Pre-StockNES

BT Update 1 - 2100-2120​

The Daily Standard​

GLOBAL NEWS​

GLOBAL RATE OF RURALIZATION HIKED
As civilization’s decline has ushered in the long process of reversing, most of the surviving governments of the world have identified food scarcity as their biggest problem – often diverting funds meant for the military to agricultural growth. This pouring of funds has significantly increased the power and leverage of rural elites and created work away from urban centres, indicating the global process of ruralization will not cease anytime soon. While some republics and liberal minded monarchies have been trying to increase their populations’ standards of living, authoritarian and military regimes have been trying to mitigate the effects of stronger rural elites by providing better living standards to the powerful wealthy – including warlords or leaders of newly settled lands. The effects of increased ruralization have been varied, with some unlucky countries simply failing to seriously increase their crop yield, such as the Far Eastern Republic, or other countries finding themselves under internal or external attack for their wealth. A few governments had not put any focus on agriculture, and have been able to further consolidate their power in urban centres, keeping places such as La Plata and England centrally controlled by the elites of the status quo.

NEW NATIONS TAKE ADVANTAGE OF LOW MILITARY SPENDING
With surprisingly minimal military expenditures among the family of nations, many yet to be organized territories – adept at combat from experience – have found ease in attacking and pillaging the organized societies. Though raids overall haven’t increased, the level of success has, and previously disagreeing tribes have been consolidated in the wake of these adventures, producing numerous new, hostile and warmongering nations. Yay.

EUROPEAN NEWS​

TWO GERMANIES COMPETE FOR HEARTS AND MINDS
The monk-like technocrats of Bavaria tried to use persuasion to include the rest of Germany in their domain, demonstrating the merits of their governing system by reclaiming poorly maintained infrastructure – the most astonishing effect being on German rail and roads, which have allowed people to travel and trade easily, impressing much of north-western Germany. Independent of South German actions, the greater Berlin area had been slowly creating a populist republic. With rhetoric of liberal republicanism and democracy they’ve effectively criticized the technocratic system along the coast, gaining them this portion of Germany. A propaganda war now rages on the borders, as tensions rise between the two Germanies over the fate of the nation.

ENGLISH TRADERS FIND HOSTILE FRENCH MILITARISTS
The English navy, revived and restored, has been attempting the settlement of Normandy, creating a safe port at Le Havre, and securing the English Channel from piracy. In trying the 20-year stunt England discovered a violently nationalistic French police-state centred in Paris, and settlement was far more successful along the coast, particularly in the lowlands, where disorganized communities welcomed an alternative to German technocracy and French belligerence. Together, with growing industrial output, emphasis on urban power and a strong navy, England’s current holdings seem extremely secure internally from dissent and externally from attack.

TENSIONS BUILD OVER GREECE BETWEEN LOMBARD LEAGUE AND TURKEY
Making claims in all directions, the Lombard League pushed into the French Riviera, Rome, and Greece – the lattermost of which Turkey was found to be coveting as well. In the west Lombard companies met and worked with begrudgingly accepting locals, and in Rome found a desolate and devastated city worth little more than prestige and propaganda – the Vatican had been almost entirely obliterated, and there is no sign that any pope is currently alive. In the east was the real tension, however, as extremely welcoming Greeks were divided up between Turks and Lombards. Even if the two countries could come to some kind of resolution of the future of Greece, it actually seems that native Greeks are more vociferous about their choice in patron than the patrons themselves – with suicide bombings and occasional shootings being claimed as in favour of one country or the other. These flare ups have nearly caused clashes between Turkish and Lombard troops, and though Turkey’s military presence is stronger, neither power has deliberately attacked the other yet.

RUSSIA MAKES PUSH TO CAUCASIA, STOPPED BY PATRIOTIC INHABITANTS
As Russian troops barged into villages on their way towards the towering mountains of the Caucuses, they began finding progressively more and more inhabitants unhappy with their presence. While bribes of crops or goods persuaded some (which were exported to the displeasure of many Russian elites), the Russians were halted suddenly by a multi-front ambush in Georgia, keeping them out of that territory since then. A very patriotic federation of Caucasian states has formed, under pressure from both Iraqi inclusion of the Kurds and Russian advances, and has been entirely unwilling to talk with other powers. Elsewhere, Russian settlement into the Urals and Siberia has went adequately, though reconstruction of rail lines has been slow and expensive, leading to criticism that focus ought to be on more immediate Russian interests in the west.

HUNGARY WELCOMES POLES
Holding hands at a summit on the integration of Poland into Hungary, Polish and Hungarian leaders took a glorious photo with recovered Hungarian cameras. While Romanian settlement was correctly predicted to be slow, south Polish leftists and egalitarians, admiring of Hungary’s democratic system, formalized their annexation – though much of Poland still remains to be contacted and explored.

