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>>3887644
Nation creation guide:
How the elements work:
https://www.chinahighlights.com/travelguide/chinese-zodiac/china-five-elements-philosophy.htm
The basic 5 elements work on a system of mutual strengthening and weakening. Between benders are Overcoming interactions which weaken the element which the red arrows points to, while Generating Interactions strengthen users of both elements when they are near each other. As an example of this dichotomy is found in if we say we have a member of the Fire race, the Earth race and the Wood Race all in the same room. The Fire race would be the strongest as they are being empowered by both Wood and Earth while the Wood race would be second strongest as they are being powered up by the Fire race. The Earth race would be weakest at a neutral empowerment as they are being weakened by the Wood yet empowered by the Fire. New Elements have been integrated into the chart, now there can be 15 in the world, four slots are currently left unfilled.

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>>3887645
Element Relationships (an alternative to the convoluted circle chart)

The Greater Elements:

Metal:
Strengthened With - Water, Earth
Weakens - Dark, Wood, Spirit, ?3 (?# elements are currently unknown elements)
Weakened By - Fire, Change, Lightning

Wood:
Strengthened With - Water, Fire
Weakens - Ice, Spirit, Lightning
Weakened By - Fire, Force, Ice

Fire:
Strengthened With - Wood, Earth
Weakens - Air, ?1, Dark, Metal
Weakened By - Plasma, Spirit, Water

Earth:
Strengthened With - Fire, Metal
Weakens - Change, Lightning, Force, Water
Weakened By - Air, Wood, ?1

Water:
Strengthened With - Metal, Wood
Weakens - Ice, Fire, Force, Air
Weakened By - ?3, Earth, Dark

Inner Lesser Elements:

Dark:
Strengthened With - Force, Lightning
Weakens - Water, ?3, Ice
Weakened By - Fire, Metal, Change

Spirit:
Strengthened With - Force, Air
Weakens - Plasma, Fire, ?1
Weakened By - Metal, Ice, Wood

Force:
Strengthened With - Dark, Spirit
Weakens - Wood, Plasma, Ice
Weakened By - Water, ?3, Earth

Air:
Strengthened With - Spirit, Lightning
Weakens - ?1, Earth, Change
Weakened By - Water, ?4, Fire

Lightning:
Strengthened With - Dark, Air
Weakens - ?3, Metal, Change
Weakened By - Earth, ?1, Wood

Outer Lesser Elements:

Ice:
Strengthened With - Plasma, ?3
Weakens - Wood, Spirit
Weakened By - Dark, Force, Water

?1:
Strengthened With - Change, Plasma
Weakens - Lightning, Earth
Weakened By - Fire, Spirit, Air

?3:
Strengthened With - Change, Ice
Weakens - Water, Force
Weakened By - Dark, Lightning, Metal

Change:
Strengthened With - ?1, ?3
Weakens - Metal, Dark
Weakened By - Air, Earth, Lightning

Plasma:
Strengthened With - Ice, ?1
Weakens - Air, Fire
Weakened By - Wood, Spirit, Force

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>>3887646
Resources:
Different resources will give advantages to your nation, for instance if you have a horse icon under your nation and have used an action to domesticate those beasts you will now be able to field fire throwing Calvary and have something to help with your agriculture. Most important among the resources is probably the Salt resource which boosts your meat based foods and thus national nutrition through the introduction of low time preference salted meat trading. And as something that makes potatoe and cabbage soup that your nation's populace sustains upon a little less bland which is surely a decent bonus.

Background Fluff:
>From the depths ancient constructs and magics twist and turn, from the depths in ancient tombs, vaults meant to stand the tests of father time along with from the time capsules of civilizations long dead and the cursed grave sights of massacres long forgotten beasts reform. Minds meld back as the souls of the dead are thrust back into the material world. Your nation is alive once more, they can only remember how to crudely reform their ancient societies though, and they need your guidance. But blessed with your elemental sign they are forged anew, their potential is up to you to unlock, so from the places unknown in a world so dead they beckon to you, my lord. Can you build them back up? Can you reform the dead from the ashes? Can you create a civilization that will stand the test of time?

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>>3887646
(responses to the last thread)
>>3881820
The bodies collected need to be severed at the head in order to be moved due to how ingrained their heads are into the biomass. Rune tests initially show no signs of reanimation or other effects until one rune was left unattended engraved into the side of one of the bodies, this rune eventually faded and once it did (after an unusually short amount of time as well) the affected area of the corpse became hard as the toughest steel and as light as a body can be. Further experiments with corpses show that only runes with medium and not low light left can serve this purpose. This strange new super substance is also found to shed few spores, though still to many to be considered dangerous to common society there are to few for it to be considered a great threat to the local ecosystem if something was deployed with armor made from these corpse parts for military endeavors since hazardous areas can simply be scorched while whatever is wearing the armor is moving about.

On a raised hill in the middle of the developing area the city grows, after some time it shows enough promise that a state run road becomes viable and thus it is paved north to emissia so that the city's growth can be properly facilitated.

>>3881869
Although there is much resentment among the mino population who had failed their tests in their new relocation the greater accommodations which have been provided to them along with the threat of disciplinary action by the disjunctors the grumbling is kept to a minimum.

As for the minority of minotaurs who have passed their testing the rate of crime proportional to the volter population is still high, though most of this is probably due to the kinks in the testing system which should be ironed out over time. While the resources produced by the camp laden minotaurs have been seen to be reasonably high the ultimate costs which have been caused by the creation of the disjunctors along with the paperwork which had to be done due to all of the lives affected by this program have caused the final funding to be at best balanced out and at worst a net loss. The administration is hoping that the goodwill generated by this program among the minotaurs can be used to spin future trade with them as the thing which ultimately pays for this project in full, even if the goodwill technically will only account for a small portion of trade in reality.

The possibility of the priests being used for war in the future leads to a small part of the training curriculum being reworked in order to fit more combat useful techniques which can also be used as a proxy for the willpower training usually done anyways during training.

>>3883113
A secondary rail is constructed from haze to necropolis, helping to encourage trade along that route.

Many of the already examined artifacts found in the ruins are donated to the plagasm for further study while a great leap forward in engineering occurs when a small toy found in a box is examined fully, this leads to better turning on trains which decreases the chance of derailing considerably at higher speeds.

>>3883408
The ruins in the north consist of a temple complex of unknown origin along with a few rooms right under it whose walls are made from metal. Not much can be found which is practical above ground but under the earth locked behind an airtight door which had been opened after many hours of work a small room untouched by the grimy claws of time is found. Within this room are several artifacts of note to the Hingashi, firstly among them is a small device which seems to keep time, after all this time it is still running. The internal mechanisms of the machine are examined but are currently to precise to be replicated using the primitive metal working skills of the hingashi. Another artifact of note is a strange fragile collection of writings written in an unknown language, its pages are brittle but legible and the illustrations have already helped to produce more efficient pipe systems for waste management. Finally there is a partially ripped map found in what seems to be the waste container of the room, after hours of reconstruction efforts the map is revealed to be one of the continent the hingashi live upon, many cities some of which in the location of current hingashi settlements or ruins are found but the most notable fact of this map is that it shows part of another, much larger continent to the west. Though the hingashi do not yet have the boats or borders to make such a trip with time those new lands could be claimed for the race which could lead to more trade and general wealth for all hives.

The scholarly class grows as the need for bureaucrats and those who can read increases.

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>>3883436
Field testing reveals that these new chambered pieces can fire at much higher rates at a lower cost to totupower, though the resources used to produce them are not exactly common and thus the old system is kept in mind just in case the totupower pool which can be pulled from increases dramatically over the current supply.

The ruins upon closer inspection reveal themselves to be some sort of refinery or weapons facility from long ago, its walls contain an abundance of metals, most of which have a smelting point above what the totu are currently capable of. The layout of this factory can perhaps have something learned from it as the unfinished and unrecognizable goods along its line seem to be more developed the farther down the line they go, this combined with the trinkets found could soon lead to a revolution in totu industry once the problems of an overly specific metallurgy tradition (the totu are great at making artillery and telescopes but fail often when it comes to producing simple things like fine knives, wheels and quality armor) and the problem of a lack of fine tools are bypassed or removed. The metal production area also holds many interesting insights into a more refined smithing process, showing better strategies for pouring, melting and working out the kinks which often develop due to unregulated bubbles in the form of the metal. The furnace itself also seems to hint at a way to turn pressure (or in this specific case water pressure) into heat used for melting, this system will require refinement but could potentially lead to much cheaper ways of production and thus allow for a proper level of mass production if the need shall ever arise.

>>3883439
All races speak one language but the writing systems are all different. Totu voices though could have an accent or raspyness to them which could cause a hard time communicating across species though.

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>>3885982
The King of Wrete does not fully agree, he claims that the minotaurs can not live such a lifestyle at this moment, with time such a project could be realized but the reality is that the realm must be maintained in that way until further notice, though he does agree that the spending of his sizable treasury should be less frugal as to gain the loyalty of those under him.

>>3881931
The southern tarn do not think this is the time for such treaties mostly due to how such a system could be taken advantage of by the growing areas of unrest in the west, trade can and will occur more but an open borders policy will just not work for now.

>>3883053
The primarily tizta city of Tzitoros is founded near stianbal, it serves as a useful stop along the rail north into the plagasm and cooperation treaties signed with the plagasm allow for farms to be established to feed the city in plagasm owned desert using more mechanically based (as opposed to the barbaric spit up based agriculture of the totu) agriculture which takes light inspiration from the somehow decent portions of totu agriculture mostly through the constuction of long aquaducts which take springwater from the mountains to both small settlement and farm alike in the desert.

There have been many problems in building the rail through the jungle but after much time and plenty of funding the rail system is expanded to where it should be for now, connecting the rails into one world rail system, though speak of an expansion of the rail from nafflec northward to the new town of aestival and then further to emmissia are now being considered.

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>>3882763
The retreat occurs in two directions, to the north and to the south so that the oni forces sent might end up getting caught in an encirclement by the opposite force if they attempt to engage. Surprisingly they instead beeline for the city, entering its gates across the horizon. The Tarnish camps are set up in key positions with constant watch for oni while the stealth troops of the tarn lurk in the shadows ready to take on their oni counterparts in a brutal yet silent kind of shadow war. Makeshift walls and waterways are cut in many areas in order to bolster tarnish strength and properly capture the downpour still chugging on from the sea.

It is said that a poor man putting 100 coins in the bank will get him 101 at the end of the year while the rich man who puts in 10,000 coins into investments will get 11,000 at the end of the year, the tarn follow this conventional wisdom in their way of war, biding their time until the Oni break from the inside.

Sadly in the oni fort area they have broken loose, destroying many key tarnish positions on the eastern and western side of the city, they have captured many important supply runs which has lead to increased rationing among the sieging troops, though without notable supplies from tonglo they will become ever more cornered. At least thats what the establishment hopes.

(freshwater urchins do not exist therefor the urchins you fire are just salt water urchins from the urchin rich area around Hamet brought by ocean currents from the south and north)
It is thought that many oni might have died from trying to consume these fruit looking fellows, the thought of this brings a small smile to a few tarn during such a dark yet hopeful time.

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>>3883521
>>3883524
Only time will tell whether or not these hasty reforms to military discipline will catch on as the result of this battle will be the event from which future oni judge its edicts and drills.

As supplies begin to dwindle the oni make their move, draining as much manpower as they can from the unneeded parts of the defenses in order to bash upon the siegers with all they can, and the move seems to work as the oni have balanced out the advantage of artillery with both their own pieces and with the element of surprise, a style of bending which is known to be super effective when used correctly. The area around the canal and the eastern ruined battlements (formerly pristine walls) are scourged of Tarn, though the water they have built up in many areas is to hard to get rid of to be worth it. Many Oni die to a new technique of great annoyance where tarn bombard oni positions and advancing troops with poisonous urchins which prey mainly upon the often bare or merely sandaled legs of oni soldiers coping with a long time with few new decent quality footwear supplies.

The minotaur king has used these news of tarn weakness to his own gain, sending his forces to capture the oni fort along with the mountain territory to its west while raiding and capturing the salt mine to the north. Minotaur raiders are also in the process of harassing and possibly capturing quite a bit of oni territory in the mountains as well. The King sends his regards promising to attack tarnish backlines once he has captured what he desires.

>>3887214
The border is expanded twice, to the south scout ships send word of large steamy fishing vessels and trade ships ripe for the picking, alongside a bustling glowing city to the west which does not seem to well equipped to deal with a full sized raiding fleet.

Through its carefully managed diplomatic service and communications control, the Volt Polity had always succeeded in giving the outwards impression of effortless unity and perfect harmony.

It's not quite how it works.

We might never come back to the times of the Perfect Polity from before the Fall in his lifetime, where the nation practically ran on its own, but Kazira is an experienced politician born in the old world and with a sliver of memory of the old times; he knows the time to pass important political reforms is ripe.

>Action 1: The Polity System
A volter polity is any group above familial level in which members sit in a circular formation and exchange thoughts and sentiments on various matters; an Arbiter sits in the middle and moderates the discussion, has final authority to enforce decisions and represents the whole of the polity to the outside. This Arbiter goes on to be part of a higher level polity with its own Arbiter, and so and so on, from the lowest levels of the smallest clans to the highest echelon of the government (the Grand Polity). The reason it works especially well with volters is that on top of strong republican traditions, volters are able to attune themselves emotionally and mentally to a 'Current' that is shared in the whole polity, promoting a certain degree of peaceful consensus and unconscious democracy, and the Arbiter becomes the bearer of that electrical sentiment. This is what Kazira said when he meant that he felt the grief of his people; it happens literally.

The reason it needs reform right now is that it the current organization and laws are a relic from the pre-Fall times, and so for all their wisdom are no longer adapted to the current situation. There will always be the possibility to go back to these one day, but for now, legal hoopholes and discrepancies appear over time, making the system inefficient, abusable or unfair, sometimes downright undemocratic without even trying to be. Moreover, the nation is becoming more and more wealthy, specifically from industrial resources, which makes it ripe for corruption, something the Grand Arbiter is simply not going to allow. It is best to prevent disease and plan ahead.

Kazira and his aides have prepared a new set of laws to better standardize, scrutinize and regularize the functioning of polities. Loopholes get fixed while we study the planned evolution of the nation and prepare preventive legislation for the problems that are thought to arise eventually; Arbiters are slightly empowered but their influence is better kept in check, with a codified role to naturally weed out the incompetent ones. Due to the way volters electrocommune, 'corruption' doesn't quite come from the same sentiment as it would outside, it tends to be merely a byproduct of clans being too influential because they deal in industry while the others are potato farmers. Therefore we have created a Little Polity with a representative directly on the Grand Polity, that is formed of all the myriad 'small' clans that, though less influential, are actually high in numbers and membership, being farmers, strays and so on. There are also rules to allow clan members and individuals of other races that cannot electrocommune to contribute to the democratic process through arguments, as the Polity has collected a few racial minorities now within its ranks.

What we expect from this is a rise in national unity and a fairer system, ensuring a more efficient government and the rise of more competent leadership that wouldn't dare misallocate our budget. The democratic spirit is protected not only through goodwill but also because we leave no room for rifts to form.

>Action 2: The Three Factions
Being the Arbiter means that nothing escapes Kazira. When he felt the current peculiarly shift into three major nodes, he knew what was happening.

Though they are united in spirit and purpose under God, volters are very much a diverse lot and come in all manners of horn shapes, which suggests also different ideas and philosophies. Straight out of the Vault, there was not much to contend with, and governing it all was simple; the Grand Polity had maybe less than a dozen representatives. But nowadays the Polity is home to five major cities and myriad important clans and governmental orders, all of which have an arbiter sitting on the council. Politics have gotten more complex, and in a sometimes dangerous world where we are the odd ones there are a lot of differing opinions on how to proceed. Said opinions have naturally coalesced into three major factions, representing three major shared values of the Polity: the Peace faction, the Energy faction, and the Thunder faction (these are named through the volters' own perception of these notions, therefore it does confuse outsiders sometimes). All these factions believe in pacifism, but their views on how to achieve it best differ.

