Pre-Thread: ImmacuNESV

[thomas.berubeg]

While most Regimes did not survive long in the chaos of the Depletion, the Chinese fared worse than many. The communist regime collapsed in 2051, and, shortly after, was replaced by a Capitalist Republic, put into position by a number of Foreign Coorporations, who, at long last, saw an opportunity to control the Resources of most of the Asian Continent.

The Blue Suns Coorporation was one such Multinational. Buying up it’s competitors, it soon became the dominant Cooporation in China, Controlling the power trade from it’s headquarters on the Three Gorges Dam, which it had bought from the Cash Strapped Chinese Government, weeks before it collapsed, to be replaced by nothing more than Feudal Warlords. As the major Producer of power in China, The blue Suns was able to effect advantageous mergers with various Mercenary Corporations and food and weapon manufacturing plants, effectively creating a Consortium that controlled much of the Industrial base of China, gladly leaving the rest to be ruled by the warlords that were it’s principle clients.

Meanwhile, in India and other south Asian countries, the Blue Suns was bolstering the failing governments, buying assets when the governments needed cash. The Blue Sun’s biggest Break in India was when the government decided that the Judicial System was too expensive to maintain, and prepared to close the jails. The Blue Suns stepped in, and offered to run a privatized system of Jails, Effectively giving the Corporation an endless supply of Labor for it’s plants and factories.


Power Sources

Spoiler :

The Gorges Dam

Government

Spoiler :

A board of Directors

Main Form of Influence

Spoiler :

Labor and Power.

through the Southeast Asian Jails, Blue Suns controls a HUGE labor pool.

 

[hbar]

17And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life;
18Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field;
19In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.

Government: Theocratic Patriarchy

Spoiler :

The organization of the Heartland government is known to be complex, but the intricacies are hidden from any not involved. What is known is that the Amish are the most powerful faction, and the de facto leaders. The Amish are lead by Jedediah Slabaugh, head of the ruling family and colloquially known as the Farmer King. It is also known that Jedediah leans heavily on the advice of the Stonecutter’s Council, senior members of the Freemason’s guild. The two organizations are heavily dependant on one another - to put it simply, the Amish provide food, and the Masons provide technology. Whether the Amish are the leaders because food is now more valuable than armaments, or because the Masons have always preferred to operate in the shadows, is a question for scholars. Any diplomat entering the Heartland will deal exclusively with the Amish.

The symbol of the Heartland is a triangle. The three sides are made of a hoe, a wrench, and a sword. These represent the base of power of the Heartland. They have remained independent through cunning and negotiation over their bountiful food harvest, trading food rights for ‘sharecroppers’, indentured servants who till the land for the promise of a full belly.

Military

Spoiler :

The forces of the Heartland are separated into three groups.

The regular army consists of Amish recruits (and sharecropper conscripts in times of need). They are usually armed with Amish-made rifles, somewhat slow to reload but deadly accurate, plus bayonets and swords. They are supported by cavalry; the best in the world, by some reports. Having kept the traditions of animal husbandry alive, the Amish were well positioned to thrive in post-petrol warfare.

The mechanized units are under Freemason control. There are several divisions of tanks modified to run on rapeseed oil, several anti-aircraft embankments along the southern shores of the Lakes, and small navy. As far as anyone knows, they do not posess any advanced technology (cermet armor, MMI, beam weaponry), but what they have is meticulously maintained and the operators are highly trained and disciplined.

The third wing is the covert ops unit. This is where the Quebec Liberation Front mostly resides. They are responsible for enfocing the de facto neutral territory on the northern shores of the Lakes. Modeled after early 21st century terrorist cells, they have been remarkably resistant to Canadian oppression. Between the regular food shipments and the threat of domestic violence, the Heartland and the Canadian Empire have maintained an uneasy relationship for over 20 years.

There are rumors of another, elite covert ops unit operating out of the Heartland. Tales of assassins, clad in black, wielding twin scythes and supernatural reflexes. Of course, these stories are just fairy tales, legends to scare children. Who could believe them? The Amish are such nice folk.

Religious Ideology

Spoiler :

The Amish avoid technology, while the Freemasons master it (and, if the rumors are true, worship it). Contrary to popular belief, the Amish are allowed to use technology, but they are forbidden to become dependant on it, so you rarely see them using it in day-to-day activities. Since the beginning of the Fall, the Amish have grown more evangelical in their beliefs. Their “Fishers of Men” are a common sight in cities across the continent, recruiting sharecroppers and lobbying governments to allow Amish conclaves in far-flung lands. Considering the concessions they demand, only the most food-starved countries allow them to take root.