NORTH AND SOUTH AMERICAN NEWS​

NUMEROUS NORTH AMERICAN STATES DECLARE SOVERIEGNTY
Free of two former federations, numerous new national identities have formed, some from their own independent course, and some directly in opposition to Canadian and American attempts at expansion. In the Pacific Northwest an authoritarian a self-sufficient leftist Cascadia has been organized by a combination of maritime and army strength. Neighbouring them, a warlordship of horseback soldiers, oppressing their few urban centres for supplies and revenue, has halted Canadian westward expansion, and harassed both American and Canadian settlements. Canadian pushes east also evoked anti-federal forces, which rallied around the close trade ties of the Maritimes and dug-in positions in New Brunswick. The biggest new addition to the North American continent was Dixieland, an adamantly democratic and republican state along the east coast. US settlement plans were derailed down the Mississippi by a religious Baptist state, while Californians may have to confront a religious Mormon State soon as well. Overall expansions by Canada largely failed in the face of anti-federal forces, while the US had mixed results, gaining large tracts of new farmland in the Midwest, but finding uncompromising Dixie and Baptist forces in their south, while California had to stop at Cascadia, and made less progress into the deserts of Nevada.

MEXICO SETTLES TEXAS
Probably to the immense surprise of the US and Canada, which found inhabitants willing to create whole new countries to prevent themselves from being settled, Mexico found no resistance towards their attempts in taking the Gulf, including a large amount of Texas. While locals have been fairly negotiating, Mexico will have to choose whether to integrate Texas into their system and extend privileges to the white elites there, or work with Hispanic Texans instead – a choice they’ll have to make as the pleasant initial reconstruction of society there starts to fade into memory.

VENEZUELA AND PERU MAKE SLOW PROGRESS
Peru found itself surrounded by generally ambivalent but often disinterested groups, none yet self-organizing enough to fight Peru, and so made slow but distinct progress in all directions. Venezuela took more land, pushing into Colombia in what appears to be preparation to move towards Panama. Ships sent to scout the coast found the canal in disrepair, and dedicated resources would clearly be needed over a long time to make it, or other big projects like it, usable.

LA PLATA FIGHTS WAR WITH NEWLY FORMED CHILE
Patagonia was indeed easy to settle, but in every other direction La Plata found resistance. Moving northeast they discovered a city-state forming in southern Brazil, and west they came into abrupt contact with a cunning and paranoid Chile. Run by a coalition of communists, socialists, and anarchists the Chilean dictatorship made multiple offensives into La Plata pre-emptively preventing the La Platans from seizing their capital. La Plata did make inroads in southern Chile, but lost territory in the north. A kind of stalemate has been the case for several years, as La Plata builds up war materiel and central authority in their capital, and Chile seems to be plotting secretively.

NORTHERN AND SOUTHERN BRAZILIAN CITY-STATES FORM
Two city-states formed over the past 20 years, Sao Paulo and Sao Francisco, named after a city and a river respectively. The southern government has adopted a monarchy, with a very stratified society – the city itself has actual walls between the poor and rich communities within it. In the north, mineral and oil companies that held together basic trade have now asserted themselves as governors of the region, with a good degree of popularity due to their charity and administrative proficiency. Tensions have yet to build, and it might in fact be likely that Brazil’s two identities will grow independently for a while.

AFRICAN AND MIDDLE EASTERN NEWS​

THREE WARS FOUGHT IN WEST AND EAST AFRICA
Stockpiling technology and massively expanding agricultural growth obtained the attention of two otherwise insignificant tribes in West Africa, which have reaped massive gains from raiding and robbing the country. Fighting two wars on two fronts with two powerful warlords taxed the Malian military, and, in addition to losing resources, the country is losing the enthusiasm of its military elites and the general populace. One coup attempt was thwarted during a period of lower level conflict, but the possibility remains. On the other side of the continent, Swahililand, desirous of the Great Lakes had to fight just unified Tanzanians soldiers, which incited a revolt in southern Swahili territory. Though hostilities have died down, and Swahili settlers have taken Uganda to meet another border of Tanzania, the two countries are incapable of working together with so many local interests pulling their central governments.

SOUTH AFRICA GROWS SLOWLY
Intellectuals and political leaders in South Africa’s free republic have been extremely critical of what they believe to be the wasteful use of valuable resources on the navy, especially in the face of extremely slow gains in Namibia despite its few and accommodating inhabitants. Regardless, general militancy has still been mitigated because of rising standards of living with both the reclamation of old equipment and the focus on increased food yield.

