours and Roen's during this ordeal.
There's also could be some opportunities to have some events happen in Belantica since I'm sure both yourself+G4 and Balnik would have interests in Belantica due to being in a "on the fence" situation where the government wants to remain neutral as much as possible, but aware that they are in a situation where choosing a side will mean consequences from the other.

Which leads me onto the point where I'm open to have both parties do things within my nation to try and push the government into their direction.