Diplomats staying in Amish country are often dismayed to find that their personal technology is banned, confiscated at the borders and returned upon exit. Even if they do manage to sneak something in, there is nowhere to recharge, no cell signal or network to connect to. And those few foolish enough to get caught doing so had best hope their home country is powerful enough to warrant their safe return.

Energy

Spoiler :

Most of the power in the Heartland is human or livestock. The Masons maintain a network of hydropower stations along the locks and rivers feeing the Lakes. There is a small bio-diesel refinery operated to provide fuel to the Freemasons.

Industry

Spoiler :

Food. The Amish feed the Canadian Empire, and in return, the Empire recognized the Heartland as an independant state. Since their industry is cultural, not capital, the Heartland is uniquely resistant to assimilation.

Brief History

Spoiler :

The combination of fuel shortages and aquifer depletion crippled the world’s agricultural economy. The Amish were the only food producers in the Industrialized world to emerge unscathed. It is said that the Masons recognized the situation in the early 2020s and assisted the Amish in consolidating power and further ritualizing their religious beliefs. Whether or not that is true, it is known that in 2024, the Slabaugh family came to power, uniting the clans and negotiating food delivery contracts. They maintained neutrality through most of the Second Civil War, only turning against Dixieland when it was clear that they could no longer pose a threat. From the 2040s to 2083, the Heartland (as it was now called) provided food exclusively to New New England in exchange for protection from the increasingly assertive Canadian Empire. This alliance lasted four decades before the Heartland’s surprise defection. In the harvest of 2083, Ezekiel Slabaugh announced a deal with the Canadians, providing them with the food previously promised to the coastals. This betrayal sparked a brief war, but without food to feed their troops, the armies of New New England were quickly defeated. The next 17 years have passed with relative stability, with Canada desprately trying to find a way to assimilate the Heartland without disrupting the increasingly crucial food supply.

Territory:

Spoiler :

Most of the former states of Wisconsin, Illinois, Michigan, Indiana, and Ohio. Also the western portions of New York and Pennsylvania up to the Appalachians. They maintain an unspoken alliance with the mountain people, leaving them alone in exchange for untroubled borders. They control lakes Michigan, Erie, Ontario, and south Huron, though the northern estuaries and the whole of Lake Superior is held by the Canadians.

Feel free to change any of this history - I just had fun writing it, don't know how plausible it is.

 

[SKILORD]

Crosshairs Incorporated:

With the rise of ocean levels and the gradual breakdown of political order looting became commonplace during the periodic environmental tragedies, but Crosshairs Incorporated was well positioned to profit from this. As a weapons and ammunition supplier the stores remained well defended, and as blights destroyed much of the agriculture Crosshairs used their profits from the gun trade to invest into work with indoor, highly controlled, hydroponic farming.

Soon the employees of Crosshairs Incorporated, heavily armed thugs in the minds of their detractors, began siezing properties and setting up large, fortresslike, supply stores. By controlling a significant food supply in an area where food was scarce and also by being able to defend it, it wasn't long before Crosshairs gained control of virtually every aspect of most lives in the midwest of North America, hiring large numbers of people to work in their private army and to restock shelves, with harsh penalties for those who steal or misbehave, simply by revoking a person's membership card in the early days you would be cut off from your main source of supplies, and in this day and age, under the Iron Fisted rule of CEO Bubba Cross III, descendant of the original Bubba Cross, the enlightened founder of Crosshairs, it is entirely possible to be robbed and shot by the army if one does not have a membership card.

Government:

Essentially a hereditary monarchy with many trappings of corporate policy and structure surviving, including a board of directors that may veto the CEO.

 

[Terrance888]

United Captains of Oceania
"While some fled the sea when it rose and devoured their homes, some... some forsook the land and took to the sea."

Basically: Floating oil tankers, cargo shippers, fishing boats, newly-built sailing boats. An entire people of wanderers who survive by recognizing fellow captains and ganging up on the few pirates that attempt to make a living in the pacific. The people themselves range from polynesian natives, military naval crews, trans-oceanic shippers, fisheries, and even people left stranded during a cruise.