TWO SHAHDOMS ESTABLISHED IN IRAN
In the Middle East several new countries have been effectively organized. While a lonely federation of Arab nobles has been formed, two Irans have been fashioned in the north and south of the country. Both have become absolute monarchies, ruled by somewhat populist kings, though their peaceful nature is mostly due to the degree of decentralization that exists in both countries, preventing either from really waging war.

INTEGRATION BUILDS NEW BONDS BETWEEN IRAQIS AND KURDS
A new chapter of Middle Eastern peace has possibly begun with the integration of formerly Turkish Kurdistan into the Iraqi state, which has made benevolent overtures to the people of the region and gained their approval – so long as Kurds are properly represented in the new state. This has happened to their satisfaction, and begun movements for integration of other peoples as well, such as Jews, Palestinians, Syrians and Lebanese.

ASIAN AND PACIFIC NEWS​

PAKISTAN FIGHTS COMMUNIST ARMY IN GANGES
Believing the Ganges would be a hard but eventually triumphant venture to rebuild food supply lines and capture harvests, the Pakistani corporate military has been horrified by the organization of their coveted territory by a democratic Maoist army. Though elections were only held after a tense struggle between Pakistan and the Ganges, the new country has made its national pride the elimination of corruption, and constantly used the Pakistani menace as a foil for their propaganda. Unless a new offensive is attempted, the Ganges leftists might secure the river’s entirety.

MAHARASHTRA FORMS
Meanwhile, more peaceful news happened in southern India, where Hyderabad made reasonable and peaceful progress along the west coast, and a new republic formed in central India, though unlike the alleged corruption-free communists to their north, the place has been a bastion of illicit behaviour. In any case, their government has maintained for a long time that they do not wish war, and have made no offensives even towards Pakistan which took territory immediately to Maharashtra’s west.

WARLORDS VOW ALLEGIANCE TO PROCLAIMED CHINESE EMPIRE
Militarism has grinned its ugly and vacuous smile in East Asia, where a very rapidly created North Chinese state has come to dominate regional anxieties. Ruled by a medieval Mongol-like warlord dictator, whose control of industrial production has given him leverage domestically, North China has been engaged in on-and-off warfare with the Far Eastern Republic, while putting its efforts to expansion southward. Fighting in the cold north has been seasonal and, especially over farmlands the Far Eastern Republic wished to feed its own people with, bitter. Overall the Chinese have had the upper hand, though the Far Eastern Republic is larger than it used to be. In the south, Guangdong’s appeals to the communist past has gained it respect with the people (most of whom think capitalism was the reason for their destruction), but put pressure on further away warlords vow allegiance to the north, which has protected them beyond the Yangtze.

JAPAN LOSES TOKYO TO NORTHERN ARMY
While South Japan developed its navy, the country was struck by a surprise offensive into Tokyo, which wrestled half the city from them, and has been the site of urban warfare for years. While a few islands were taken with ease, the armed forces have been simply inadequate to push back North Japan, which is deeply isolationist and nationalistic. Because of this, South Japan actually made more progress in Korea than in the north, and with the population there fearing the Far Eastern-Chinese conflict may spill into their lands, Japanese partnership and defence has been welcomed.

INDONESIA AND VIETNAM ORGANIZE
The passage of time has, in the quiet lands of Southeast Asia, resulted in the slow accumulation of power in two areas – Indonesia and Vietnam. In the first an Islamic theocracy, built around an emphasis on peaceful cooperation with outsiders, has been established with a small but well-trained air force and navy, while land forces have been generally left to local territories. In Vietnam a tenuous situation existed between people in the south and north and centre, only the might of corporate interests through a formerly reformed state capitalist system could bring stability to the country. Both countries show promise, as war and strife seem endless in the rest of Asia.

World Map:


OOC:

This is the style I intend to do the remainder of the BTs in, focusing on the political events mostly, though as cultural and economic matters become more important I plan on introducing different newspapers to represent their perspectives. The Daily Standard can be interpreted as your typical bourgeois liberal “unbiased” international paper, something like the BBC perhaps, though with a bit more poetic use of language.

There will be a rule change: Minor Powers are no longer eligible for players to play. If your country is demoted to a Minor Power, you’ll have to pick another one. Minor Powers will not be bolded in the stats. Therefore, the following is the full list of available countries as of right now:

Chile, Prairies, Sao Paulo, Sao Francisco, Venezuela, Czechia, North Germany, Sweden, Algeria, the Arab Sultanates, Ethiopia, Nigeria, North Iran, South Iran, Tanzania, Indonesia and North China. (All current players are playing at least secondary powers, so don’t worry this turn)

This turn I applied a “get out of revolution and/or annexation free” card for everyone, but from now on any country can be toppled or taken over in updates.