>Peace Faction:
All volters espouse pacifism; the nation is, to outsiders, a pacifist government. But to a volter, a true pacifist would be a member of this group. The Peace Faction focuses on the pacifist ideal and moral purity, they are the most committed humanists and intellectual activists. They intend to spread or defend the ideology through goodwill, diplomatic relationships, nonviolent means, uncompromising moral commitment and influence, believing that they can unite the world if we set a virtuous example. Among their ranks are many philosophers, thinkers, artists, diplomats, farmers and grand priests. The Peace Faction embodies the virtue of Morality, and are sometimes calles Moralists.

>Energy Faction:
Those are the dynamic, eccentric, sometimes unpredictable volters that propel our society forward to new and exciting horizons. The Energy Faction represents all those that believe in bettering the world through progress, researching new means of overcoming obstacles and generating the wealth to enable a greater quality of life to all. They believe that wealth for all is the most important tool to enable pacifism and democracy to thrive but also hold the firm belief that a world where all get a fair deal is possible, and that nobody has to be left behind. They are the merchants, the scientists, the engineers and the powermancers of the nation. The Energy Faction embodies the virtue of Prosperity, and are sometimes called Dynamics.

>Thunder Faction:
The Thunder Faction believes just as much in the ideal of peace as the others but is willing to use strenght to protect this peace at all cost from any and all threats that will refuse to back down. Much like how their god used to do things back in the day they are ready to bring down the thunder decisively to excise the tumors of the world before they spread, and deter other powers from starting trouble. They believe in virtuous causes and the responsible application of force to enforce justice, order and peace in a turbulent, dangerous, unpredictable world. They count the bolters, thunder guards, thunder priests, disjunctors, and Thunna himself tends to lean that way. The Thunder Faction embodies the virtue of Power, and are sometimes called Thunderites.

Kazira knows better than to stand in the way of change. If the Polity is to go that way, so be it, but by acting now and unofficially recognizing the factions he can prepare the system to accommodate a smooth transition and ensure that these three factions work together, not against, for the greater good of the nation. Grouping the polity's representatives also makes it easier to deal with them and balance interests, and there is much potential for the canny Arbiter to use the strenghts of the differing factions without upsetting the democratic process by strenghtening one or the other when it is most needed. This will enable us more political flexibility in our actions and better justification to commit acts that may seem against our ideals to some.

"Morality, Prosperity and Power"
- New Motto of the Polity

>>3887650
Action 1: study the volters problems with radics
Action 2: provide a plagasm perspective on the golden dawn's mushroom corpses (with proper protection of course)

Action 1: Break the Oni communication codes using interrogation of prisoners. Keep it a secret for now, but move all captured drums to the east near the canal for the war action. There should be quite a few still leftover from Tonglos army. Maybe even coerce a few prisoners into doing the banshee yells or whatever.
Action 2: Even more precision. Snipers get weird and sociopathic(like all snipers), start carrying buckets of water around, saying that if they become one with the water, they can shoot further and even bend water in midair to hit their target. Though this is all superstition, it spreads to other units like the aqua bolters and cannon units, the latter of whom begin sleeping with their cannonballs quite comedically.

War Action: Oni drums used on Western side to call an “massive attack” from the canal. Fog rolls in, used to prevent the Oni from realizing the trick until too late. Army releases all the stockpiled water into the moat all at once, swimming with it in unison as it rolls down the hillsides and into the moat/city. They are helped by the rising sun, which blinds the Oni and makes them flashing targets. The largest water stockpile and army is in the Tonglos pass, where the moat and walls have conveniently been destroyed by Giibs army on the way in(see Big bridge actions from all the way back, basically the eastern wall and moat no longer exist so it should be trivial for the water and soldiers to get in). Longbowmen picked off by Tarnish snipers while infantry formations are attacked from behind by a crushing tide of water and blades. Aquabolters use their increased range to interrupt any attempts at regrouping or fighting back. More snipers pick off runners or messengers trying to get word to reinforcements. Crocodiles loosed into the water to catch anyone swimming through the moat(the water should be fresher with this massive influx of new water all at once). This attack is made up of 2/3rds of the Tarnish army, the remaining 1/3rd assisting indirectly through bolt-Fire and sharpshooting. The Oni are currently significantly spread out and focused on the inner ring of the Tarnish siege, this should come as a complete surprise. In fact they as of last turn devoted most of their efforts into attacking the western supply lines(opposite side of the city), so this should come as a complete surprise. Inner siege ring people are ordered to hold their position for now and prevent any attempts at escape or breaking the siege. If the order comes through, they are ready to march into the city and reinforce their brethren in an instant.

Starting Location: That nice island in the top left?
Nation Name: Tumaria
Capitol Name: Tumar
Nation Colors: (primary and secondary) Purple and Black
Race Name: Tumarians
Race description/links/abilities: The Tumarians are beings bound with plasma. With molten magnetic cores in their torsos, this is what holds them together. A solid blow to their core is fatal, much like any other living creature. They are able to discharge their innate energy in several ways, primarily used to discharge explosive blasts for warfare, though it can extend to heating objects, and energy projection.
Reproduction has always been a challenge for the Tumarians. It requires two Tumarians to channel their energy into a new being. It's an extremely exhaustive process, and takes around a 5 months. This means that the Tumarians are naturally extremely small in numbers, their population only in the tens of thousands.
After their extended isolation, instead of focusing on technological advances, most focused on advancing their own innate abilities. In addition to the more simple and easy aforementioned abilities, they have honed their elemental abilities to form small shields, as well as being able to dump larger amounts of energy into larger blasts. They are experts at their craft, and their entire society revolves around their bending and it's power.
Element: Plasma
Elemental Passive Ability: Photon absorption
Summary of Nation: Hailing from an island nation, with no proper view of the world, the Tumarians kept to themselves. While it was known that land existed beyond their borders, it was never of interest to the state, at least not until now. After centuries of rule by a corrupt and barely-functioning republic, they were overthrown by a populist and his fanatical following. Installing himself as an emperor, and popular with the people, he intends to lead the Tumarians out of their 'dark age' and into a new age of prosperity.
Fluff (optional): Tumarians are a proud people, and don't bend their knee easily, if at all. They believe they have an inherent superiority in the form of their elemental abilities, and thus may tend to look down on other races.
Starting Crop: Peas
Elemental Passive Ability: As beings binded with plasma, they can derive energy from the photons from the sun. This passively gains them energy, allowing for extended periods without rest or sleep, thus boosting their productivity, provided they have spent a time storing the energy from the sun. This can also boost their elemental power.

(cont)

(response to turn + lore)
>>3887025
The rise of the new Emperor was not a thing which happened solely due to some political movement but was partially a result of a discovery by the Future Emperor bellow the city of Tumar. The Future Emperor did not emerge from his youth with immense popularity but instead had taken up underground development as an occupation, mostly for the purposes of repaying a debt he had inherited from a relative. Bellow the earth, under the city of Tamar he found a strange complex which had been abandoned for what was probably centuries, being an intelligent man with a curiosity for literature and a thirst for some sort of valuable land to call his own he set to work amassing the wealth required to purchase that underground section.

In a sad turn of events he had to take a large loan in order to gain ownership of the property which lead him to being forced to use the tomb as a bargaining chip so that his loaners could forgive his debt, the meeting went extremely well and the complex was not taken from the man. Instead the rich men who had lent him the money set him to work fully translating the dusty texts discovered in the ruin alongside a few hired experts. After much study he had discovered something grave, a prophecy relating to the possible destruction of his people, for the Tumarians are not alone in this world for beyond the immovable pylons lies civilizations who desire to subjugate the mighty Tumar people under shackles put upon him while he is not fully aware of what the world is like.

Using the trust and connections he had gained between him and the former lenders to him along with a little bit of charisma on his part he managed to found the movement which installed him as rightful ruler of the land. So using the other bits of knowledge he had gained from the ruin pertaining to expanding the pylons beyond where they sit currently he was finally able to gain the full trust and fervor of the people through the first expansion since long ago before even the republic stood, the people now see him as at the very least a semi-divine figure here to give them prosperity and protect them from that which lies beyond. Some even call him a God.

...

Lands formerly untouched by Tumar hands along with seas not sailed by his boats become available to the people, this new land spurs a minor diffusion of the population, freeing up space for more growth and development of already held lands, and with this new wave of industry also comes the possibility of finally clearing the forests which cover the island so that the fertile land which lies untapped may be finally exploited by the Empire after years of naturist movements, superstition and poor administration withholding the landscape from being tapped as it now can be.

(cont)

>>3888438
In the now expanded docks of the Great Canal begin to churn out new ships based upon the designs found in the ruin under the city, these ships prove themselves seaworthy to a reasonable degree as they are capable of braving the waters rich in fish far from the coast.

...

Further elaborations on this nation, mostly pertaining to the spring from which the canal comes from will be revealed at a later time. Soon but not now.

>>3836336
(reply to the selective breeding action 2 threads go by >>3880114)
Over time the totu will grow stronger in mind and body, the tizta do not have such traditions and thus the totu and tizta of the future may end up diverging further and further to the point that the two seem unrecognizable as obvious members of their mutual species.

>Action 1 & 2: Carapace & Rehabilitation
Such excitement is garnered from the possibility of improved metallurgy. To fully capitalize upon the findings, the order is given for a new city to be founded among the ruins, once again in the new fashion of primarily above ground buildings. The new city is named Carapace after the protective crab shells which have piled up as a result of their fishing. The name is symbolic of their hope that the city will provide them the means to produce their own security.
Utilizing the tools gained from the Golden Dawn's trade ships and the reconstructive abilities of Force Loosening, the Totu begin a careful process of rehabilitating the facility and refinery and evaluating its techniques through observation of the machinery and the differences of the products given their location. Test-runs include simple minded Totu attempting to replicate the changes made at that point before passing it down the line. The main focus of Jeleva however, is the potential of the forge as much of the Totu's equipment requires "Rare Metals" which she seeks to substitute. Inalla is tasked with mastering the device and maintaining order in the city as Jeleva returns to Nacre.

>>3887654
>>The Yokai Lords

With the Fort on the hills now no longer in Tarnish hands, the Tarnish forces have been cut off from all supply routes from the north side of the city. Furthermore, that means the Oni-Mino forces defending the dams will be far less pressured. With that entire front no longer needing to be constantly monitored, Giib's army can address other issues.

>1: The Thirsting Earth
Quite a few entombed mercenaries remain, largely left in reserve due to their great ability at countering Tarnish attrition tactics and reinforcing the city defenses. With the city's defenses less of an issue, they can now be brought to bare in full. Through the use of group rituals and training from both older entombed and Totu benders, the entombed are instructed to "pull the water deep within the earth". Essentially, reducing the moisture of the soil and causing water to be drawn underground and into reservoirs deep beneath the surface, rather than letting it continue to build up and make the terrain terribly one-sided as it has so far this entire war. With no little to no river, and water constantly being drained from the very earth, Giib hopes that this will force more Tarn into fighting conventionally.

>2: Counter-Sniping
With tarnish benders apparently getting quite good at lobbing water-bolts from afar, a fierce rivalry develops among the veteran and greenhorn longbow-men alike. Oni archers begin to incorporate the same strategies that the Tarn have for predicting trajectories of their arrows. Meanwhile, they often group up into small teams meant to purposefully take down other ranged combatants, with older members training and giving pointers to the newer ones. Most longbow-men are expected to have taken down a Tarnish sniper before being considered a true archer.

>War Action: Seal the Mines and begin mobile-warfare
The Oni tend to not enjoy prolonged periods of sitting on their butts doing jack all. Even more so when they don't *need* to fight on the defensive. The Tarn had sealed up the mines they had not already flooded so they could easily get them back up and running again once they took the city. Giib further's their sabotage by further sealing and collapsing the phosphate mines so no one can have any until after the war is over. With that little detail out of the way, the Oni no longer have to baby sit the ruins.
With the majority of the Tarn forces on the eastern side of Koza, and the fort in Mino hands, Giib declares a mobile-warfare strategy. The Oni forces are to begin making use of their mobility advantage on land verses the Tarns, and largely abandon Koza to keep their forces from being pinned down or whittled away within its constantly flooding streets. With each force being lead by one of Giib's most capable captains, the Oni begin pillaging all supplies they can get their hands on and running interference to prevent Tarnish communications, troops, or supplies from reaching the army in the pass.

Discord

>>3887654

>Action 1: Standardized weights and measures.

The Span is anarchic unit of measurement for Sonarii, approximately equivalent to the reach of an adult Sonarii's upper wings at their fullest extent. However, not every Sonarii is of quite the same size, and so the Span as a measurement has traditionally varied from region to region, and even within region upon the remit of Dukes and Local Lords and Lordlings. The main exception to this has historically been the Duchy of Larnet. For centuries the Forge of Sonaria, the heavy industrialization of the Larnet region has necessitated adjustments to benefit the concerns of a multitude of metalworkers and production companies in producing equipment that can easily match demanding standards. One of these long-held institutions is the Ducal standard Span of Larnet to which all workshops and businesses hold. This standard Span is comprised of five equal subdivisions, each termed a Dact, and each Dact being comprised of 20 equal Tarses (themselves comprised of 10 Fractarses). And on the other end of the scale, 100 Span make up a Glide, with 100 Glides adding up to the Standard Soar.

As this system is the one used by the producers of nearly all Sonarii metalwork, and the more intricate vehicles from Sky-Carts through Cannon up to Airships have grown to rely on this standard, it is made universal throughout Sonaria at the decree of the Ducal council. And with it comes a similar standardization for weight, with the standard set by a the Cubedact, or just Cube; a cubic squared weight of pure lead measuring a dact across on every face. This is dividable or multiplicative by 100 on a metric basis.


>Action 2: Wind Turbines

The Wind, as well as being revered by generations of Sonarii, has also been one of our primary sources of power. Windmills grace the landscapes of Sonaria from Chaelkeat through to Vinconro, providing a clean and constant source of drive and motion. With the advances in metalworking spread into Sonaria from our Polity allies, the Sonarii now start making new forms of wind motion-captors out of the advanced materials. Able to turn so much faster and with far less frequent need for maintenance (and able to be turned by a Sonarii's natural manipulatory abilities if the wind dies away for a while), these devices are seen to have potential to power industry and productivity across nearly all Sonaria.


>Diplomacy: Golden Dawn and Plagasm

With the Totu refusing to sign and agree to the proposed Sonarii treaty, and failing to even respond to the efforts of diplomatic mediation from the Polity; Sonaria looks to her allies for support and assistance in getting this situation resolved and the threat lifted.

>>3888675
Discord: https://discord.gg/v8DCrWu
Previous Threads
http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/qstarchive/3636731/
http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/qstarchive/3678802/
http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/qstarchive/3723090/
http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/qstarchive/3767352/
http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/qstarchive/3806665/
http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/qstarchive/3861557/ ( >>3861557 )

>Diplo:Minos
With most of the army out retaking Koza, a vanguard of Tarns are all that is left behind at Tonglo’s Pass and the surrounding areas. They are just large enough to deter a Mino raid, but not enough to really detract from the larger army’s fighting ability. After a few raids and counter raids by either side, the Minos and Tarns come to an unspoken agreement, where the two sides largely leave each other alone, the Tarbs allowing the Minos to pass through the edges of the province in peace. Both sides have easier fruit to pick than attacking a heavily armed opponent, after all.

1. The stamps of the church have received enough innovation, the first printing press!

2. The Titza in Faustic, being clean and unbeastly unlike the Totu, are contracted by the kingdom for their force bending.

Knowledge of Totu artillery has spread to the Golden Dawn, and many lords request a means of launching the shadow gas shells great distances with a delayed/impact fuse.

Diplo:

>Plagasm:
Entombed research teams are invited to explore and learn from the fungal forest ruin site, protected by the measures the Burned men have.