Government: Confederacy. They have a special flag and flag system for use within the United Captains of Oceania Fleet as well as alerts for rogues and pirates. Each captain is the leader of his own ship, and so a representative at the annual meetings near the peak of Hawaii (yes?). During times of war Commodores lead efforts within sight-range for actions to protect their interests, such as when a pirate fleet from the Indian Ocean attempts to move on or one of their land-based colonies is under attack. Technically, owners of extra-large ships like Oil Tankers or Cargo shippers who also had useful supplies on them (such as dried food, desalination machines, ect. probably all traded away by now, but most also held some items back) and now hold towns are the strongest.

Military: They are generally not a warlike people, but they do have various weapons: missiles from various fleets, looted firearms and cannon being some examples. Specialized items that can be used for war such as harpoon guns, nets, and even rams can be appropriated and used.

Fleet: The most rare ships are the few metal-hulled Cargo Ships, rebellious Military Craft, and tankers. These days they mostly float on the currents or use rigged sails, but some hold a few barrels of oil for emergencies. More common are large rafts connected to a small fleet of supporting boats. Finally, there are sailing boats built after the downfall of oil.

On hind sight, won't work as well as I envision it.

 

[Seon]

Spiegel Corp Logo​

Government: Plutarchy

Leader: The Board. Project Manager Dural

Name: European Trade Conglomate/Spiegel Corp

Military: The current military of the European Trade Conglomate is in fact a direct descendent of the part of the German Army which defected away from the government shortly after the long-anticipated collapse of modern society. Although majority of tanks and aircrafts were scrapped due to their immense fuel consumption, the infantry still remains well-trained, well-equipped, and numerous.

In addition, the cannons mounted upon the tanks and the like were salvaged and repurposed into more stationary emplacements.

These troops and artillary pieces spend much of their time garrisoned within numerous enclaves of Germany and patrolling the countryside, hunting down any sign of banditry and protecting the people. For the purpose of rapid movement, the European Trade Conglomate's army maintains a large fleet of military trucks and humvees, fueled by bio-fuel created from few remaining plants in central Germany. They are, however, only used when absolutely necessary due to the expensive nature of the fuel.

Although this army swears loyalty to the entire European Trade Conglomate, its true allegience is to that of the Spiegel Corp, which, based on several enclaves, remains the most powerful member in the Conglomate in numbers, unity, technology, industry, and sources of electricity.

There also exists a wing of the army that focuses on remote surveillance, reconnaisiance, infiltration, sabotage, and other black operations. They are often used for hunting down disloyal citizens, investigating possible crimes, and other grim businesses that the Board does not believe is fitting for a normal soldier to do.

Economics:
What's left of the highway after dozens of years of negligence is still used today for trade that occurs between the many enclaves of European Trade Conglomate. While incomparable to the amount of shipping that happened in the glory days of the European Union, trading between enclaves remain significant compared to the other regions of the world. Spiegel Corp enclaves at the heart of Germany provide well-crafted and reliable industrial goods to the other enclaves, which respond back with metals, foodstuff, alcoholic beverage, textile raw materials, and other essentials.

Trucks and cars are mostly defunct, and many of those still lying on the highway systems and defunct cities have been claimed by the Spiegel Corp and used for scrap metal, with horse-drawn carriages and caravans replacing their functions.

Society:
All the enclaves under European Trade Conglomate is dependent upon Spiegel Corporation produced goods and its electricity. The Conglomate's Board (which is also mostly controlled by the Spiegel Corporation) controls most of all sources of elecricity and factories within Germany and offers their products and "protection" to other enclaves for a simple repayment: obedience to a set of laws that the Board devised and agreeing to a certain amount of remote surveilance.

For the purpose of this, electrical lines, fiber optics cable, and radio transmission towers within germany is always well-maintained by the agents of Spiegel corps.

While this system allows for the ETC to be in control of almost all trade that occurs between enclaves and allow life within them to return to at least some semblance of the modern day glory, it also caused a huge rift between the rich and the poor, with the rich living in cozy protection and the comforts of enclaves while the vast majority live as feudal peasants in homesteads and villages outside.

Energy: Energy is provided by the vast windfarms that exist in central Germany as well as many thorium-converted nuclear reactors that have been left over from Germany's nuclear power program.

Small bio-fuel plants still remain operational in central germany.

Power lines are still maintained by Spiegel Corporation agents.

Territory

Most of Central Germany and southern Germany.