Please address all errors and questions via PM, thanks.

Finally, I want every player to consider the following things when writing their orders, so that I have more material to work with:
- I don’t want to generate important figures myself, so I would like it if players could invent them as we go along – business tycoons, elected leaders, dictators, religious figures, and, perhaps most importantly, ideological intellectuals (the Karl Marxs of our time). For example, there is currently no pope, and only La Plata has given me a pontiff that could at some point become a global figurehead.
- How do you treat your various ethnic groups? This is especially true for countries like Iraq, where peoples want inclusion in your government.
- What is your main line of propaganda? I got a bit of this in Germany, but knowing how you intend to convince people of your greatness helps me determine how different people react to one another. Just like with the relations between peoples, I am open to innovative and new kinds of rhetoric, like the technocratic ideas in Germany.

Game Notes:

- Diplomacy cannot be done with NPCs, you cannot get me to give you any guarantees for a 20 year period. That said, you can interact with, make peace and war, but only through your orders. You might say for example that you want to not fight a particular country, and therefore you move out of some land as a good faith gesture – the NPC would have a higher chance of acting how you would have preferred.

- Most countries are eligible for wars of aggression, so go nuts.

- Reminder: you can, instead of settling new territory, consolidate your domestic control, if you choose.

Next deadline for orders will be sooner than last: Monday, December 30th.

Looks great Stockholme. Orders in thread only again or can they be via PM?

Correct Immaculate.

EDIT: I mean yes in thread.

England - Ophorian
Government: Leftist Republic-leaning
Colour: Red
Size: Secondary Power
Economic Policies: 1 IG
Military Policies: 2 Navy

Government Information
- Despite the global collapse, democracy remains vibrant in jolly olde England. However, the collapse triggered a marked leftward shift in the political landscape. The nation's commitment to democracy has led to some public animosity towards dictatorships, particularly those of the military variety.

Economy Policies
- Infrastructure Renewal X1
- Primary focus will be on the ports and trade hubs within English territory, and continuing to foster cross-channel trade will a top priority. We must ensure that the coast from Normandy to Amsterdam is firmly secured as English territory.
- By establishing strong trade ties with coastal communities (as detailed in the Settlement and Expansion section of the orders), we can supply the growing English nation with more goods, and specialization due to trade may help increase efficiency.

Military Policies
- Emphasize Navy X1
- The importance of the navy must be continually stressed, and continuing naval development will secure cross-channel trade, particularly between London and Le Havre. As the navy grows in size and might, the primary force will be patrolling the channel, while smaller task forces be sent up to maintain security along the coast of the Low Countries.
- Emphasize Army X1
- As the English Republic grows in size, a expanded army will be needed to secure our borders. Emphasis should be placed on mobility and rapid-response, and the army must be able to coordinate with the navy to move quickly between the British Isles and the mainland, though the cities of Le Havre, Calais and Amsterdam will maintain a large standing garrison.

Wars of Aggression
- As England only shares borders with the French police state, and the primary focus of expansion over the next twenty years looks to be in the north of the British Isles, England shall not declare or initiate any wars over the next two decades. Obviously, should the French government declare war on England, we shall respond with overwhelming force, and any territorial gains that may occur will be a pleasant surprise. Defensively, military focus shall be on defending urban centres.

Settlement and Expansion
- With the channel secure, the English settlers are to expand northwest through the West Midlands and securing Wales, before turning to drive north through Yorkshire. With the power of the English Navy, supplying the settlers should be far easier, as it will be simple to supplement supply lines with coastal shipments. Aggressive expansion will be accompanied with a sizable military preference to maintain security and assist in the advance. Security will be a primary benefit and incentive for existing communities to join the republic, but infrastructure projects will increase connectivity and foster domestic relations.
- Though this will not be a primary focus over the next twenty years, English traders and entrepreneurs will be encouraged and subsidized to seek out coastal communities in Brittany, Aquitaine, Ireland and Scotland and establish trading posts and networks. It is our hope that through increased economic activity and interconnectedness, we can encourage these communities to join the republic, though the administration and Foreign Office will not place direct pressure on these external economic zones to join.

Canada Orders

Economic Policies
Industrial Goods
Infrastructure Renewal

Military Policies
Emphasize Air Force
Empasize Economy over Military

Expansion Orders:
Expand into Nunavut, especially Baffin Island and Foxe Basin, with emphasis on reclamation of all the old resource extraction projects, such as the Mary River Mine on Baffin Island.