>Action 1: The Saturian Reforms
With the revitalization of the Tumarian nation finally in full swing, Emperor Saturius beings to undertake the planning and execution of a total military overhaul. Abolishing their old style of warfare, which was much too specialized to fight themselves rather than a potential other race, the new military is divided into four sections branches. The navy, of course, is in charge of the fleet and logistics of supply lines overseas. The army handles everything on land. The third branch is the indoctrination academy, where young Tumarians will be trained in the art of war, ready to serve the Emperor. The final section of the military is the Pathfinder Legion. The Pathfinders are the most experienced and high ranking non-officers of the military. Skilled in both seafaring and well as land combat, they are used as scouts to establish outposts and to explore unknown territory.
On top of this organization, military tactics are also taken into account. The military will take prime advantage of their elemental abilities, and fight almost exclusively at a medium range, using their energy blasts to bombard and overwhelm the enemy.
>Action 2: Forts built on the Waves
In preparation of the first expedition to the unknown lands, the Emperor orders the newly reformed navy to double down on naval vessel expansion, and orders the construction of massive warships, allowing the creation of new settlements off of the island.

>>3888931
>Diplo
>Sonarii
The Golden Dawn says it will offer what it can.

The time has come. The fleet is released south, prepared to unleash fury for gold and glory. May they return to us, or the gods with honor, glory and pride! The easy to take trading ships will not be destroyed and pilleged, they will be commandeered and taken for our own use. The glowing city will hopefully provide a great outlet for and prize, whether it be gold or tools. This raid shall provide fruitful.
>Action1
The fleet travels south taking the trade ships as our own, the crew turned to prisoners and perhaps one day slaves. The city will be raided the Giant way, flash warfare and surprise, as the lankskip may beach where they please and not only in just a suitable port location. Hopefully relics, gold and tech will be won in this great raid.

An exploration party moves east from Jotunhemir, far past the iron peaks in the hopes of reaching the eastern coast, eventually to create a settlement. This will help the spread of the nation. Growth yields more warriors.
>Action 2
Expand east to eventually make more cities.

File: Isbrytir.jpg (58 KB, 736x372)

58 KB JPG

This is what the isbrytir looks like, just more iceberg like

>Diplomacy (Tarn, Sonarii, Volty)
After refusing to even consider the outrageous demands of the so-called "mediator". After speaking to the Tarn of the island, the idea is proposed that the nation of Tarn act as mediators instead.

>>3889214
>>3888684
>Totu-Sonarii peace talks
The Tarns look fondly upon measures of reconciliation between the two hostile factions. Despite the hostile actions of the Totu at the battle of Koza, the Tarn's overriding interest is peace between the Tou and Sonarii, as a battle so close to the Tarnish border would only strain the already fragile nation. With this in mind, three senior diplomats are dispatched from Kira posthaste.

>>3887496
"That, I disagree with you on. All animals will fight to live. And people? They can be cunning, but they still have patterns. Ways of thinking, passed down through culture and family. And when you understand the pattern, you understand the man. Or woman."
"You know, I once dueled the son of a man I had defeated a few years prior. Perhaps he fancied himself an avenger of sorts, there to reclaim his father's destiny or some such nonsense. The youth was much stronger than I was at the time, but underneath all that vigor his fighting was an identical copy of his fathers. Once I discovered that, it was even more trivial to defeat him than his father."

A unit from Bathys's defensive line pushes inwards, eliminating the specialist unit.

"The same is true for everyone. No matter how flashy the moves, the pattern remains the same, and the pattern is what you have to dismantle."

"I think, in that sense at least, you are not so different. Your culture prides the warrior, the spearhead of the charge, does it not? You feel compelled to always remain on the offensive, pushing constantly, never giving an inch. That's your trap, no?"

>>3889214

>Diplomacy (Northern Tarn, Southern Tarn, Western Tarn, Those Other Tarn, Volter, Totu)

Whilst the Sonarii have no inherent problem to the basic idea of a Tarnish mediator, there is the small matter of *which* Tarnish nation the suggestion speaks of. There are currently two recognized nations of Tarn, and a third group of Tarn currently separate from both of these others that is rumored to have gained ground of late. Moreover, the strongest and most recognized by the Sonarii of these Tarnish groups is the one furthest away, and currently in least position to be able to enforce the agreed peace, should one be reached.

Additionally, the Totu colony itself is currently playing home to another small Tarnish faction, and any Tarn from, linked to, related to or in any way suspected to be in contact with Tarn from that grouping could not be able to be considered impartial. It would certainly make negotiations more able to be considered impartial if, as a prelude, the Totu were to secede their Tarn-filled waters back to their Tarnish denizens so that neither side would have undue influence over the Tarnish delegate.

Furthermore, the Sonarii suggest that, should they occur, these negotiations should take place in the shallow waters off the proposed neutral land's beaches. This negotiation setting would give whichever Tarnish representative is decided upon more control over proceedings; and as the water would disadvantage the Sonarii delegate by weakening their potency, and advantage everyone else by giving the Totu delegate a wash during the meeting; both sides would be at a mutual disadvantage whilst the negotiations continue.

>>3889339
>>3889214
>> while also giving the Totu a wash
>I unironically lol'd
The Northern Tarns assert themselves as the leaders of the negotiating team, as the Southern Tarns seem completely uninterested in the goings on south of them.
>Note that the Northern Tarns publicly consider South Tarnia simply a somewhat estranged caucus and implying otherwise in dialogue would be a social faux pas. In reality, of course, South Tarnia is completely independent and everyone knows it.

The demands of the Sonarii regarding Totu waters would have to be called for during the negotiation, the Tarns feel their neutrality is no more compromised by the few Tarns living in Totu lands than it is by the few Tarns living in Sonarii lands. The placement of negotiations is supported by the Tarns, who bring along a large 'otz with a roof that can serve as a bipartisan meeting place. The issue of Totu smell is dealt with through the assignment of a novice bender to constantly misting the Totu delegation. The mist is gentle enough to leave the Totu's natural covering undisturbed, while trapping odors close to the body. It also produces a pleasant cooling effect.

1. Archaeological Studies

Galiveron quickly becomes a hub for the study and exploitation of ancient knowledge. It's Hivers and Nobility quickly fashion themselves as scholars of the ancient past, and Drones scour the landscape under careful supervision to excavate and explore ruins for artifacts. The upper crust dedicate their time to turning old knowledge to new uses. The maps found earlier are key to the exploration of new sites.

2. Metallurgy
The Hingashi of Narranva and Todede develop their metalworking. Previous they had worked primarily in copper, but it is hoped that with the aid of ancient knowledge the exploitation and use of iron, coke, and aluminum may be unlocked.

>>3888181
While the lack of decent literature on rhetoric and argument hinders the representation of minorities the addition of the representative of the smaller clans helps to keep the most fortunate clans in check, though the internal power politics of the lesser clans still means that some will stay fairly unrepresented for the most part despite the technical increase in the scope of their voice.

The semi-formal creation of the factions is criticized by many smaller yet not irrelevant clans who say that this will cause an unneeded division of policy which will arbitrarily divide the issues of the nation along lines which never needed to be drawn. These disgruntled factions form their own loosely connected faction called "the unaligned" representing a diverse group of opinions, many clans among this faction cannot even seem to agree on a single issue not already accepted by the entirety of volter society and even then many extremist clans also exist who cannot even agree on those widely accepted positions. This clan will also include disgruntled former members of the factions who did not feel like the faction system was working and thus left in protest.

In the cool night, while a rare event of snowfall was occurring in the cold deserts of the Kazval an iceberg came into the cove, it had been initially spotted in the west and was thought to be a fairly normal event of an iceberg drifting into the bay of Kazval, in fact the volters had already prepared a dispatch team of boats designed for the sole purpose of moving this iceberg and others like it back out into the north where it can drift safely into the open ocean along the cool southward flowing current due to the fact that several Burned Men trade ships, most of which were carrying the usual export of grain had been very late, many late by entire days and thus presumed to have been damaged by icebergs which caused a rerouting down to burned men shipyards on the Ashpyre Peninsula. Perhaps they were fools to have so lazily trusted the Burned Men to have received them as the boats sent out to deal with the berg lost communications upon nearing the vessel.

>>3892165
(cont)
A few minutes later after a rescue team of volters had been successfully sent out (though they to did not return) the unknown boats rolled onto the cold sandy coast, they did not seem to hold designs related to any known civilization and within them lied huge beings wrapped in thick fur clothing, it was at this moment the alarm horns were blown. Knowing that these huge beings were likely not very friendly and might even be the rumored Ice Giants of the far north beyond the Pylons the active wave of Enforcers was sent out with the formerly inactive personal rushing to get into full gear just behind them past the small wall surrounding the city. Them being this far south on first major contact was not something which the volters thought would happen so soon and combined with how brutally combat efficient they were found to be in such numbers the concept of victory was quickly extinguished. The commander of the group attempted to get up on the wall and try to negotiate but was quickly turned to cold, dead ice from a powerful frost blast from one of the Giants in the spearhead. The walls did nothing against these behemoths, their frost blasts turning the sturdy sandstone into something as brittle as poor glass, the houses fared even less well as their walls were not meant to be capable of withstanding maces, aces and fist with the power of cannonballs behind them.

Few volter civilians were outright murdered if they did not put up resistance as the shared language which they all speak meant that the raiders did not need to be so forceful all the time as the threat of violence is often more than enough to get families to throw their valuables on to the street and when held up in the air the average volter, not able to keep to release a discharge after most of it was released in panic can have the location of "the loot" revealed fairly easily. After many hours of looting the Giants left as quickly as they came, many are taken on their ship though the vast majority of the city still remains relatively unlooted and most everybody is either alive or presumed taken captive, sadly that is not to understate those who died, who were not in numbers unnoticeable.

>>3889083
The trade ships are fast but it is found that through the creation of an icy mist and the taking down of the sails that the great ship can be properly disguised as just an ice berg and thus the ships can be captured through surprise, this technique may not work in the future as the word will get around among them of the danger of the ice berg raiders. Many ships are aquired with their crews mostly in tact, through the threat of violence and making sure to navigate properly many of these steam ships are transported back north into the cool waters of the Ice Giants and into the port constructed for the isbrytir. A new dock area is being constructed to facilitate the keeping and repair process of these ships. The huge stores of grain most of them contain is used to feed the captured crews so that the ice giants don't have to overhunt their prey and can instead can establish larger iceburg lettuce patches using the new labor.

The city is weak, and its name is quickly discovered to be Kazval, a city of the volters whose primary purpose seems to be as a trade port, this is probably the best the Ice Giants could have gotten out of this cold desert. The defensive force is very bare bones and most of them don't seem to have the slightest bit of combat experience, not surprising for a trade city in the desert which probably never sees conflict of such a grand scale. The houses the volters come in are compared to wrapped food as their surface is made mostly of stone and wood on a smaller scale meaning that they are easy to break into so that the loot within can be taken.

The greatest building of the city near its center has its walled frozen and broken through, the electricity of the volters only causing burns to the assaulting giants for the most part, things which are returned with blasts of frost, turning armor to a substance be as brittle as sticks and turning flesh to ice in mere seconds from the pure concentrated cold. The treasury of this building, once owned by one very frozen goat is raided, the gold and riches within are thrown into bags and rushed back to the boats, after an hour of raiding the Ice Giants rush back into their boats, now satisfied with what they have gained while also fearful of a possible military response by the volters using their strange flying machines which could prove very hard to beat due to how fast and strong they look.

In the far east sleds led by small men can be seen (so normal sized humanoids), they do not seem to be very militaristic and are thus prime for raiding. Those who are captured reveal that they are called the plagasm, a race who desires knowledge above all and are in the cold areas of the world in order to reap its resources for the rich markets across a portal at the center of their northern holdings.

>>3892170
(cont)
A shipfull of loot and prisoners docks in Balora, triumphant over the unprepared goat people. The Jarl is now the undisputed ruler of all Ice Giants for he has lead the nation into such amazing loot that he and his descendants have been declared rightful ruler of the realm, though this sentiment could one day change as all things do.

>>3888418
( >>3888181 )
Through experimentation the radics are found to be passively producing some kind of toxic aura, this aura causes deformation in developing organisms, along with this their terraforming may not be all it is kept up to be as some of what they have converted at the very beginning seems to be turning back into what it was before they came. Plants turn to sand and dirt turns to sandstone while buildings show signs of crumbling apart from the inside.

( >>3888931 )
The corpses are strong and can potentially be turned into anything plate or bone looking. Those working with the burned men do not think that using these for public events is a very good idea, they should either be used as under armor for golems or as golem armor for times of intense war.

>>3888422
Although the Oni messages sent via spirit cannot be stolen the letters confiscated for review by any neutral sonarii mail couriers or taken from slain or captured oni order runners can be translated and deployed with caution when needed. A few extra victories the Oni will not notice when compared to constant tarnish victory.

This superstition seems to be useful as snipers start seeming to be more and more on par with oni snipers within certain distances.

The break into the western portion proves successful, the city is now no longer under simple contentment but is under full tarnish control. Sadly it seems the Oni are truly cruel people as the mines are largely sabotaged, without a sizable effort devoted to it they will not be able to provide the empire with the phosphates necessary to allow it to survive.

Heavy and professional minotaur raiding is beating down on the supply lines of the eastern army and preoccupied them with repelling the minotaur hordes.

>>3888612
The flooding caused by the dying hurricane is reduced drastically west of koza.

The playing field may be more even when it comes to sniping now but the efforts of the oni against that raise the bar just a little bit more.

For the most part the mines have now been sealed, but how well this was done still has yet to be seen as the tarn once again have control of koza. Minotaur raiding (as promised by the king) has left the tarnish blockade a little to distracted to stop the tarn from gaining almost full control of the area east of koza.

>>3888548
While the items produced through the factory - which seem to have been some sort of weapon - are not able to be fully replicated in form or function the information gained from the experimentation has been key, numerous tools which were not known before to the totu are replicated in a crude manner, most importantly is the reinvention of the nut and bolt, creating a form of armor connecting which requires much less labor and allows for relatively quick deconstruction and modification. Very quickly designs for helmets begin being thrown around left and right, as the helmet is most definitely the most basically vital piece of armor to have. Designs of more effective kinds of armors for princesses and the queen are also developed using this revolutionary tool along with more compact metal cannon designs (unlike stone or pure spitcrete cannons metal cannons do not require constant maintenance every few shots).

The new city attracts many of the most skilled artisans and tool makers of the nation who then leave the city bringing knowledge of new manufacturing techniques and the fascinating new tools with them as well, increasing the industry of the nation significantly even while no formal factory has been established.

>>3888684
The new measurements help to give the nation a greater sense of unity as one can now go from Drichbad to Vinconro with a bag of gold and have every trader he comes across tell him the same answer for how heavy his bag is, this also helps to standardize the ever so important price of gold, silver and other coin metals as now coins can be standardized to at least those weights in price which means that none of the economically annoying sonarii who take advantage of regional price variation can so easily muddy the economy with deflation as a result of gold being melted down in foreign provinces.

The increasing efficiency of sonarii windmills frees up a small bit of manual labor as less hands are needed in order to move the air, this causes a small migration of these out of work fellows into the growing cities.

>>3888931
Though the printing press has been invented the state must decide how it shall be used, books can be a powerful weapon as they can be used to spread lies in the wrong hands. (use a diplo action for this) The news of the looting of Kazval reaches the burned men, first from the telecommunications of the volters and then from the news of the disappearances of many trade ships.

Fewer and fewer Totu now exist due to older ones dying off, the remaining totu ask for permission to use the wealth and the selling of the property they have acquired from their stay in the faustic area to go to the totu lead state across the world. Sadly they will need additional resources and funding in order to do it safely and thus ask for such things from the burned men government in return for the boost of labor they have provided the burned men throughout their stay. (this will weaken one of your actions next turn but if you say no they may get angry)

A strange event has occurred deep in the fungal forest, it seems a new sentient race has emerged which has grown to be separate from the original fungal forest.

>>3891047
Few practically useful things are able to be recovered from the landscape which can be replicated, though two strange crops are discovered with some... interesting uses, firstly is the marijuana plant, whose male variety can be smoked in order to induce a more relaxed state, though this is not useful for drones unless more off time becomes a thing for them the elites quite like smoking it during downtime and thus the crop, along with its surprisingly useful female variety are grown in reasonable quantities across the empire. The other plant, or more aptly fungus found to have some strange use is the glowing yellow mushroom, which when eaten, smoked or drunken after being cooked has been found to produce interesting states of being which are claimed to transcend conventional views of life and reality into some sort of spirit realm. Many horrible experiences are described under the state which dissuade the upper classes from using it widely which is exacerbated by the... quirky individuals who have emerged from the high. They are the shamans, they are of many classes and backgrounds but what unites them is their wandering nature and mysticism which is serving well to keep the workers happy as they preach their strange experiences across the realms.