History:

As the economy of Germany continued to decline, leading to the economic crisis that made the hyperinflation post WWI look like a hiccough, the Heckler and Koch Corporation, Securitas AB, and many other industrial corporations merged together to pull their resources to survive what they deemed was the end of the world as they knew it, becoming the Spiegel Corporation. When the German government was finally declared defunct, the Spiegel Corporation rushed to pick up the pieces. While the rest of the world was devolving into a frantic chaos, the Spiegel Corporation managed to salvage the German Army from the ashes of the German Republic via their influence, contacts within the army, and the Heckler and Koch munitions factories. They also kidnapped numerous engineers, technicians, mechanics, and researchers that formerly worked for other companies or the State and forced them to work for them in Central Germany, where they quickly established what is now known in modern tongue as the "enclaves."

They ruled their countryside and obtained food by trading with local farmers (and oftentimes just forcing them to pay a certain "protection fee"), and soon began to unite the other enclaves under the banner of the European Trade Conglomate.

 

[ZeletDude]

I'm definitely interested, but could someone show me where a map is, I can't seem to find it :\

 

[Adrogans]

Topographical map, Earth, 2100,

Spoiler :

Here.

 

[Terrance888]

uh.... would the Three Gorges Dam still work or would it be flooded?

 

[Seon]

It's in smack dab middle of China. It should still be operational... if it's been maintained well.

... and also if the water source, the Yangtze, is still good.

 

[thomas.berubeg]

Added a Logo and forms of Influence Wielded

 

[Darksaber1]

The New Day Movement

A varied organisation based in eastern-Africa, the New Day Movement plans to exploit the current chaos to further its goals. Formerly the New Africa Movement and latter the New Day Revolutionaries, the Movement has since expanded to include all the down-trodden and abused, movement was first founded in 2051, expanding sharply in 2091 with the defeat of the Kenyan army at the battle of Ruiru, at which time the New Army seized Nairobi.

Government:

Spoiler :

The New Day Movement is a rather loose coalition of regional governments, revolutionary groups, warlords and military groups, all united under the banner of the Council of the New Day. Notable groups include:
The Army of the New Day: Initially formed from an alliance of Kenyan and Ethiopian soldiers that mutinied following the accidental destruction of a vital hydroelectric dam in Ethiopia in October of 2050, the alliance of the mutinied soldiers with several revolutionary groups allowed the Formation of the New Africa Movement on January 1, 2051. The Army remains key to the Movement, particularly in maintaining the loyalty of the varied warlords that run large portions of the Movements territories.

Council of the New Day: The uniting force behind the Movement, the Council wields limited direct power, but the complete loyalty of smaller organizations such as the Army provides decent strength.

New Day Revolutionaries: The Movements equivalent to an intelligence division, the Revolutionaries specialize in deploying agents to sow dissent and revolution in foreign territories, as well as monitoring the remaining media and direct observation through field agents to collect intelligence for the Movement. The exact power of the Revolutionaries is unknown, however to large amounts of power and resources supplied to their facilities hints at new technologies, most notably being rumours of metameterial-based stealth systems.

Power:

Spoiler :

The New Day controls potent power generation capability, particularly solar, hydro, geothermal and biomass plants, however the extremely poor infrastructure means power cannot be distributed, with many plants idling at this time.

Territory:

Spoiler :

The New Day controls most of Kenya and Uganda, as well as parts of northern Tanzania and south-eastern Ethiopia. Smaller, semi-controlled outposts can be found in neighbouring countries, and revolutionary groups declaring affiliation can be found scattered across the world.

Military:

Spoiler :

The Army of the New Day is largely militia-based, although a core or professional soldiers do exist. Most of the force is infantry based, although a fairly large pool of moderately-up armed/armoured electric and biofuel powered vehicles support them.

The most feared branch of the New Day’s forces is its Revolutionary forces, which use funds from unclear sources (rumours include piracy, smuggling a slave workers, a foreign sponsors) to equip a small force with modern equipment, including unconfirmed rumours of stealth technology.

 

[GamezRule]

I'm in. I'll post something later.

 

[hbar]

Immac, can you put a link to map in the first post? The embedded version isn't showing up for me.

 

[Immaculate]

@Hbar:

http://oi53.tinypic.com/dzarlz.jpg

 

[Diamondeye]

The Followers of the One True Light

Government: A large but relatively unorganized group, the Followers act most like a Theocracy, obeying the charismatic, devoted and zealeous Father Luis. While they have some land that is ruled strictly by them, their borders are fluid as they are more of a sect than a nation; in some areas they will have plenty of members, but no governance, and some outskirts will be unorganized and so scarcely populated that even though it is held purely by their followers, it will be relatively easy to move through unchecked.

Leadership: Father Luis is the Patriarch of the Followers, surrounded by several loyal Priests and Cardinals, as well as blindly loyal "mundane" followers wherever he goes.