Principles of Technocracy

It has become fashionable for European governments, particularly those that wish to claim a greater degree of legitimacy over their demesne, to claim the title of technocratic, aiming to operate under a technocratic system like the widely successful ones in the Suddeutscherbund or in the Swedish State. However, like any widely desired title or honorific, there are certain standards that must be met before it can be recognized in the eyes of the proper authorities on such matters. Mere literacy does not a technocrat make, nor does a prolonged period of study and seclusion dwelling on Greek Classics or the false art of Political Science.

A successful technocratic state will have several key traits:

1. 1. The existence of strong institutions of education, where entry and success is reliant on merit, not privilege.
2. 2. A meritocratic system of government that requires civil servants to have received appropriate and extensive training in the role for which they serve, rejecting populist methods.
3. 3. A willingness and ability to conduct reforms at every aspect of the state in response to scientific research identifying the most effective forms of governance, be it in terms of economics, welfare, or defense, without entrenched resistance from within the government in response to necessary changes.

Technocracy is a government operated and run according to scientific principles of management and empirical decision-making. It endeavors to place individuals with the appropriate skills to govern into the appropriate roles, and relies on robust university system to provide the educated officials to staff the government. The exact form of the government, be it republican or authoritarian, is unimportant so long as it is able to operate on empirical principles, rejecting populist appeals to certain policies based on emotional needs.

The Suddeutscherbund, the benchmark against which technocratic states are judged, is a federation of four lesser secular states. These states operate on loose republican principles, recognizing the importance of providing an outlet for grassroots concerns to be heard while also resisting the role of full democratic mob rule. The bund-states retain significant autonomy over local governance, allowing them to best serve the needs of their own population, while in issues where an economy of scale applies, such as foreign policy, economic regulation, and defense, the bund retains supremacy.

Separate from the bund are the university-states. They operate according to academic law and maintain their own governments and security forces, separate from those of the bund but intrinsically tied to it. Admission is open to all, contingent only on a standardized test to determine fitness, and progress through the academic system yields greater and greater influence and honors, while withdrawal from the system at some point and a return to secular life, into a prestigious position where their technical knowledge is put to good use, brings with it material wealth, a portion of which is tithed to the university as compensation for the education.

The ties between the bund-states and university-states have been formalized over the years, but it is important to remember that they are sovereign entities interacting with each other. The technical abilities and amassed knowledge of the universities is used to support and enhance the operations and efficiency of the secular government. The secular government, in turn, provides capital and security to the university-state, allowing it to continue to achieve greater technical and scientific progress, which in turn has positive feedback outside the university-state due to its active effort to spread knowledge to the population. Positive feedback loops are hallmarks of all great systems.

Anti-technocratic sentiment finds its root in one of two ideologies: that of privilege, and that of populism. Both seek to preserve inefficiencies inherent in their systems because the introduction of technocratic principles has a negative impact on their own utility, which is higher than normal from the unequal distribution of benefits that exists.

Privilege, usually an entrenched aristocracy that arose because of the accumulation of capital or military power, sees the technocratic mantra of meritocracy as a threat. They are aware that, if allowed to be implemented in their own nation, they would see an erosion of their accumulated authority as the bulk of the population now has access to the levers of power. A desire to secure intergenerational wealth transfer is a natural human response, but it is unfortunate that proponents of privilege seek to do so by retaining the inefficiencies so that the system in which they, and eventually their heirs, will dominate.

In contrast, Populism opposes technocracy due to its focus on empirical governance and education. A populist leader achieves power through appeals to the pathos of a population, playing on their emotion to block out logical processing. The introduction of wide-spread education, and the institution of rational methods in government, sees the main tool which they use to retain power ebb. Their hostility to Technocracy is also logical, if unfortunate.

Despite their hostility to the actual implementation of technocracy, many regimes seek to profit from the success of it in Bavaria, claiming to their population and foreign observers that they are achieving greater efficiency and quality of life due to their technocratic mode of governance. It is, after all, not system that one can compose rational arguments to, requiring its critics to rely on misdirection and emotional appeal rather than logical thought, which in the long-run simply won’t hold up to the march of progress.

-Herr DDr. Heinrich Beckenbauer

From Bavaria
To England, Padania, Hungary

We wish to re-establish ties to universities in your nations, so we can begin to build a pan-European scientific community.

Is it alright if I play Sweden?

Sweden is yours Masada

From Russia
To Sweden

Our rightful borders are the former borders of the Soviet Union. Therefore, we are likely to be enemies in the future. However, for the time being we are willing to accept a free trade agreement.

In addition, if there is some way for us to secure the Baltic regions under your control by diplomacy, we are very willing to negotiate.