Coke and usable iron are rediscovered but the way of producing aluminium, a substance which has been discovered in the ruins alongside other unworkable metals still alludes the nation, along with this better furnaces which take advantage of anti-gravity effects along with more effective alloying increasing the metal working of the empire to a decent degree.

>>3888935
The new divisions and reforms go well, but there is still a divide which exists. (you will have to use a diplo action for this so you will still have 2 full actions next turn) Among the older elite, mostly leftovers from the previous regime say that warfare should be continued to be treated as a thing of honor and tradition, old ways of disciplining troops and a level of respect to the enemy along with the open possibility of diplomacy even in times of war is something they believe should be continued.

On the other side the new generation of military specialists, mostly great members of the pro-emperor militia and the heirs of now dead older leaders who find more in common with the militia leaders than the old guard want to take the military in a different direction. For they are zealous for the cause of the emperor and the race and thus believe that war should be treated as a series of checks and balances fully, with new innovations readily tested and adopted even if those new things may seem ineffective on the surface. They also believe that mercy for the other is completely unacceptable except when ultimately necessary and that industry should be shifted away from the traditions of the expert and the craftsman to a more robust and ridged ultra specialist industry where entire sets of armor or supplies are not well known by many single craftsmen but instead each craftsman is a specialist in only on part, leading to more training required to get updated equipment out but also leading to more industrial efficiency as supplies and weapons can be mass produced when required for any possible war against the other.

The fountain of blue water:
West of the great city of Tumar lies a spring, from its depths is spews fourth a source of the unique blue water, this water is like blue mercury which is clear and more viscous in how it looks and feels but it is not toxic but in fact provides lots of goodness to the soil, tinging the crops blue yet making them sweeter and more abundant. Long ago a canal was constructed which drains the lake of blue water of old, this revealed a fertile farmland which provides a bulk of the food for tumar despite being confined to a small area, it also serves as the center of many of the religious and political ceremonies of the nation, eclipsing even the new palace of the emperor in its religious, political and economic importance.

A new invention helps to power these new ships, that being blue water infused wood. Through a process of running planks through a cycle of blue water the wood can be made stronger, nearly immune to rot and with a form which holds itself more effectively. On top of that its strength means that bigger ships can be constructed with less wood making up the hulls proportionally. Another invention, that being the plasma pump uses blasts of plasma in order accelerate ocean water through a tube thus providing independent propulsion to the ship regardless of wind or tidal conditions.

File: Elements - Plentyful lol.png (1.73 MB, 1192x933)

1.73 MB PNG

(new player)
Location: Part of the Fungal Forest
Nation Name: Mycete Creep
Capitol Name: Rot Keep
Race Name: Heterotrophic Mycetic Fungi
Race description/links/abilities:
Wood has existed since the beginning, from this raw energy the land itself pulled from the chi. Mana flowed into all life and so the wood came to speak and move, from it grew small plants, creeping along they move and grow till the magics built inside them and the fungus moved about and spoke, the wooden bones infused with elemental might.

Their cities reside in forests with homes grown from fungus and other plant matter.
As population in an area grows, it's flora and fauna begin to change, their wood being warped and twisted into a new vision, the old decaying away.

The people of the Mycete Creep look like standard humanoids with a wooden body and occasionally some relatively small deviations, their entire form is made of both wood and fungi.

Element: Wood
Elemental Passive Ability: Not sure which to pick

[Fungal Corruption] : Settled areas are slowly infected by the colony. Grass turns to mycelium and trees and shrubs to various giant mushrooms.

[Living Land] : Thorns, vines, hardened wood and spiked branches form a natural barricade around settlements. The land itself hurts and slows opposing trespassers.

[Rot Farm] : Increased food productions. Recycle old materials for more food, decompose and recycle foods. Cleaner towns with waste being recycled.

(the player will choose on for his first turn)

Summary of Nation:
Wood, mold and fungus made life. Slowly spreading out, forming a basis of civilization for the new world.

The forest rumbles and shakes, a new kind of fungus grows in this area. From far away a grumble of pain, perhaps of birth or one of murder is heard by all in the forest. The Mycete Creep has now become a nation, they are separate from the fungal forest of old and may come into conflict with them. Their primary population has emerged in the city now called Rot Keep, they have not yet formed a proper government (this requires an action) and will spread throughout the land once they have found their purpose. Mushroom Cows and revived deer now roam in the south and north respectively, ready to be hunted or domesticated by the newfound nation.

The prospects of a truly terrifying army are within sight. With the invention of the revolving cannon multiplying the power of the Totu through enabling fewer Totu to fight at the strength of several, as well as the prospects of producing these cannons en mass available, Jeleva dedicates much of her energy to the armory and industry.

>Action 1: Industrialization
Under Inalla's command, Carapace is set to begin construction of replications of the factories discovered with slight modifications to suit the Totu's bending abilities, size, and interests. The factories are set to produce the new revolving cannons as opposed to the mysterious weapon discovered or helmets.

>Action 2: Return to the Depths
With the assistance of the Forge to smelt metals once unusable to them, and Burned Men tools to mine the metals, Totu workers are sent into the caves to seek a strong and more plentiful metal to aid in the rapid production of cannons.

>>3892171
1. Rumors of a sailor eating iceberg from the far north reach dockmaster ears around the same time that Volter reports of the raid of Kazval. The nation seeks to protect its shipping industry, beginning the outfitting of artillery pieces and bay locks in between the narrow bays of the Golden Dawn.

2. In support of their alliance member, Golden Dawn engineers and peacekeeper head to Kazval to eye the waters, and construct fortifications in preparation of future raids.

>Diplo
>Ice Giants
A Burned Men steamy ship heads north, seeking to bargain for the return of the captured sailors/ and or ships.

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459 KB JPG

>>3892187
Location: Part of the Fungal Forest
Nation Name: Mycete Creep
Capitol Name: Rot Keep
Race Name: Heterotrophic Mycetic Fungi
Race description/links/abilities:
Wood has existed since the beginning, from this raw energy the land itself pulled from the chi. Mana flowed into all life and so the wood came to speak and move, from it grew small plants, creeping along they move and grow till the magics built inside them and the fungus moved about and spoke, the wooden bones infused with elemental might.

Their cities reside in forests with homes grown from fungus and other plant matter.
As population in an area grows, it's flora and fauna begin to change, their wood being warped and twisted into a new vision, the old decaying away.

Element: Wood

Elemental Passive Ability:

[Living Land] : Thorns, vines, hardened wood and spiked branches form a natural barricade around settlements. The land itself hurts and slows opposing trespassers.

Summary of Nation:
Wood, mold and fungus made life. Slowly spreading out, forming a basis of civilization for the new world.


Starting Crop: Various species of edible mushrooms
Action 1: We must begin work on a great Rot Farm! Send our fungus into the fields, they will plow lines with their hardened wooden limbs, from those ruts we will fill them with molds, mushrooms, and other beneficial plants. We will begin running snake lines through the field, a small sludge brook of waste will be created to fertilize the farm lands and keep our streets clean with waste being moved to the fields.

Action 2: Our homes created from plant walls must be made more efficient. Let the fungi put minds to improving our homes, that we may grow houses more efficiently and improve our construction patterns so forming settlements across the land will be more easily done.


In shadow we grow

>Action 1: Securing the Isle
In order to keep the entirety of their island safe as well as ensure access to nearby resources, the Emperor has the northern pylons extended north to cover the entire island as well as for access to fishing waters.
>Action 2: Expansion for the Future
As a final preparation before the first voyage into the unknown, the Emperor orders pylons to be extended further out towards the mainland to facilitate the expedition.

>Diplo Action: Bringing them into the Fold
In order to appease the remnants of the old regime, Emperor Saturnius gives many of the qualified men positions as officers in the military. He does this more as a bribe rather than an actual change of policy, though with their new status as lieutenants they have the opportunity to act on behalf of the Emperor in their own ways.

(If you excuse my impromptu lorepost...)

Kazira massages his brow, eyes closed. He's about to appear before the Polity to direct its course of action, once again. A terrorist attack in the North, a predicted problem in the South. Clans fighting over land rights and old traditions. Polemics and politics. Bolters being bolters.

Things have never been perfect in the Polity. Things have in fact never been truly 'good' by his standards; hey, managing a democracy is not an easy task at all. Ever since they came out of that vault he's been in charge and it was a heavy burden to bear. The Polity's greatest accomplishment has been by far that they had managed to convince their allies and their enemies that things are fine. 'Functional'. As if there ever was a 'functional' democracy.

He can hear them in his mind, all the hundred thousand voices. From the lowest to the highest, softest to loudest, all currents come upwards to him, and he WILL listen, he WILL feel what they all feel because he's the Grand Arbiter, because he has to. Sometimes, he even feels like he's losing his own identity, somewhere along the way... Whenever he makes a mistake, he will feel it himself, whenever he makes yet another no-win choice, he will have the consequences whispering softly at the back of his mind, and loudly in his face; neither the conscience of his peers nor his own will ever leave him alone.

For the first time, Kazira thought about retiring. He thought about coming to the council today and simply say, "I quit". Leave a youther in his stead, one that was born and raised in this alien, primitive world, adapted to its ways; unlike him, that operated under the wisdom of ages long past yet so much more enlightened, where their traditions used to prosper. But Kazira Tacho-Von will not do that. He repeats this mentally: 'I will not do that, by the grace of God, I shall not retire yet'.

Kazira is the Grand Arbiter of the Polity. There is no greater authority than him but God, and God is unwell and bedridden. The people look up to their superiors for guidance and relief echelon to echelon, all the way to the top, and what they see, is Kazira, not Thunna, not some impersonal council: Kazira. The one from which the entire nation demands guidance, who made an oath to care for the Sparks of a million volters, all connected to him by the grid, the network, the special 'democracy' of their race.

So Kazira Tacho-Von will keep his head cool and straight, and the pretense of certitude, and shut his mouth, because if he does not? Nobody else will. That's why he's the Grand Arbiter and not someone else: he has self-control, a great deal of it. He is frighteningly stable, like a rock in the sea, like a castle on top of the hill, also made of rock. No current can sway him, no matter is too great that his mind will be compromised from thinking rationally about doing what's right and well for the good of the nation. That's his duty. "For the Polity", he thinks, walking out.

Barbarians from the North came without any warning and attacked a city of peace; murdered civilians and innocents in their home for no good reason and took their livelihoods away. Wanton carnage and destruction, gratuituous and remorseless. An blasphemy and a tragedy both, and an insult to the very gift of life too.

Shock and fear. Grief and agonizing pain. But also anger and indignation, righteous fury and the clamour for justice. All brought to the Arbiter, but he keeps a clear head, and sets the standard for his council to follow.

But he cannot extinguish his personal guilt. He knows that this happened because of him.

>Action 1: Early Warning System
A terrorist's doing, a most gruesome tragedy that happened that day; but right now, our duty is to protect the people. After studying the kind of attack we've suffered and its mode of operation, we've worked out a stratagem that should hopefully prevent further loss of life and valuables until we can arrange a proper response.

Each city on the West Coast, not just Kazval but those of our ally, are on the inner bays of peninsulas. We've ordered stealthed communications posts to be deployed at the tip of those peninsulas and stand watch for the enemy. If they are sighted, they will immediately contact the town so that the citizens can evacuate themselves and their wealth through rail and airship and land too, while army reinforcements are brought in. We've also implemented some procedures and response protocols for those settlements to react in an orderly and educated fashion. A few more transport units in standby should help too, for evacuating cities is no small matter...

A few airships are brought now to patrol the seas, and one or two around the mountains. If they spot an oddity, they are to go along the allied shipping lanes and warn all merchant ships they encounter to make for the nearest port. Thanks to their communications arrays they can coordinate with each other and direct our ally's fleet and warn our towns.

We do what we can for the citizens of Kazval, but it's not like we can relocate the whole town. Though we do stealthily exchange as many of the non-vital citizens as we can with bolters from Thunder Peak. If the enemy attacks again, this time he'll face a bit more of a surprise.

>Action 2: Radic Recall
Not surprising news, but worrying nonetheless: the Radics are glitched, and spread corruption. We immediately order them all back to the vicinity of Radica to try and fix them with the help of the Plagasm scientists and the vault's knowledge, with authorization to use lethal force if the machines decide to resist. All farming produce from the newly created farmlands are stored away until testing on animals deems it safe to eat. All volters that ate food grown from these farmlands are to report for regular medical examination and quarantined for study at the slightest sign of abnormal biological defect.

>Diplomacy: Plagasm, Golden Dawn, Sonaria
A frantic call for help is broadcasted over the allied network telling everyone of the attack on Kazval, before abruptly stopping. Later, a proper diplomatic communiqué is dispatched.

"The Polity has been viciously aggressed by a foreign power coming from the cold North. They came into Kazval on a massive icy ship without warning nor declaration of any kind, and slaughtered our civilians, pillaged their wealth, and murdered anyone that stood in their path. They ravaged the city, then, not content with all the horror and grief that they had inflicted upon us, abducted our men, women and children and left before they could face justice, taking them god knows where, to be their playthings or whatever else that we dare not imagine.

This gives us... Unspeakable feelings. We are not quite sure what we could say that you could not already imagine yourselves.

All we are going to say is... That we humbly request that our honoured allies honour their oaths, and come to our aid.

It is with a heavy heart that I must inform you, that the Polity consider itself at war, and we call you to arms."

>Diplomacy: Ice Giants
A heavily guarded diplomat has been sent into the North via airship. He demands a meeting at a safe distance. He introduces himself politely and unemotionally, ignoring any small or serious talk and going straight to the point.

"We have come to have our people back, for they are not yours to keep. We shall also have our neighbor's people back as well, if you please. "

Action 1: Backstep
The Oni movement east is both a disappointment and an opportunity for the Tarns. A disappointment, in that the Onis surovive and could still wreak untold devastation to the Tarnish forces, and an opportunity in that now, the monsters have nowhere to hide. Either way, the only action the Tarns can take now is a fighting retreat. The 1/3rd of the army that was placed outside the city to prevent just such an escape continues fighting the Oni backline, but slowly begins backstepping as well, keeping their lines solid and strong at the expense of giving up ground. The reasoning for this quickly becomes revealed as the sky darkens and heavy rain begins to fall. The 1/3rd army draws the storm clouds that were originally over Tonglo's pass west, allowing them the power of a full throated storm with a fraction of the effort. The rain makes the ground slippery and unstable, and Oni soldiers begins to stumble and trip up each other as they attempt to make their way up the steep paths of the pass. Now, the Tarns are in their element. Aqua bolts rain down on the vulnerable soldiers, bowling even more off their feet and causing pandemonium. The army holds water back for a moment before driving it down the slope, multiplying its force and scattering soldiers like pins. Every trick and tool the Tarns have is used on the Oni, are the monsters try to make it up the mountain slope.
>Basically, the army outside keeps fighting the Oni, and makes it rain really hard. Have you ever tried to climb a hill when its raining? I have. Its fucking awful.

Action 2: Sandwich Three
The Oni are engaged with a third of the Tarnish army on one side, now its time for the remainder to really bring itself to bear. While 1/6th of the Tarns stay behind to guard the city, half of the army pushes back east, heading up the same mountain slopes they just came crashing down. The army crashes into the backside of the Onis, taking advantage of the clouds and rainfall those up the mountain have brought forth. The Oni are pinned between two forces now, one with the advantages of fighting from the higher ground and the other with the luxury of attacking the vanguard and a much greater force. Both are assisted by the pounding rain which bogs down their enemy and makes their own strikes that much stronger.
>The bulk of the Tarnish army attacks the rear of the Oni forces

War Action: No tricks this time
Twice now, the corpses have helped wiggle the Oni out of precarious situations. Now, its time to ensure that that never happens The Tarnish snipers begin focusing their strikes on whatever earthbenders are remaining, picking them off in the chaos of the battle. Even if all of the earthbenders cannot be killed, this should still be enough to prevent the Oni from playing any earth related tricks.