History: The Followers of the One True Light have gradually grown to encompass what was once many different, desperate religious groups. It is mostly based on the Catholic Church, but has evolved to include lots of minor sects and religions with their own saints, holidays, traditions and even laws. Common, though, is their devotion to the god of Father Luis and the abhor of technology, which is believed to be the machinations of the Devil. The sect has grown so large that it now encompasses what could be a major nation, but it is somewhat disorganized and logistics are of course hard without technology, meaning it is a somewhat fluid theocratic state surrounded by more or less dense clusters of followers and loyalists even within neighbouring nations/tribes/bands.

The Church of the One True Light was founded by Luis' predecessor and mentor, Father Remirez, who has since then handed the mantle over to the young prodigy to live out the last of his days away from the spotlights of the world, having done his share of the Holy Work.

Resources/Energy: The energy production of the Followers is almost non-existant and there is no "power grid" to speak of. They do not abhor wind-, water- and sun-power, which means that some places, villages and cities have a (very unreliable) source of energy.
What they lack in technology, they make up for in land and numbers. Many farmers and simple folk are followers of their ways, and they have one of the best agricultural outputs per persona, as well as one of the lowest population densities. Their military is crude, either simple local militias or bands of "Demon Powderers", people who have taken up rifles, squads of abominations that have sacrificed their own souls to protect those who cannot protect themselves. Mostly, however, the Followers are integral parts of the (especially rural) population of others, an invisible movement that cannot be fought with weapons, as every martyr bolsters the reputation of the One True Light.

Territory: Not decided yet, I wanted Northern Italy/Southern Europe, but Seon seems to be too close to that, so I am considering South America instead. I am talking this over with Seon, but it'll probably end with me moving to South America

Spoiler Our Glorious Leader! :

The murmurs of the other visitors could still be heard from behind him as Luis walked towards the door of the small chapel. His robe waifed behind him, almost touching the floor, and his eyes shone with reinvigorated zeal. Next to him walked two huge men in simpler garments. They pushed open the door and Luis smiled as he drew in the fresh, if moist, air, and the sunlight illuminated the land in front of him.

In the swampy fields of what had once been rolling hills and fields of gold and green, the common people were busy growing rice in the swamp-like marshes. Their sweaty, bare backs glistened in the sun as they toiled. Luis nodded thankfully. This was the way God had intended man to live and work. For centuries the Church had tried to rein in the technology and industry that had clearly been the work of Beelzebub's savant servant men. Since Galileo had walked away with his life, it had been an uphill struggle, and Luis was sad that they had stumbled, even come to accept the technology. God had punished them dearly for that mistake, and it was not a mistake Luis would allow repetition.

In the beginning, people had frowned when he called the floods and the storms, the plagues and the pests, to be sent from God, but he knew that he was right, and his resolve had soon swayed many of the commoners. Truly, their lives were purer now, tending the soil and guarding all the creations of the Lord like he had wished it, than how they had been during the time of Sin, where they had put walls and fences between themselves and nature, asphalt and tiles betweem themselves and Mother Earth herself. Truly, the new "Dark Age" was a Godsend; Another chance for Man to redeem himself in the eyes of the Lord.

All over the world, others were trying to climb out of the Dark Age by the same tools that had brought them death and righteous punishment, but Luis' followers celibated; They did not care for electronics, or for fusion reactors, thorium plants or other such machinations of Hell. They allowed themselves only to rein in the wind, water and weathers of the world, and only then for the most scarce of devices, water wheels and sails, windmills and saws.

Luis was a man with a mission. He knew that the Lord would not show mercy on humanity a second time. He knew he needed to convince the sinners to repent and abandon their foul ways. He would unite the world under the One True Light, no matter the cost.

 

[merciary]

Quick question, how bad is the flooding around D.C.?

 

[Immaculate]

Frequent hurricanes and storms continually batter the southern portions of the eastern american coast and even new england (though not as commonly)

 

[GamezRule]

I haven't seen any claims in Iberia. How is the Iberian peninsula looking? I am under the impression it has a climate about like that if Michigan now?

 

[Immaculate]

Iberia has been hit by extensive drought in the south and along the Mediterranean. In the north things are wetter and much much colder (like northern France, Britain, and Scananavia. So its a land of more extreme weather systems then it was before and this creates a lot of storms in the center, wind, dust, tornadoes, etc.

In the south it could easily have one of the best solar energy grids in the world.

 

[GamezRule]

Okay, I claim Iberia, and will put something together later.