From Russia
To Iraq

Given the circumstances, we are willing to acknowledge an independent Caucasia... for now. But only on our terms. Proposed treaty:

-Iraq and Russia will agree to recognise Caucasia as independent for the next fifty years
-Iraq and Russia will both agree to defend Caucasia for the next fifty years if a foreign power intervenes

Since neither of us can take Caucasia, this treaty is the pragmatic thing to do for the time being.

Is it okay if I switch to Sao Francisco? I believe I fit more with this nation.

How many spending points do I get?

In theory, 1 Eco 2 Military. In practice, since you can turn 1 Military point into an Eco point by diverting Military resources to the Economy it's more like 1 point each, 1 point either.

The Lega Lombarda: The Padanian Risorgimento


As Europe, and Italy in particular, collapsed around them, the Partito Lombardo Fascista unilaterally declared the secession of the North from the rest of Italy; there were no powers with the strength or will to deny this by 2075. Even the separation from the parasitic South could not fully rescue civilization in northern Italy however, and desperate measures were taken. Corporations allied with the military and through the PLF exerted their dominance most harshly. As communication became more and more of a burden, the decision was made to distribute a certain level of autonomy, and a high level of preeminence, to five cities in the North: Milano, Genova, Torino, Firenze, and Venezia. Together the Fascist governments of these cities formed the Lega Lombarda. Each of these Corporate Republics was given full reign over its domestic policies, though power over the military and foreign policy was invested in a central government in Milano by the agreement of the Republics.

Each Corporate Republic, or Most Serene Republic as Genova and Venezia style themselves, is ruled by an Esecutivo (though again the rulers Genova and Venezia choose to hearken back to their old Golden Ages and called themselves Doge. Such romanticism. Much sense of history. Wow). The Esecutivos are chosen by the boards of each municipal Corporation, and rule their cities with iron fists. The administration of the Lega from Milan is managed by the Consiglio di Amministrazione, a board of fifteen directors, with five selected by the Esecutivos and five selected by both the board and the stockholders of each Corporate Republic

The state of the world outside northern Italy, excepting a neighboring government forming around southern Germany, was unknown at the time of the formation of the League. Therefore an agreement had to be reached about how nearby lands, which could be ripe for exploitation by the League, might be distributed between the Corporate Republics. In the Bologna Agreement, the lands of the old Western Roman Empire were deemed sufficient. Genova was given free reign in Iberia, North Africa, and the islands of the Western Mediterranean. To Torino the Agreement bestowed old France, and to Firenze all of the rest of Italy, excepting Rome, which would be under the authority of the Executive of Milan until it could be made into a worthy capital for a more centralized League. Venezia was given the Balkans and Greece. Venezia moved with blazing speed, seizing Dalmatia and Morea, as though the city itself was preserved by an intricate system of levees and submarine pillars, extracted by the North from the Italian government which had been desperate to hold it, its position was still tenuous, and many Venetians yearned for a return to the days of the old Most Serene Republic. Genova and Torino soon followed, Genova taking much of its claims immediately and Torino driving into historically Savoyard lands.

By 2120 a second round of expansion had brought more land in France and Greece under Lombard control. The reconquest of the Eternal City was the success which was most heavily advertised in the cities of the League however. The Esecutivos proclaimed that the restoration of Rome would begin immediately.

From: The Consiglio di Amministrazione of the Lega Lombarda
To: The Suddeutscherbund

While we would welcome scientific cooperation between our nations, the Esecutivos of the Corporate Republics would have us insist that they be given final authority over the goings-on in any university established in the lands of the Lega. We pray that our government and yours may share a mutual understanding of the risks and unrest that may otherwise occur.

@Golden1Knight: sure, stats have been updated.

@Masada: NWAG3 said it succinctly.

I'll start figuring out the leader characters for these phases as requested.

EDIT: J.K Stochkolme, what do you think of the length of each section? I plan to do one for each category you have mentioned. Since "religious leader" and "dictator" are synonymous, I plan to do one for religious leader and one for something original.

Albert Dobrynin on Government
Albert Dobrynin was the creator of the "New Russian" ideology. A mixture of a variety of elements, it could be said to be influenced by nationalism, the Orthodox faith, democratism, and other elements.

Dobrynin's primary contribution would be the creation of the "New Russian" system of government.

Highly effective at the rhethoric of writing, Dobrynin's primary argument was against pure democracy. As the emotional appeal from democracy comes from self-rule, Dobrynin used extensive evidence from those democracies which had existed in the past to prove the "Iron Law of Oligarchy"- that an elite would always come about to rule over the people. He thus accused democratic elements of wanting to use the power to seize power for themselves.