Summary:
>1/3 army fights the Oni from uphill
>1/2 fights from downhill and behind(as the Oni are headed east)
>Snipers pick off earthbenders to prevent any rock throwing shenanigans.

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>>3893811
Pic is the battle plan.

The wealth the raid brings stimulates the Jarldom of Nilfheim, bringing much trade within its own borders. The hopes of the old ways resurge and the endless nights of parties begin. “From one successful raid to the next!” the people scream, yet the Jarl knows better. This world is not the same as it once was, so caution shall be had with the continuation of raids. Maybe one day enough chaos will be brought up that they may be able to have endless raid campaigns, that only stop to off load the goods they have so valiantly acquired. For now, he promises those that are still looking for a fight that they very well may get one, but first they must prepare. Those we have targeted are well equipped, and a retaliation would be their most likely next course. Send a band of warriors and builders, as a fort is to be constructed to stop any on foot retaliation. It shall be strong, a frame built for ice to be laid upon. A wall, made of ice so tall that they may never climb, and so thick they may never penetrate. Though it will only protect from the gap in the mountains that meets the lower desert, it will stop them from a quick mobilization of ground force. Line it with the great arrow launchers that fire stronger than even the strongest giant, and we will have the Frozen Gate of Nilfheim.

>Action one
Begin the construction of a massive ice wall that blocks off the passage between the mountains that leads to the desert of Kazval, a good choke point to keep clear of grounded retaliation.

Our sea borders could stretch much farther, giving us an area of control much larger than we currently have, and who knows what these expeditions may find.

>Action two
Send an expedition to expand our sea borders west.

>Diplo- Plagasm
We have come to return to you some trespassers on our land. They tell us of a city with a grand portal, knowledge of such powers is intriguing. We here that knowledge is what you seek most, allow us to tell you of a time long ago, when all beings were as tall as we. Furthermore, we’d assume you know of the livestock that lives next to you. We request that if they request aid, that you’d stay out of it. By doing this, you will have a powerful ally, the Ice Giant nation of Nilfheim on your side. If not, and you chose to play with the animals, well, you'll be treated as just as they are....as prey.

>Diplo- Burned Men
We were sorry to see that your people were caught up in our raids, though we must tell you- They let us take their ships. They gave no fight, no effort in keeping their claim so what we have taken is rightfully ours. Let us give you a deal. You may have your people back, as they belong to….. What is your nation called? Regardless, the ships our rightfully our property, as we were prepared to take them with a fight yet they just handed them over. Also, if you want your ships back you may have them, yet we will keep their crew as compensation for the goods we would be trading away. If you want them both, lets talk trade. One is a gift, the other is good to be sold. Your knowledge of this machinery that your boats have could provide useful. As could the iron to build them. Let us be partners of trade. Sorry for you to be caught in this mess. The livestock are trouble for everyone…

>Diplo- Volt Polity
So, the Mutton asks to return the livestock and the tiny people as well? Worry of your own troubles. The burned men our our... guests, unlike the voltors who are our prisoners. They are weak and we have no idea why you would want them back, but we always value trade. For your people, thirty cases of iron. Thirty cases of silver. Thirty cases of gold. Your people are important to you, no? Then no amount of material loss should be too small for them. I'm so glad you brought us this gift of a flying vessel! We will provide you with some mondraki and a guide for your safe travels home.

1. Clockwork
The improvement of metalworking into prolific iron tools and specialty steel pieces has allowed for the artisan Hivers of Galiveron to begin replicating the watch that had been discovered. It does not take long for them to reverse engineer it. The gears within inspire some to improve existing mechanics, marrying gears and clockwork machinery with gravitational mechanics to make large almost self-powering machines for everyday purposes. Of them, some of the most prestigious are the large clocks used for keeping time that are exported out to various hives. Galiveron takes its place among the Hives as a foundation of clockwork engineering.

2. Expand North

Many of the old ruins are resettled and turned into subhives. The useful production of prefabricated housing materials makes settlement easier and repopulating the older ruins a breeze. AS such, many of the new subhives quickly find themselves full to bursting with new wasps from all over ready to serve the Galiveron Queen and her nobles.

>Diplomacy: Ice Giants.
The diplomat listened to everything without a twitch, without ever a slight sign of discomfort or emotional reaction, weathering insults or jeers and outrageous demands. Then he spoke again, in the same monotone, dispassionate tone as before. "We are here to get our people because they are our people." he stated simply.

"The Polity worries for whoever it desires to worry about, but we are glad to see you treat these people in a more decent manner. As for our people, we will pay their ransom, since, as I've said, we have come to have them back, not trade."

The few words he spoke made it more obvious that this diplomat had something uncanningly... Bland about him.

"The thunderbird is diplomatic property."

And just like that, he turned around with his squad and boarded it, without even a goodbye nor a flinch. He soon returns with the agreed 'price' and demands for all captives to be presented and accounted for.

>>3892187
>>The Yokai Lords

>1: Physics
With the advancement of artillery and trajectory planning from both Tarn and Totu military, as well as the rapid boom in transportation technology across the nations of the Firestorm Pact, several learned Oni begin exploring the concepts of dynamics and comparing it with their understanding of architecture and statics. The oni architects and engineers attempt to understand the underlying principles upon which normal matter and energy interact and react in this world.

>2: Focus Oni forces South of Koza, and eventually wrap around the southern end of the pass.
With the Tarn flooding down the valleys from the east towards Koza, and Minotaurs doing their fair share of work to the north, Giib decides this is an optimal time to re-consolidate and reevaluate the situation. Still using several smaller forces rather than the one singular one, Giib has his armies continue to harass, engage, and raid the supplies of the Tarn in the relatively drier regions south of Koza.
He also sends scouts to establish feasible routes back up the Tonglo pass via the southern half of the pass, as those should be less defended due to a lack of minos pouring out of the mountains like the northern half. He also considered sending some scouts to bribe Sonarii boarder-keepers to let some of his forces pass through relatively stress-free.

>War Action: Make Hamet a miserable place for new recruits, Gremlins Galore.
Ages ago, the application of Spirits of Misfortune were used to moderate effect on the attrition of Burned Men forces in Duskfort. Their usefulness was found to be particularly lacking against those of particular "strength", most likely a cause of being in the presence of near-immortal knights and the God-King Angstrom.

However, in this case, it is well known to the seasoned Oni warriors that many of the soldiers being drawn to fight for the Tarn are extremely green and unseasoned. Not only that, but the Mediums report that many of the spirits of the dead Tarn (and Totu) seem to be rather rumbustious due to being street urchins and other undesirables scooped up from the rioting west and sent to fight. This makes for the perfect application of spirits of misfortune, whom are binded to easily-broken vessels, and deployed in and near Hamet via stealth insertions. While Giib would not risk fighting the largely aquatic base of Hamet directly, he will do all he can to keep the forces there off his back and busy with their own problems.

>>The Yokai Lords

>Diplo:
>Burned Men >>3893333
Mun agrees to King Alloheim and the neighboring lord's offer. He allows Burned Men to own land and settle in his Domain and Fort Town, as well as earn proper citizenship. Though he does caution they will have to figure out some sort of system with them being under either an Oni or Burned Man minor lord, that is under his control. More as a precaution against other opportunistic minor lords and keeping in line with general Oni tradition and governmental management systems. He also approves of the proposition to finish the road from Mun to the Golden Dawn to better facilitate trade and travel.

Mun is more than happy to welcome the Burned men, but both Mun and Yugji warn them that they will not be welcomed in Yugji's domain or Fort Town, unless they are visiting for very short periods of time.

>Bathys-Tonglo >>3889336
Tonglo pauses at his words, and remains uncharacteristically silent until he finishes. She sets down her drink and gives him a thin, sour smile before looking down at her board solemnly. "Dismantle the pattern, huh?"

"I suppose... you aren't too far off about me. I've never been much more than the thick-skinned, thick-headed vanguard." She says, as she picks up the basic foot soldier that was leading the charge straight for Bathys' City piece, and maneuvers it to take advantage of Bathys' concern for the specialist unit. "Not particularly fancy, not particularly clever, but welcomed for my ability to muscle my way through a problem well enough."

"It probably isn't a surprise to you, but I've always been the thug. Before I became a Yokai Lord, I was just the head enforcer for a minor lord in Giib's domain. I cracked the heads of his rivals, helped enforce tax collection, that sort of stuff. What I didn't know was that he was doing particularly well for himself because of me, a little too well in fact. Giib eventually found out he'd been skimping on his tributes, and was arranging deals with other lords behind his back. So Giib sent his army in, broke the lord's arms, and took me and a few of his other captains as political prisoners."
"You can imagine my surprise when the sly bastard Giib then turned around and gave me the option to leave his dungeon, and strike out as a fully fledged Yokai Lord." Tonglo stares back up at Bathys as she blew air out her nose, "I suppose your analysis fits well with what he saw in me. A warrior, one that wouldn't back down from a fight, and could hold her own against anything beyond his domain. A warrior, but not a proper leader. Someone that wouldn't know the intricacies of politic enough to challenge him, and one who's ambitious were so clear that he had his armies ready to swoop in the moment I bit off more than I could chew."

"Its not because we - I - value the charge, per say. Our people love our warriors because they are the ones that protect them. Its just that, only way I've known to protect something, is to push back whatever threatens it."

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>>3893566

>Action 0:

The Tizta city of Tzitoros (or whatever they decided to call it) still needs to be removed to the site of the x in the attached picture.

>Action 1: Impregnable Emysist
The Fortress of Emysist, near the Totu border, is upgraded and reinforced. Above, more protected canon and spy-scope emplacements are built into the armored superstructure of the fortress, whilst a command and control center (Including mail and Elctrocoms facilities) and a hospital are built into the innermost core; below, forces from our Plagasm ally use their Earth manipulation to create themselves a large underground barracks, and to build a series of underground strong-points and defenses in case the Totu ever try a subterranean attack. And behind the fortress choke-point, a staging area is set up for Airships, Sky-Cannon, and War Machines from the Golden Dawn.

>Action 2: Advanced Cannon Projectiles
Using aerodynamic shape designs inspired from the Thunderbird project, the properties of the explosive bombs used by Golden Dawn, and even the firm-but-ultimately-combustible materials developed as a side effect of the Flight-Armour project; the Metallurgists of Larnet devise new penetrative and explosive shells for our newest Cannon to fire at those who would be enemies of Sonaria and the alliance.

>Diplomacy: Volt Polity
With the call to arms sounded, the Dukes, Lords and elected Lordlings of Sonaria gather to debate the response. And the decision is, of course, that Sonaria will assist her allies and answer the call to arms. Whilst the exact course of action the Volters request of us is still to be determined, Ducal forces from Nafflec and New Glecoone will begin making their way north into Volt territories, by wing and by Thunderbird, to assist the Volters with patrolling and securing their territories.

>>3892263
>>3893811

>Diplomacy: Totu, Tarn
The Sonarii delegation has been standing around in the shallow waters off the beach with the Tarnish mediators for a fair while, getting their ankles wet whilst they wait for the Totu to show. As no Totu have shown up, and Sonarii reconnaissance shows that despite this failure to turn up to the peace talks the Totu are engaged in heavy re-armament, the Sonarii announce that they cannot wait forever in the hope of peace when ranged against an inherently hostile foe that has sought nothing but our destruction since the first encounter, and is currently building new weapons to murder us whilst we wait here with arms outstretched.

Henceforth, we are unilaterally implementing an element in the Sonarii-proposed peace plan and declaring an area of neutral ground in the lands west of fort Emysist, and within range of her guns and weaponry, as well as the seas adjacent. Sonaria will not send troops of her own into these lands to hold them, but we will fire at and bomb any Totu that move into these zones, and reserve the right to send troops into this land to repel any unauthorized Totu presence that tries to build up there. Should the Totu ignore the neutrality of the no-man's land we are establishing, Sonaria and the alliance will consider this an aggressive action on the part of the Totu and a unilateral declaration of war against all members of the Firestorm Pact.

The Tarnish delegation is asked for their support in enforcing the neutral status of this land, and a similar neutral area extended across the sea on which Sonarii and Totu also share a border; in the hope that these can help us and the Totu to avoid a war by never again getting close enough to one another to cause one.

>>3894044
>>3892263
The Tarns cordially remind the Sonarii that it’s been less than 10 minutes.

>>3893960
>Diplo- Volt Polity
We will not not be given demands for anything. Know your audience, for we are the ones who have what you want. Please see this from our perspective, as your people are goods to be sold, nothing more-nothing less. Our deal is the cases of materials, this airship, and you for your peoples safe return home. It's your choice. Either way, this airship will not return to the Volt Polity, either its intact for we to use or in thousands of blood smeared pieces...

>>3894262
"We thought you'd say that. If that's your choice, you're welcome to lay your hands on it."

The resulting lethal electrocution from the starboard tesla coil made short punishment of the first giant to try. "That's not all it can do." The lateral flaps open and reveal the heavy burned men artillery on board, which happened to have been aimed all this time right at the iceman 'diplomatic' party; they deliver a heavy merciless volley which passes straight over the tiny goats but hardly fail to catch the massive targets which they are aiming for. A Thunder Priest, being of great power who commands lightning, reveals himself on the bridge and smites one blinsiding bastard. The Thunder Guards charge the shocked remains immediately and give them a trashing. And the 'diplomatic servants'... Turned out more than capable themselves. It's over lightning quick.

After all... The party did put itself at a safe distance. And it did pick a safe spot. And it, in fact, carefully studied the location, planned for the ambush, and coordinated for this event to ensure they would win this. It would never be question of whether the enemy would betray, simply how and when. The diplomat approaches the few mangled survivors on the ground.

"I should have mentionned we've developped countermeasure systems like this one to ward against just that which you are doing right here. Our airships are precious and we're not stupid. The Polity only ever makes mistakes once.", he says, impassible as ever. "We'd never thought for a second thugs like your kind would honour diplomatic process...Or any honour at all, for that matter. Or even give us what we wanted, no matter how much we acceeded to your delusional demands. I have been sent here to see how low you would stoop for further reference, and gather witnesses. On the off chance you'd actually see our people back safe, I was to take the deal. But we'd never really thought you'd do it after your last response." He stopped right in front of the (second) leader's head, actually taller than him now. "I'll have to inform the Polity that you've exacted the worst possible thing one could on their kin, with all the consequences that entails for you, and have no respect for diplomatic immunity."

"My tall friend. Thank you for contributing so much to our war effort." He bows.

"By now, you've probably noticed... There's something wrong with my voice. My name is Kellion Dokori. I've been carefully handpicked for just this reason, actually: I suffer from a sort of disability that prevents me from expressing emotion, a dealbreaker for a career diplomat... It's not that I feel nothing; I love my wife and child. I truly believe in the ideals of the Dokori clan. I just... Seem like I do not. It's a grave time indeed when my services are needed... For Kellion Dokori is a black bird of ill omen, that only ever gets out of writing letters when the Polity has somber messages to carry... To their enemies."

>>3894262
>>3894327
"And you, well, you've done the same mistake with the Polity."

He coldly murmurs close to his ear, repeating what he was told to. " 'You've mistaken our love of peace for weakness. Your wanton aggression leaves us no choice. Prepare yourselves for war'. "

"By your actions you've confirmed no relent shall ever been given. I've never come to 'ask' for our people back; I've never come to bargain or trade. I've just come to have them back, and that was a demand. And we will have them back, my tall sinful friend, and we will stop at nothing for that. All you've done with your arrogance and greed is to ensure the easy way out for you is now forever outside of your reach. And if we don't find our people? If we don't have every single last one of them that are missing, if we discover you have harmed even one of our women, men and children while they are captive? We'll make you love peace harder than we do."

He snaps his finger. "Judge this terrorist."

One of the guards jams his halberd into the tall man's spine, ignoring his cries. With a sharp, measured electric shock, he forever removes his ability to walk, feed himself or piss on his own accord. Similar treatment is given to the others. Kellion slowly walks back to his airship.

"Your people's 'honour' only extends to murdering the defenseless and running away like thieves in the night. We expect to meet that leader of yours on our own accord, which must surely be the most pathetic man of them all... We'll revel to see him slink away and cower in cowshit when he will not be confronted by children in their beds, this time, but their parents. You've awoken a sleeping giant much taller than you, ice men."