In the way of positive ideology, Dobrynin, like Marx, argued for "Scientific" thinking. To him, this meant examining the government of the world and seeing what worked. Dobrynin concluded from his research that there were three ideologies in the world worth paying attention to- Technocracy, Democracy, and Theocracy.

In Dobrynin's argument, each model had a strength and weakness.

First, Theocracy meant that the good was upheld, but sacrificed prosperity and liberty. Although the Orthodox Church leaders meant well, in practice they were too eager to suppress vice and thus denied people prosperity. Vice, Dobyrynin argued, can only be supressed up to a point- and trying to go too far is the end of prosperity.

Second, Democracy meant prosperity and liberty, but this liberty went too far. To prove this, Dobrynin did not hesitate to describe in vivid detail the events of an abortion, and even the dissection of new-born babies, to inspire disgust in his readers. In addition, he described licenstiouness and depravity- sex outside of marriage and homosexual sex. He concluded that whilst possible in theory, in practice a democracy could never be Christian. In a time of religious revival, this was a powerful argument.

Third, in a section Dobrynin's followers would resort to a lot, was Technocracy. Technocracy grants prosperity, but denies people liberty. Though democracy is flawed, argued Dobrynin, the fact that a democratic capitalist system allowed an individual to make their own life choices to a large extent must be admitted as a benefit of the system.

Dobrynin's proposed model was to have three branches of government- the Theocracy, the Technocracy, and the Democracy. The Theocracy would have merely the power of veto, and would use this to ensure the safety of the Orthodox faith and nothing more. The Technocracy (or in practice, the civil service) would act as the Executive branch, with the right to propose legislation and manage day-to-day affairs. The Democracy would act as the legislative branch.

Several safeguards were made for the system.

Firstly the Judiciary would have limited power, learning from the lesson of the United States- a majority vote of the house, approval of the head of the Civil Service, and approval of the theocratic leaders could overturn a judicial decision through constitutional amendment. This was to prevent judges having too much power.

Second, democratically elected Ministers would still exist- however they could only override the civil service when they had an explicit bill from Parliament to do so. This was to ensure Parliamentary independence from the Executive- otherwise it would be like an old-style democracy, with legislative independence destroyed.

Third, army pay was increased considerably. The army itself was not expanded, but increased pay was used as a reason to demand greater quality. This meant that the army would not support a popular revolt.

Dobrynin's ideas would gain more and more influence over time, pressuring the Theocracy to cede more and more power through the process of constitutional amendment. To the Orthodox Church, learning from the lesson of the Russian Tsar, loss of power was inevitable- so the strategy was to use a Dobrynin-style system so as to preserve what was important.

I decided to leave this for a while to avoid accusations of hogging space. Since nobody else wants to post, however, I'll do one more for today.

Diplomacy:

From Russia
To Far Eastern Republic

It has taken much effort, but union has come ever closer. Restoring the Russian people to what they used to be can continue in stages.

From Russia
To Bavaria

Our state wishes to reform our civil service along technocratic lines- though we contest it in other areas, we accept your superiority in such matters. Though it would be difficult, perhaps you could send a delegation to help us? You would earn Russia's friendship.

------------------------------------------
Story Development idea.

Adrik Aleksandrov's Populist Party
The rise of new democracy inevitably meant the rise of new parties. Adrik Aleksandrov would found the Russian People's Party, or Populists, who would come to be known for opposing theocrat power and advocating for democracy as total as possible. A key figure in politics and the intellectual opponent of Dobrynin, throughout the whole of the 2120-2140 period he controlled either a majority or a near-majority in Parliament- he was either Head of Government or Opposition Leader.

As a party, the Populists had three major platforms.

First they believed in peace (as opposed to the Republican Guard, an outlawed establishment that wanted to overthrow the theocracy by force)- Adrik argued that the theocrats were emotional weaklings and that the mere threat of a Revolution, not an actual Revolution, would be enough to get them to cede power 'back' to the People. A civil war would kill millions of people and risk the creation of a dictatorship, so it should not be attempted until absolutely necessary.

Second, they believed in Total Democracy. This meant the complete abolition of theocrat power and complete opposition to Dobryninism. Even the deaths of tens of millions would be justified, if only as a last resort, to get Total Democracy back. Adrik also believed in the Constitution being amendable by a 50% majority of the people, as well as the abolition of judicial review, in order to further said Total Democracy.

Third, they believed in Rural Specialisation. This was not an ideology, as Adrik emphasised many times, but an election strategy. Campaigners were trained especially to travel from place to place in the countryside spreading the doctrines of the Populist Party. A campaigner carried his own food supplies (so he wouldn't be a burden on anybody), and had to be well trained in the psycology of peasants. Throughout the period Adrik's rivals would catch up to him piece by piece, but in terms of rural campaigning Adrik was always one step ahead.

The "Establishment" of theocrats would have much preferred the Populists out of power, but didn't see anything they could realistically do about them. The Church preached against the Populists at times, but only indirectly via attacking Populist policies. The Church never forbade their flock from voting for them.

Although it wasn't a starting plank of his platform, as Adrik's reputation grew he made an informal alliance with the rural elites. There was no formal deal, but in practice the deal was that Adrik would advocate policies in their interests and in exchange they would try to persuade rural citizens to vote for them. This angered many, particularly Dobrynin- who called Adrik Aleksandrov "A hypocrite, a pagan, and a dog". This was even more notable firstly because this was the only time Dobrynin described somebody rudely, and secondly because he wrote a seething article justifying all three- A hypocrite because he talks about democracy and makes deals with elites, a pagan because he substitutes for Christianity a false religion (i.e. secularism, which Dobrynin saw as an entirely seperate religion from Christianity), and a dog because he barks loud condemnations that are meaningless (attacking the theocrats for their unjust usurpation of power) and because he was merely the slave, alleged Dobrynin, of the rural elites.

From: Republic of La Plata
To: Sao Paolo
The Republic has no interest in conflict with Sao Paolo and is prepared to reach a territorial settlement that will define La Plata's borders with the Sao Paolo state, should its government be ready to negotiate such an agreement. This agreement would constitute recognition of Sao Paolo's sovereignty by the Republic of La Plata and would settle all questions of territorial integrity and sovereignty between both states in perpetuity. Given the nature of both our states' territorial ambitions, such an agreement would necessitate a concession by the La Platan Republic towards Sao Paolo's interests in Brazil, which the Republic is prepared to offer.

The settlement, therefore, which the Republic proposes would fall along these lines.


~I wouldn't mind at all if the borders were adjusted to look nicer, so long as they remain true to the spirit or whatever of the original~

From: Republic of La Plata
To: Chilean insurgents
The northern Patagonian coastline is rightful territory of the Republic and will be liberated from your clutches at whatever cost necessary. We advise you to end this futile war before it results in more needless death and destruction, but if you are unwilling, we are prepared to bring about your end. La Plata is not unmerciful, and offers amnesty to any insurgents that come forward regardless of their rank within the structure of the rebellion, and is prepared to create an autonomous Chilean province within its possessions once this unfortunate conflict has been brought to an end.

@NWAG2: it could be a single sentence or many - however long it takes to create an interesting and potentially valuable character that I could fit into an update. I would caution you to spread them out over the next 4 turns though.

m.t.cicero said:

From: The Consiglio di Amministrazione of the Lega Lombarda
To: The Suddeutscherbund

While we would welcome scientific cooperation between our nations, the Esecutivos of the Corporate Republics would have us insist that they be given final authority over the goings-on in any university established in the lands of the Lega. We pray that our government and yours may share a mutual understanding of the risks and unrest that may otherwise occur.

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In order for scientific thought to flourish within any universities established, faculty and students should be subject to academic law before secular authority. The same rules would apply to the conduct of fellows in the Lega as if they were in Munich or Stockholm, so that they are able to further their studies without fear of secular intervention, particularly in terms of restrictions on assembly or association.

Neverwonagame3 said:

From Russia
To Bavaria

Our state wishes to reform our civil service along technocratic lines- though we contest it in other areas, we accept your superiority in such matters. Though it would be difficult, perhaps you could send a delegation to help us? You would earn Russia's friendship.

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There are numerous issues with what you propose. The first is that establishing a technocratic civil service requires a base of educated personnel to draw from, which does not exist in Russia at this time outside of the clergy. Second, simply imitating technocratic structures will be less than optimal, given that the civil service would still be subject to populist pressure from the religious establishment or epected politicians. Third, the great distance involved means thatbit would be prohibitively expensive to launch any major education effort, especially given that the only line of communication is through the Baltic Sea, which is controlled by a state that the Russian Regime has recently threatened with war.

As such, we must reject the proposal as the proposed benefits are outweighed by the costs and risks.

To: The Ganges
From: Pakistan

Pakistan wishes to inquire into what your government's goals at the present time are.

To: Maharashtra
From: Pakistan

Would you agree to fixing the border between our two states as it currently stands? Pakistan has no quarrel with you. In addition, would you have any issue with allowing free trade between our countries?

To: North Iran, South Iran
From: Pakistan

The government of Pakistan wishes to inquire if your countries would have any issue with allowing Pakistani persons and companies to invest in developing your territory. Islamabad believes that this could dramatically expedite development. What do you say?