Kellion and his party reenter the craft, leaving the grisly scene behind as they fly back to their homeland. The time for 'diplomacy' was over.

>>3894044
>Diplomacy (Sonarii, Tarn)
Jeleva arrives upon the shore mounted upon her elk with the handful of a few dozen Totu standing from afar, equip with spear-guns. She apologizes for her tardiness and sends her deer to the soldiers behind her as she prepares herself for the light misting.

Jeleva explains that the purpose of her rearmament is to protect her race as much of the world turns against her. If it's what is neccessary for peace, the Totu will surrender the corner of their island that the fort inhabits to the Sonarii, but not the area within its cannons or in the adjacent seas. Not far from the fort is a large source of food for the Totu, the Crabs. Similarly, Jeleva does not seek to see Sonarii enter her territory without permission. Furthermore, the Totu have already been robbed of their entire mainland property. It seems entirely unfair that they surrender more land that absolutely necessary.

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>>3894582

The Sonarii Delegate, Ahtram of the House Cewayn, cautiously welcomes the late arrival of the Totu delegation. She suggest that, though what she knows of Totu food-harvesting techniques, the Totu draw in sea-life through manipulation of under-dirt siphoning in a process known as 'bottom feeding'; as she understands it the Totu would still be able to harvest the crabs without direct entry of their spawning grounds and so including these in the no-man's land would not actually stop the Totu from feeding from them as long as they control a bordering sand hexter.

She presents a new proposal for demarcation of the no-man's land area. It still requests the single hex of 'neck' land be a part of it, but where this zone strikes against the deeper waters it will for the most part hexters currently controlled by Sonaria that will be given over into the area of neutrality.

Begrudgingly, she admits that if peace is reached between the Totu and Sonaria then the Totu do have a right to re-arm for their own defense; but that sole concentration entirely on military development cannot be taken in any way but as a Threat to the Sonarii people. If the Totu are to re-arm, that re-armament must be watched by the world; as they would not trust a Sonarii to do this it is suggested that the Burned Men of Golden dawn fill this supervisory role.

The Totu must agree that, with peace, they forfeit their claims to Sonarii and Tizta-settled lands in perpetuity, and that in their turn the Sonarii will recognize them in their current Island domain. The Totu must pledge to develop actual culture - art, perhaps; or literature, or something that would raise them above the mantle of beast into true cultured beings.

>Diplomacy (Sonarii)
Jeleva considers for a moment before countering: The sand is an invaluable resource to the Totu, and although current methods of bottom feeding do not require entrance into the body of water to catch the crustaceans, models for tools to assist this method do require access to the water. She argues that having taken (5 hexes) is more than enough land, especially while requesting direct surveillance of the rest and a release to all past holdings.
Jeleva proposes that the "No mans land" becomes simply a demilitarized area where no Totu weaponry will enter, but they are still free to roam. Furthermore, Jeleva agrees to relinquish all claims to the mainland and agrees to visitation from the Golden Dawn. Jeleva refuses to feed or house a non-working man though. (The diplomat will either have to do some sort of work within the city or visit on occasion as opposed to living on the island).
Jeleva agrees to allow Sonarii to enter the demilitarized zone (at their own risk) if they seek to facilitate conversation with the Totu for greater understanding of one another, but they are not at liberty to harvest the sand or crabs.
As for the culture, the Sonarii are assured that the Totu have been long time lovers of artistry, song, and most recently architecture.

>>3894747
>>3894006
>>3893931
>Diplo

>Totu
The Burned Men diplomat supervisors of Totu re-armament make their living via shipments of supplies from the Golden Dawn, and when they take scheduled tally of Totu arms, they offer to repair/maintain weapons that are faulty or old.

>Oni
A Censor who had fought with Oni mercenaries from Mun takes the role of Castellan of the Burned Men within Mun's holdings, serving as a subordinate to Mun with the King's blessing. The Castellan relays any problems or petitions that the Burned Men immigrants have to Mun, and enforcing Mun's will to those that live upon his land.

>Ice Giants

The aged noble tasked with overseeing the return of the ships and captives scoffs at first, but the sight of the frostbitten sailors in their icy cells makes him consider.

"The sailors will be returning with us, as will half the ships. Might makes right of course... anyone in the Golden Dawn could tell you that. In payment for half the ships you seized..." The noble gestures at a mammoth rider.

"I'm afraid I can't just hand you the secrets of our boats, as a raiding people giving you that sort of power is just further shifting the scales of towards imbalance. Never to mind I doubt you have the resources to recreate our engines, fuel them, or skill with flame to properly control them. However since our sailors freely gave them to you, I can not see how you should be forced to relinquish them freely. The Golden Dawn Empire has a longstanding tradition of cavalry, and I must say your mammoths suit you much as our horses do us. Allow us to gift you with our advanced saddles, bridles, and stirrups; so your riders can roam with comfort and ease. Of course tailored for your size. Some raw iron would be on the table as well, to sweeten the deal."

When the noble notices the Volter prisoners, he turns slowly to the Giant that was escorting him "Are these the livestock you were referring to?"
(Presuming yes)

The noble's flames kindles strongly behind his lidded eyes. "I must say that the Volters are a poor choice of such things, however the Burned Men have feasted upon cattle since we emerged. What would you say to three... no five cattle for every Volter placed into our custody? Cattle make great food, leather, their fat can serve as fuel, and serve fair for beasts of burden. Of course I would only ask that you turn over your prisoners once the cattle are brought to you, but I hope that you will hold them well until the bovine arrive."

>TL;DR- Sailors come back. Half of ships traded for proper riding equipment for mammoths, and some iron. Volter prisoners to be traded for cattle.

>>3895196

Ahtram responds that the Sonarii have not 'taken' any land on this island from the Totu; all the currently Sonarii-occupied land here had no owner before our arrival. Furthermore, if the area becomes merely a demilitarized zone then the Sonarii see that, despite any assurances, the Totu would be able to re-militarize the area in full within a day if they chose to become hostile again. If the Totu would prefer a demilitarized zone instead then it must be much wider then the planned no-man's land; stretching from fort Emysist up to the very walls of the cities of Nacre and Carapace; and must also forbid any and all military production within that Zone. Given the choice of the two, the Sonarii assumed that the one-hexter wide no-man's land would be the preferable option to the Totu, but that is the alternative.

>Diplo - Burned Men
“You see quite fair and honorable in trade. Strange as we have learned that you may be allies to the Volt Polity, who would rather kill our party of deal brokers. They pride themselves for being pacifists, yet they are ready to fight. A surprise to be sure, but a welcome one. They didn't even kill many. They just…. They took away their lives without taking their lives. They could have at least had the decency to kill them.”

The Giant looks to the faces of the burned men and realizes he’s gone astray from the original conversation.

“Sorry, let us return to trade. Your deals are fair, and we accept them, though we will not give you the volters quite yet. If you are allies with the Volt, then you will give them right back. Our leverage gone. So, until you prove that you would rather side with the mighty nation of Nilfheim, or remain neutral to this war, initiated by the Volt Polity surprisingly enough, we can not hand you over the volters. Though they are in chains, we will not harm them, unless they get rowdy.”

He gestures to the cages, showing that the prisoners are being fed well and given plenty of water.

“ We do not kill without purpose.”

>>3895841
>Diplo (Sonarii, Tarn)
Jeleva argues once again, that it was a deliberate action to pursue the Totu to this island despite obvious intention for the totu to inhabit the island as a whole. It is comparable to as if the Totu had settled within the land south of the Sonarii mountains.
Considering the prescense of the Burned Men, there is no actual value in the Sonarii taking control of additional land from the Totu, it just seems like an attempt to grasp more claims from the Totu despite them already surrendering all of the mainland.
>Diplo (Burned Men)
The offer of assistance from the burned men is appreciated and arrangements are made to grant them a human-sized home.

>>3896624

>Diplomacy: Tarn, Totu
Ahtram responds that the Sonarii are not taking control of additional lands; the neutral zone is to be just that, Neutral. Neither Sonarii nor Totu will be considered in possession of this area.

The Sonarii reason for coming to these islands, she counters, is that the Duchy of Chalkeat, oldest of the Sonarii Ducal lands, found a parade of uninhabited islands when at last her gaze turned westward. It is the Totu motivation for settling on an island chain that reaches toward old Sonaria that she finds dubious, when there is so much world out there they could have chosen to have gone to instead.

She asks the Tarnish mediators their opinion, for she hopes to get her fair suggestion of a neutral area settled and this peace signed.

>>3892263
As more and more of the (quite ironically enough) relatively high quality revolving cannons are continually produced en mass the question of what this factories and perhaps future ones like it will produce once the nation is fully armed is raised by the administrators of the first fully fledged replicated factory.

Deeper underground bellow the relatively sparse Iron deposits of the higher layers bountiful stores of tin and lead are found, both useful for the making of bronze alloys using the mostly untouched copper deposits of the far northern little desert in order to make quality Bronze and something called "plastic bronze" which has been found to be more waterproof and which has an easier time being turned into shapes useful for floatship construction and boat construction alike.

>>3893333
The watch areas constructed are not as purely high in quality individually as something like a castle or a fortress but they are set up well for dealing with any incoming boats, this combined with a permanent set up of volter communications trained to run at a frequency fully reserved for military uses (per a law enacted in the polity long ago pertaining to fears of wave tappers listening in on important military information) and the surprisingly high quality telescopes which have been purchased from the totu nation have helped make sure these posts can provide an ample level of early warning, a large portion of the army is placed in these watch areas which were not before confined to patrol or policing duties as well.

The damages inflicted by the raiders is examined, with some damages still having trace amounts of the legendarily cold ice which they flung around still clinging to the stone and collected on the ground. Using the information gained from these techniques sturdier, taller walls are constructed along the beach line whose public entrances and exits are just big enough to comfortably fit volters or in a few areas full sized average humanoids. The walls are made extra thick as to prevent the easy shattering seen in the previous walls and in the frail housing in the city, a layer of spitcrete, courtesy of the totu is also constructed as the substance is thought to provide a better buffer against brittling by frost blasts.

>>3893393
Using larger bioforms and specialized molded biomass plows a variety of mushroom which is considered to be both the generally tastiest and most efficient source of food is planted along the newly restored ground, other varieties of mushroom (and even a few varieties of edible molds) are also planted which can provide a wider variety of tastes to the Mycetians as eating only one kind of mushroom soup with the occasional deer or cattle steak is not a lifestyle which the general population finds particularly enjoyable. The practice of waste repurposing becomes a mainstay of the nation.

Scouts send word back of strange beings past the former fully fungal forest, they take inspiration from these beings in the layout and architectural style of the crafted buildings. Most of the former fungal forest with the exception of the stubborn eastern border and the lands near to the outsiders is colonized.

>>3893404
With the exception of some of the fertile fishing waters off the southern coast and an icy island to the north east the entire island and its coasts have been brought back into the fold, across the land a support for the Emperor continues to grow, offsetting any resentment caused by the usurping of the previous political regime. In the far north past the fishing waters of the harsh northern region a strange pattern of ice sheets is noticed in the integrated island, along with this those who have ventered into the island report an odd smell in the otherwise brisk and cold air which smells of something odd burning along with a myriad of strange structures which dot the island.

>>3897783
(cont)
The risk is a calculated one, right now the nation is growing and the possibility of a threat on the theoretical mainland is great but right now the growth rate of the nation means that a war might actually be won when compared to if the empire was in a state of stagnancy. Just a few years after the completion of the last ritual a new one begins, but this time the pylons seem to begin to stretch to the far south. Two regions are found both of which have colony ships sent with haste due to a mix up in plans. The eastern colony seems perfectly fine and like the rest of the island doesn't seem to have been ever inhabited. But to the south a race of fish people is discovered who have accents vaguely comparable to the aristocratic accents of the Empire. Due to a policy of ask questions first then shoot the southern military expedition sends envoys to talk with these strange beings while time to establish a good first impression can still be found.

The Envoys March in Formation Towards the largest spotted fish man settlement stating the following upon contact with the leader of the largest northern coastal town:
( >>3893811 this is the initiation of diplo with the tarn, you may continue with what their interactions are from here)
"Greetings from the Great City of Tumar, glory to the Emperor and may prosperity find all who follow his lead. We have been alerted that you have established settlement in rightful Tumar lands, we ask that you provide ample evidence to your ownership of this land along with cooperating with us in making sure that no major conflict needs to be fought when conflict is not something which needs to happen currently over these disputed lands."

>>3893549
With the land now lacking and maintainer bots the city of Radica falls back into ruin and the desert, though a pale green glow covers these reconverted soils. The guts of those who had very recently consumed food grown there are found to contain sand and stone which when combined with the glowing nature seem to cause sickness, the symptoms include Nausea and vomiting, Diarrhea, Headache, Fever, Dizziness and disorientation, Weakness and fatigue, Hair loss, Bloody vomit and stools from internal bleeding, Infections and little blood syndrome. Long times consumers of these biomaterials in the long term also face varying levels of internal bleeding, mental deterioration and brittle bones especially as the converted desert returns to its previous state.

Unlike the less defensive fortifications of the many burned men watchsights a fortress is constructed around a cliff in the bay of Kazval where the water narrows to a degree that the other side can be seen by the naked eye, totu hands and telescopes increase the sight and quality of the emplacements considerably, though it will always be meant to be manned by mainly volters as the totu have only come to pay off their leave back to their own reestablished nation in the far south west.

>>3894385
>>3894262
Addendum:
The stories told by the men of the ship outwardly are not entirely accurate, as they do not explain why the ship was late for its leave back to its brethren, the Ice Giants present having been only 10 did not so easily die to the volters, for they had put up quite the fight before they all were slain as their frost blasts had caused a large amount of damage and dead ice weight that was put upon the ship which meant that they had to land some ways away in order to preform repairs.

>>3893918
The lack of preestablished roads in the volters northern area and the great cold in and around the mountain range is thought to surely be enough to prevent major movement of volters.

To the west in the new waters a portion of a new landmass is discovered in the far north, those who discovered it establish small communities there and those who do not want to take part in the coming conflict also go there as well.

>>3893811
On the peninsula south of Kira chaos has spread just outside of the major cities, although these areas are backwater deserts the threats the newly formed pirates of this region pose for supplies going both ways is great, as tarnish support focuses just on their supply lines the minotaur tribes take advantage, raiding along the desert coast where they had once ruled. Thankfully the newly formed Militia of Kira has pushed back the chaos while it tries to spread north, although for how much longer the bay route and the coastal supply routes will hold is not yet entirely known.

Almost the full force of the tarnish blockade has crushed the defenders of the Dam, breaking forth the reservoir created by the dam and flooding the valleys bellow. These waves combine with the newly introduced official tarnish tactics to crush a significant portion of the Oni army (which is now trying to maneuver itself south of Koza) trying to flee in that direction. The tarn are now bogged down fighting south of Koza against the remainder of the Oni army in the hopes that they can finally rid themselves of this plague on the tarn.

The city of hamet may enter a state of anarchy soon as an Oni force is harassing them with their foul evil spirits.

>>3893987
For many years mathematics had been used by the Oni for calculating supplies and the budgets of the lords but now with the new empirical ideas pouring in from mainly the volters basic formulas for motion are established, some of which break previously commonly held ideas such as how fast different sized objects fall in relation to each other and how the basic ways in which motion functions (such as equal and opposite forces) works, many in this field hope that one day Oni physics will one day help to streamline and make more efficient the weapons and designs of the Oni so that war can be fought more effectively.

As the oni army flees south a significant portion of the blockade force marched west and in their path they crushed the dam fort, releasing a flood which allowed them to outspeed the oni so that they could catch up in their movement west, this destroyed a significant portion of the backline of that army.

Hamet is now spiraling into a state of unrest as the bad spirits wretch havoc on the otherwise relatively comfortable lives of the population.

>>3893931
The plagasm declares that it is the ally of the goats and that any attempt at going on an offensive against them will result in the deployment of the earthen army.

>>3893953
Though the small size of the little clocks can hardly be replicated even by even the Queen herself larger designs which compensate still out of reach mechanisms with more totu adapted mechanisms allow for the creation of a great clock at the top of the Queen's palace whose bell rings at certain times of the day in order to make more unified and efficient the timetables of the workers. This helps to offset the wasppower required to keep it running effectively.

In the extreme north a kind of large, relatively tame beast is discovered of relatively great strength called the elephant is discovered along with salt near Galiveron

>>3894036
(added a line in the map using roads to signify the proposed border, I will remove it if you two don't end up agreeing)
The fortress, despite being far away from the mainland can now be said to have exceeded all other fortresses of the world.

Due to how much supplies need to move around before they can get to certain areas it is recommended for budgetary reasons that the sonarii stick to using conventional rounds for mundane targets and suppressive fire, saving the explosive (even though they could be described as more incendiary by some) rounds for very important targets. The lessons learned from the invention process may help the sonarii to develop even better rounds in the future or rounds which have different alternative properties.

(new player)
Starting Location:
Nation Name: The Twin Clubs Tribe
Capitol Name: The Mountain of Mourn
Nation Colors: (primary and secondary): Primary Yellow, Secondary Black
Race Name: Ogres
Race description/links/abilities: Thick skinned, small brained, heavily food/money motivated. Ogre tyrants believe that all in their line of sight is their kingdom, so the highest peaks are the most coveted. They absolutely hate anything bigger than themselves, and

Element: Meat (Tongues)
Elemental Passive Ability: Consumed meats, metals, and ores prepared by a butcher can
Summary of Nation: Fairly nomadic mercenary's that tell incredibly embellished stories of their exploits (though some are true), with a myriad of exotic equipment and fighting styles. A commonly swapped belief, is consuming the weapons of beaten opponents will make you proficient in that. If this is true or not, we’ve yet to see. In the same vein, Ogre’s treasure tongue meats above all else, thinking that the more tongues you’ve consumed must equate to being a better storyteller/songwriter.
Fluff (optional): Bugkraudd’s Beastcrushers follow conflict. Each spring, a fresh group of young Ogres will descend, hoping to join up and explore! Calls for mercenaries, promise of coin, and armfulls of fresh foods bring them around, but extravagant stories of conquest and impossible odds are what really spread their reputation. Bugkraudd’s paymasters will gleefully create contracts, eager to organize a fighting force for a heavy amount of coin. Bugkraudd himself is incredibly fond of artifacts, an eye for loot sending him and his retinue of Ironguts after enemy warlords, an avalanche of muscle and crudely shaped hackers barreling down the battlefield.

Starting Crop: Ogre’s aren’t exactly picky eaters, metals, stones, other ogres, these are all equally viable options. Mosses, mushrooms, and cave-fauna are time honored classics to the more discerning Ogre however. Gov’t wise, Ogres use a meritocracy, the largest, loudest, and strongest are given the title. To contest it, a fight to the death occurs.

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Elemental Passive Ability:
Fantastic liars. The more people that hear about their exploits, and believe them, the more willing the Ogres are to embody those traits. Professional performances of a Man Eaters exploits can propel that mercenary to incredible feats of glory, all the better to make taller tales with!

Other:
The Ogre Kingdoms are the rightful and sovereign domain of the large and brutish Ogre race. Wandering tribes of Ogres can be found wrecking their way across the globe, erecting many strongholds and plundering far off and exotic lands the likes of which no man will ever see in their lifetime. Yet no matter how far away they may be, all Ogres refer to the scattered tribal kingdoms that dominate the slopes and river valleys of the Mountains of Mourn their rightful, hard-earned homeland. It is here, amongst the frozen peaks and blistering blizzards that mighty Tyrants rule over their own brutal kingdoms, warring amongst each other, looting, extorting and ransacking all before them as a tribute to their own gluttonous appetite and their ever-hungry God, the Great Maw.

They fight as thugs, bandits and mercenaries, their hulking numbers coming from a wide diversity of warmongering tribes scattered all across the Mountain range. They pick on the strong and the weak alike, battling mighty foes and powerful kingdoms many thousands of miles away all for the alluring promise of gold, plunder and meat. Even here, amongst the peaks where they hold claim to all, fearsome beast and mighty creatures dominate the dark corners of their realm, preying on all those who come to close. Yet such is the Ogres ferocious, stubborn and ever ravenous nature that they see these creatures not as a foe to cower and hide from, but as a challenge that needs to be brought down, crushed beneath their boot and eaten to fill their hungry bellies.

The current Tyrant, leader of the Crossed Clubs, Bugkraudd Beastcrusher and his tribesmen have since moved from mountaintops, and deeper into the valleys. A ravenous pack of Maneaters, Ogres beset by intense wanderlust, they move and work as mercenaries, fighting for the promise of coin, meat, and plunder.

(the ogres may have their first turn now)

After years of isolation wandering a strange and misty land the tribes of old reunite in a new land which they can expand through ritual.

Action 1:
With growing discord in the empire, the fear in Koza grows to a maximum. Miners and merchants, previously relatively placated as they waited for Koza to be regained, now whip themselves into a frenzy of anxiety. The Tarnish army is unable to defuse them, and a tide of civilians heads for Koza, despite the obvious danger. The prospectors largely work together for now, focusing on the full opening of the westernmost mines. After all, even the smallest amounts of phosphate right now would be enough to make a Tarn rich.

Action 2:
Due to the vulnerability of the desperate citizens, the army now has little choice but to retreat and consolidate. The majority of the army retreats back to Koza and begins the process of repair and defense. Guards are stationed all along the canalworks and walls, makeshift piles of rubble and stone are constructed along the canal and walls, and aquabolter positions play over watch, spotting Oni raiding patrols and scattering them before they get too close.

Action 2: Restablish control of the area immediately surrounding Koza.
Specifically, the army splits in two, east and south, aiming for two major goals. The first aim is the clearing of the canal province. Tarnish snipers scout and spot camps, which are then surrounded and defeated through overwhelming force. The Oni are spread out now, so concentrated force on their raiding parties, one by one, is enough to eradicate them entirely. The other half’s aim is to attack East, retaking Tonglos Pass and the surrounding defensive works. Since the attention of the Oni is on the South, this should be fairly simple.

>Diplo: Tumarians
The Tumarians first experience with the Tarns is not a particularly flattering one. They encounter peasants, willing to pay extortionate price for food. The peasants offer up advanced farming implements, medication, even their own indentured servitude in exchange for food.

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>Diplo: The Tarn
The small group of Pathfinders that found the impoverished Tarn were quite unsure what to think. Their first contact with the outside world showed them to be pathetically weak, and it took them quite aback. The men were ready to loot and murder the struggling Tarn right then and there, but were stopped by their tribune, a member of the old elite recently given his position by the Emperor. He realized the use a subservient group of outsiders would have to the Tumerians, and quickly sent word to the forward force at the site of the construction of Satturnico. The tribune accepted their offer of indentured servitude, and offered to lead them to their mainland settlement in exchange for said service, as well as their tools, technology, and information of the situation of the mainland.
>Action 1: Founding of Satturnico
With the navy at a point of satisfaction to the Emperor, he finally orders the fleet and the colony ship to head to the mainland. Picking a clear and sunny day to do it, the Pathfinders and the army had the military colony built in just over three days of constant work thanks to friendly weather, allowing the men to work with practically no sleep. (Site of the red 'X') While the majority of the settlement is meant for military purposes, being build on a hill of course, but several workers were brought along for menial tasks as well as fishing and farming. In addition, they had built separate housing for the Tarn that were assumed to be arriving soon.
>Action 2: Into the Depths
With the discovery of strange occurrences up north of the main Tumarian island, the emperor ordered a small division of Pathfinders to check the area out, as well as a scholar who had recently approached the Emperor with ideas of a scientific institute. Emperor Saturnius decided this would be a good test for the validity of this idea, and see if the scholar could come back with anything substantial.

>>3897796

Action one:
Idle ogres make for hungry ogres, and hungry ogres make for hunting ogres. With a little encouragement from Bugkraudd, tribesmen form small hunting bands, spreading out to find things more palatable than local stones and carried down reserves.

Action 2:
Bugkraudd rallies a few paymasters with an escort of maneaters. With quills, lockboxes, and assistant gnoblars in hand, they begin to spread out towards Radica, and Vinconro, looking to catch an earful of the current strife in the area, there's coin to be made!

>>3898119
The peasants have little understanding of the mainland beyond that the majority of tribes there are vicious monsters. They bring knowledge of basic aquaculture practices and crop rotations. Their only conditions are that they be paid for their servitude in exchange for food and that they be allowed to return home to be with their families for the holidays. The servitude will hold for the standard Tarnish increment: 120 lunar cycles, with the possibility of extension after the period is up. A few more Tarns show up than expected, drawn by the new that the new people were friendly and willing to pay in food.

>>3894006
"It might surprise you, but I started out the same way. Kicked and slashed my way, all the way up, as far as fighting can take you, at least. From there it was combat of a different sort. I wasn't nearly as good as that. I actually thought this assignment was my big break, did you know?"

A cavalry unit moves up, blocking the pawns advance while threatening the left side.

"Ha."

>>3897796
1.The pylons are expanded due west along the coast of the seemingly shrinking mushroom forest, gaining many coastal sea tiles. Exploratory ships find a burning mountain rising from the sea.

2. The Golden Dawn army mobilizes on Frostfound (the 1 tile desert island within Ice Giant borders) to intercept any giant raiders. Fortification begin to form a beachhead that will make the giant's attempt of retaking the beach gruesome. (Fire lance kill nests, lead lined for cold resistance, pressure activated buried shadow gas shells along the coast, and Totu artillery). The navy is to harass and bait Giant ships, attempting to lure them south for ambushes with ships lying in wait within the narrow bays.

>Diplo

>Sonari:
Sonari airships and land armies are free to use Frostfound's fort as a staging area, for troop mobilization and landing. Burned Men trains allow Sonari military to ride as allies for no charge.

>Rot Wood

Something has the Fungal Forest on the backfoot, it feels as if the focus of the forest has shifted according to many aged Golem-Keepers. A deep push into the belly of the forest takes place. (Feel free to respond how you wish, this is us discovering a living wood faction.)

>Totu
With the industrialization the Totu exhibit, and their production of high quality revolving cannons; the Burned Men supervisors suggest if they are not done with their protective re-armament, then they should be soon. The Sonarii army has gone to aid their allies, and the Totu are not at immediate threat. The Burned Men suggest altering the factory to produce various high quality tools for Totu's own use.

In a bit of good faith, some scholars offer to teach Jeleva and her princesses the Burned Men runic script, so they may record their own history and develop a culture beyond oral tradition. (unless the Totu already have writing, if so then sorry)

NPC NATION @SKY
>Iron Empire
The Golden Dawn contact the men of metal, asking if they would be interested in joining the battle against the frozen raiders for a share of loot, and share of conquered lands.

>Diplomacy (Burned Men)
Inalla agrees that they will soon have more than enough cannons and assures the Burned Men that she does not seek to waste resources. She also explains the existence of a Totu script though she notes that Totu are largely illiterate. Without going into details, she explains that she has plans for less aggressive forms of defense. Though she declines assistance with writing, Inalla does request assistance with her navy in order to facilitate further exploration.

>Diplomacy (Sonarii)
The "neutral zone" as it's called is declared simply incompatible with the interests of the meeting by Jeleva. She states that she does not seek war, but will not hesitate to defend herself should her refusal to cooperate on this term lead to violent action.

>Action 1: Force Constancy (Force Field)
With the recent focus on industry and city building, the warriors of the island have led a relatively cushy live thus far. Other than the exercise's required to maintain army professionalism, they've had few new projects.
Unfamiliar with combat herself, Inalla turns to Mairsil, one of the nations finest young benders. Through the collaborative efforts of Inalla's tinkering mind and the bending experience of Mairsil, an attempt at maintaing a constant level of directional force is attempted. This project intends to improve the speed of projectiles shot through one end while helping to buffer and defend against projectiles recieved on the other end.

>Action 2: Marchesa's Influence
Though a powerful bender, Mairsil's abusive and controlling personality influences Jeleva just barely enough to sanction a final large military production before efforts are turned to the internal sphere.
Just outside of the docks of Nacre, a project is launched for the production of a building similar to an observatory, though housing a massive, elevated piece of new artillery designed for long ranged signficant structural damage. The building is intended to spot and fire upon unwelcome vessels long before retaliation is possible.

Significant Figures -
Jeleva - Queen of the Totu; Defiant military mind, grounded by her obsessive concern for the future of Totukind.
Inalla - Leading Princess of the Totu & Friend of Jeleva; Intelligent tinkerer without a lick of experience in combat. Good-willed for a Totu.
Mairsil - Male Totu, Rare case of nearly princess-like power and personality. Idealizes Marchesa.

>>3897796
>>The Yokai Lords

>1: Reconnect with Fort Town Tonglo
With several scouting runs up the pass apparently being successful, and with Tarnish forces almost entirely focused on the city of Koza, Giib brings several of his forces up the southern edge of the pass. Through routes less waterlogged, and even some Sonarii mountain trails, to get back to Tonglo. Should they return, Giib will take the moment to re-consolidate his forces and manage the situation in Tonglo and Giib.

>2: Northern Coastal Ambush Raiding
With the upper-hills area flooded again and full of the main Tarnish army, one or two of the Oni captains decide to try their hand at moving the fighting line to less entrenched locations. They lie in wait along various points along the coast north of Hamet, targeting Tarnish deliveries or just normal fishermen, seeing as these fishmen still need to breath and settle partially on land. Once the Tarns have moved sufficiently away from the waterline, the oni strike fast and from ranged, to try and eliminate any noticeable tarnish casters or warriors, before rushing in, seizing goods, and breaking off from the coast before a proper naval response can react.

While largely trying to supply themselves and cause general chaos, the captains in charge hope that their relatively minor forces can prompt a rather large diversion of troops away from the front line and further stretch the Tarnish forces across the entire region.

>War Action: Major Pressure on Hamet
It seems the Tarn never anticipated a proper offensive on their main port town, training grounds, and pipeline for most of their army's supplies. As such, one of the Oni commanders coordinates several of the individual bands to perform their own raids, sabotages, and harassments on Hamet. Releasing even more spirits of misfortune into the city hoping that they may feed on the resentment and anguish that's been brewing, and striking at any out-of-position or relatively weak flanks or caravans of Tarns: the commander wishes to fully choke out the army stuck back up in Koza proper.

>Diplo (I'll do the rest, later.)
>Northern Minos
With the initial influx of minotaurs into Jugunji largely calming down, and some even returning back to the northern mountain ranges, Yokai Lord Judunji and Yugji send a messenger out to the minotaur in charge of the region. They ask if the supposed "metal men" that had once driven them out of the mountain ranges had been quelled, or if their presence was still significant.
They offer some of their forces to help the Minotaurs retake the northern ruins and eliminate any partisans still active in the region, so the king does not have to spread his own forces thin, in exchange for a portion of the loot found within the city. While they are looking for profit and loot, this is also an extension of diplomatic negotiation and reaffirming mino-oni relations, which is why they are willing to default more of the loot to the minos than they would normally.

>>3897796

>Diplomacy: Tarn, Totu
>>3900555
>>3898292

Ahtram responds to Jeleva "The neutral Zone is the only guarantor we would have that you were sincere in seeking peace. If you choose not to accept it, we will have a hard time in believing your intent IS one of peace, and you will have to propose another measure to assure us of those stated aims."

"We are troubled that your actions suggest our worst fears have been released. That this was not meant as a conference of peace at all, but as a delaying action to allow you to re-arm and re-build your war machine to continue your offensive against us."

She turns to the Tarn. "As mediators, you agreed that the neutral zone proposal was fair and just. I ask you now to enforce that ruling in your mediation and support implementation of this neutral zone."

>Action 1: Further Transport Links
A Rail-route between Tzitoros and the Golden Dawn city of Aestival is judged important for linking the Burned Men Kingdom to the Sonarii and Plagasm transport routes of the South-West, and a branching route linking this rail to Nafflec halfway along is also thought to make sense. The engineers are also asked to find the best way of linking the northern city of Inorom to the rail network; though with mountains one side and jungles the other, the proposal is seen as inherently difficult - if not likely to succeed, then the additional project will not be funded, and the airship links to Inorom will be improved instead.

>Action 2: Harvest Engines
The duchy of Isgwill still carries scars upon her populous. Even decades after the destruction of the Ducal army at what is now Mourn crater, the 'missing' half of a generation has left the one below short in numbers as the one above ages out of service. To help the sparse Isgwilli population to keep their lands productive, the Engineers of Larnet design and build crop-harvesting machines that allow crops of wheat and corn from the open plains to be harvested with minimal expenditure of effort.

>Diplo: Golden Dawn/Volt Polity
>>3899752

With permission from Golden Dawn, Duchess Sella Lek begins shipping large numbers of her Tizta northward. The reasons are twofold; firstly, to provide the Burned men with the Princess they have long been promised, and a Tizta workforce to complete the replacement of the exiled Totu.

Secondly, many battalions of Tizta soldiers are to be shipped through Golden Dawn to the far north, to be deployed in guard of the Volter city of Kazval and her surrounds. These divisions are to be placed under direct control of the Polity for the duration.

Action one:
Descending from the mountain, the Ogres spend time acclimating to their new surroundings. Spreading out in all directions, they begin to search for potential conflicts, cultures, or foods.

Action two:
Idle ogres make for hungry ogres, and hungry ogres make for hunting ogres. With a little encouragement from Bugkraudd, tribesmen form small hunting bands, spreading out to find things more palatable than local stones and carried down reserves.

This is no time for peace.

Action 1: War Voltage
He loathed living to see this day but he never fooled himself. In the dark age of this new world, it was going to happen eventually. Grand Arbiter Kazira stood in the highest circle of Volt Vault today, surrounded by bolters and thunder priests. Together, they reenacted a grand ritual, one that will profoundly change volter society from top to bottom. Against an enemy that knew no peace and that would accept no trade, no respite, the pacifist volters had no choice but to stand for what is right, to the defense of their countrymen and in rescue of their kin... The last Grand Priest did what only a member of his caste could; he released a powerful electromagnetic signal of spiritual magnitude. It resonated within the Spark of every volter across the nation through the arbiters of each clan, sowing seeds of thought, attuning them to a new frequency. Peace Voltage turned into War Voltage.

Peace Voltage was a global spiritual electrocurrent focused on the pacifist ways. It made it very easy for volters to avoid conflicts, seek conciliation and understanding, keep a docile demeanor and increased the efficiency of their energy whenever it was used for peaceful activities such as farming, diplomacy, the arts and so forth. Volters lived longer and healthier, there were less bolters, and all around, society was easily contented. Happy, even. It was what volters lived with since they got out of the Vault, but now, it was over. Several provocations, too much disrespect, rising tensions in the world and at home, and finally, wanton aggression: nobody's patience is infinite and the Polity found its cap today.

War voltage puts everyone on edge. Volters become more assertive, much more likely to tackle conflict with retaliation, unwilling to back down; they become militant, sometimes fanatical. No longer content with requesting or bargaining they now demand their dues, and they lose their previous affinities with the arts of peace to find themselves strenghtened with the path of conflict, enjoying a much more driven purpose in fuelling the economy of war or fighting it out directly. Goat horns grow more jagged; reports of violent behaviour and brawls are more common. Everyone is on edge, diplomats act more imperiously and assertively as they become willing to challenge foreign dignitaries to serious duels for daring make fun of their height, their ways or their god. More turn to the ways of the bolters, who have now ceased to feel like maladapted outlets, and find themselves supernaturally strenghtened, encouraged even. Volters now wear out faster, they are stressed out and their lives will grow shorter; society takes a turn for the rebellious and spirited, and we shall use this to drive our war. It is a great price to pay, but we swill never abandon our kin! To deprive them of their freedom is a crime against nature and god!

As this goes on over time, our society will change. So be it.

1. Clockwork Research
The scholars and thinkers of many hives continue development and research of clockwork machinery. There had already been a sizable educational investment into the workings of the world and basic engineering and mechanics had long before given way to more advanced concepts utilizing gravitational forces and the use of them in engineering. The marriage of these uniquely Hingashi concepts to general clockwork proved surprisingly difficult. The simple reason was that clockwork worked independently of traditional gravitational forces. It would take new scholars dedicated to working with clockwork to figure out how best to tie them together. Their solutions were to mostly leave them separate. Gravitational mechanics could work alongside clockwork, but they could not necessarily work together. Clockwork provided consistent motion and what had been eluding the thinkers of earlier generations had been the miniturization of springs and gears. Talented craftsmen in different hives worked to develop the tiny materials that was needed for the smaller watches and in the process metallurgy and metalworking both advanced another step forward into the forgotten future.

The marriage of these two separate forms of engineering came later, with the first Gravitational Clock. Unlike previous clocks based solely on the movement of large gears, this clock kept time based on the precise motion of gravitational pull. It was accurate down to the fundamental mechanics of the planet and thus, perfectly and entirely consistent across all hives. While it took a substantial period of time for this development to spread from Galiveron to Tolede the result was a strange level of unity among hives that had not been seen since the first Hingan Queen sent her brood to found new homes. Politically the hives were still separate, but economically they had been drawn closer by the synchronization of time from the small sub-hive to the great hives themselves.

2. Found Salmancero

On Isla de Paz a new Princess arrives to make her home among the beaches and coastlines of the island. The island had long been a home for dissidents seeking greater autonomy from the Hive and now, at last, the Hives had come to them. This Queen hailed from the distant Hive of Tolede and she brought with her a wave of innovation and a veritable hive worth of retinue. She had a vision of turning Salmancero into the engine by which Hingashi would spread itself over the far seas and it would be her brood that manned the sails.

Salmancero would be a Hive of the newest innovations. Unlike the others which were built into some natural rock feature Salmancero would be a Hive of many thousands of smaller interconnected chambers that sat high, defying gravity over land and water alike. This sprawling Hive would encompass literally the entire island, sitting above the land and sea where the drones would toil to catch fish and grow crops.

>Action 2: Advanced Combat Airship Design, Stormship
Airships have come a long way since we made them, yet all we ever produced was the old, reliable all-purpose Thunderbird. It had time to improve itself a bit here and there but as our understanding of airship engineering grew we know that there are many things that could be improved if we were make radical changes to the core design. Furthermore, the 'Stormship' is intended as a purely military craft and therefore is to benefit from its specialization, at the cost of being able to fulfill other roles. To draft it, we drew on our engineering knowledge, but also on the Sonarian research into combat-purpose crafts and the lessons learnt with the Wraith.

The Stormship has a sleeker design and is more aerodynamic, its hull gained additional plating that protects the vital areas keeping it afloat. It has more than one engine and so more power, and features a unique energy grid network linking them with the rest of the 'subsystems' we may want to install on it, such as comm arrays and tesla weapons (or the crew itself, being volters). Its cargo space is dedicated solely to crew, supplies, ammo and weapons, which allows it to be a smaller and faster target yet pack much more firepower than a Thunderbird, and improved weapon emplacements ensure our ability to equip it with armaments from all Alliance nations designs while enjoying greater stability. We've also looked into ways to protect the sonarian sails or at least retract them when we're expecting to make use of the coils or getting into tight atmospheric conditions.

Stormship production will start immediately, and the newly made crafts will gradually replace hastily-refitted frontline thunderbirds so that these may serve as transport or patrol ships instead, or carriers for Sonarian bomber crews.

>War Action: Pressure Patrols
It's imperative we regain the initiative. All allied airship forces are ordered to take constant combat patrols towards enemy territory and take pot shots and firebombing runs at anything identifiable as an iceman target. Houses, settlements, mammoths, giants; we don't care what, more points if it looks strategically important. This is to be treated as a live exercise for our crews, teach the alliance personel to work with one another under the same flag, and also as immediate pressure to force the enemy on the defensive while testing his response. We remind them not to be greedy and to retreat rather than losing precious ships in blizzards.

>Diplomacy: Plagasm
We request our Plagasm ally to see to its own security first, strenghten our allied defenses second and consider using their formidable wealth to finance our conflict third.

>>3901458

>War Action: Manipulation Support
As the allied Airship fleet moves into action, Sonarii Air-manipulators, many of them veteran wind-monks, will use their abilities to calm the air around the fleet and keep pressure and temperature as constant as they can and conditions as optimal as possible for continuous flight.

The war front as been shifted, Nations ally with the damned goats in the struggle against the mighty Ice Giants. The Giants never asked for full war, and gave the goats fair demands for their people. The scale weighs against the giants, for nations we have never met wage war without a second thought. The Ice Giants do like a good fight, yet they are no morons. They know when they are on the lower side. Three against one are not good odds but the Ice Giants will still fight with honor, Defense of the Jarldom is the current goal.

>Action 1
Cryo-mancers and Frost druids begin to conjure the grand blizzard spell, shifting the air around them to whipping blizzards. Ice giants are used to dealing with the blasting blizzards, Though if the Goats wish to fly into our nation, they best know how to handle those flying ships with even more than expert tactics.

> Action 2
The crafters of the nation begin to work on the ballista towers lining the nation. They begin to make them with a preload of a few shots, as well as a winch system so that they may be able to pull down the airships, or at the very least, tear off even more of the Flying vessels.

>War Action
The Giants send a smaller war party with the main goal of only destroying the plagasms portal. If they wish to ally themselves with the Livestock then we will hold true to our word. Destroy the portal and cut their link to this land.

>Diplomacy: Wrete
We ask our friend the King of Wrete if he'd like to send competent troops to us for riches and glory, on the condition that they behave with the allies.

>>3897796
Location: Part of the Fungal Forest
Nation Name: Mycete Creep
Capitol Name: Rot Keep
Race Name: Heterotrophic Mycetic Fungi
Race description/links/abilities:
Wood has existed since the beginning, from this raw energy the land itself pulled from the chi. Mana flowed into all life and so the wood came to speak and move, from it grew small plants, creeping along they move and grow till the magics built inside them and the fungus moved about and spoke, the wooden bones infused with elemental might.

Their cities reside in forests with homes grown from fungus and other plant matter.
As population in an area grows, it's flora and fauna begin to change, their wood being warped and twisted into a new vision, the old decaying away.

Element: Wood

Elemental Passive Ability:

[Living Land] : Thorns, vines, hardened wood and spiked branches form a natural barricade around settlements. The land itself hurts and slows opposing trespassers.

Summary of Nation:
Wood, mold and fungus made life. Slowly spreading out, forming a basis of civilization for the new world.


Starting Crop: Various species of edible mushrooms

Action 1: Let us spread forth. We will begin establishing small outposts and settlements made of fungus. As we grow and multiply so too will the lnd bend to our will. The very plants themselves growing out from our mana. While creating these small outposts we will utilize the newly learned construction techniques learned from the strange beasts to the east. Perhaps our structures may withstand more or be erected with speed.

Action 2: We have sustenance. Now is the time for growth. As our lands and holdings expand so too must our might. Yet we are of wood, that which gives life itself. We do not fight as lesser beasts, the land strikes for us. Those in tuned with the wood elements will focus their energy into strengthening our hold on the forest. The branches, shrubs, and roots already writhe with life attacking and wearing down all deemed enemies, now we will aim to cast rituals to harden the wood, make the fruits poisonous, and spread algae infecting the lands we hold domain over.


The creep spreads

>>3897891
An entrepreneur who recently reentered the empire after a long trip into foreign lands offers a unique solution to the problem of the blocked tunnels: That being a volter drill which he has refitted to run on water bending. Its metal is very fine compared to the relatively poor quality metals smithed by the tarn and alongside its speed makes for a very efficient device for clearing rubble while other manual labor can be relocated to the task of making newly reclaimed areas secure. As more phosphate is recovered that which does get through is used to bribe the newly formed pirate bands who threaten the coastal supply lines along with giving otherwise loyal forces in the north the hope to reclaim lost waters, slowing down the spread of anarchy. Sadly wherever anarchy has lost it has also popped up in other places as a small pocket formed by a pirate band has formed in the deepest south of the empire. In other news the bay has fallen due to minotaur, food and perhaps even Oni pressure, the region has now fallen out of the control of the empire and is now considered dangerous territory not worth the hiking and voyage. The minotaurs are now held back at the hills east of Kira by the Kiran militia and landed guard forces.

The oni forces have mostly withdrawn from koza as the defenses mount up and the area around koza is now under primarily tarnish control. But the Oni raids (which now seem to be more focused on Hamet, disrupting any major shipments considerably) have stopped most of the phosphate shipments at the moment. The tarnish leadership are now more confident they can win this war and thus give much more effective speeches, increasing moral. After major scuffles with retreating Oni forces control of the Tonglo pass is fully reestablished, though most of the Oni forces have retreated back to Tonglo.

>>3900571
Most of the retreating army makes it through the tarnish lines and into tonglo, now only a small but skilled portion is thought to still be raiding in the east, namely against Hamet.

With the added pressure the Oni can now boast about how they "caused" the spread of anarchy to the bay.

Hamet falls into partially anarchy as Oni saboteurs and interlopers from the west take advantage of the escalating situation.

The minotaurs tell of how the metal giants fell quicker than they rose, and about how their ruined metal carcasses now litter the landscape. With... ample pay and a share of the spoils they will cooperate with the oni, but the minotaur who has control of the area for the most part, and who has control over the richest parts of this steely graveyard asks for a tribute to be given to him in return for full access to the spoils, which he does not think will be very valuable to him. He asks for some "exotic slaves", just a few tens of dozens, enough to start a "breeding population". He states that he does not want tarn nor oni as those races are not very exotic to him, but any "exotic" race will do and then the oni can loot the graves of his great graveyard as they please. He also states he will only take totu if they have a queen or many, many princesses with them as he states he is experienced with failing to raise a brood of totu.

>>3898119
Indentured servants help to found a stable agriculture as they cut down many of the pesky forests of the new regions so that some agriculture can be founded.

The new city grows rapidly as immigrants from the mother land arrive in droves but after this growth there is stagnation until the tarnish servants arrive in bulk which causes a more stable but longer lasting period of initial growth.

A long maze of tunnels running along the lines is discovered in the frozen north, within these halls many examples of strange suits are found, though the mechanisms which seem to have once run these things are now unusable the suits do seem to be heat resistant to extreme levels, so much so that a powerful plasma burst does not even scorch them and sustained melding beams leave no damage as well. Sadly they do seem quite unresistant to slashing and tearing damage and many of the suits do bear previously acquired slashing damages but hey, heatproof suits and the accompanying materials are quite interesting and exactly the kinds of artifacts which the Emperor wants recovered. Along with these things a map is put together which seems to show a central point deep underground in this complex though the route which should be used to get there is now barricaded by thick ice and what seem to have been makeshift barricades, the walls also show signs of battle although the marks do not bear a great resemblance to plasma damage.

>>3898138
Many large and bulky deer with great display horns are discovered in the valleys while down south a banished group of ogres returns with strange slayed cattle beasts upon their backs whose meat though tasting mildly of pork does make for an excellent kind of steak.

(you cannot just insert your race as though they have always existed, for now the ogres exist only around The mountain of mourn and nowhere else, as compensation I am expanding your nation)
To the east impoverished villages of fish men are spotted while to the south the bull men are spotted. (you may now preform a diplo action on the Tarn and the NPC minotaur nation (run by me) on how the ogres react to these newly discovered beings as a first impression)

>>3899752
The polity has shifted into full war mode, the nation sees their enemy for what it is and have shifted priorities accordingly, even the criminals of the nation pitch in as laundered money is spent on wartime upgrades for airships and stolen goods are sold in order to buy the equipment necessary to supply a soldier. As long as the government can keep this hostility and readiness for war in check the current polity forces are estimated to match in proportion the entire population of the Ice giants from their frozen fringes on an island only flown to once to the furthest north known ice giant settlement. The train system also receives a well needed upgrade as it is shut down for a week before reopening with the trains equipped with better engines and more efficient storage containers which were inspired by oni storage containers. Thunna only hopes that this violent turn will was not rushed to quickly.

>>3903748
(cont)
Full upgrades to existing ships in order to make them proper stormships are expensive and thus the admiralty must make a decision, either pull back many of the ships being donated to the war effort in order to finish upgrading or keep stormships are more of an elite class meant for spearheading assaults while more robust supply lines which can accommodate less advanced models are set up in the rear.

As apart of the training most of the small settlements on the coast are decimated to the immediate north west of the Kazval peninsula and a sizable island which was admittedly lightly populated is also taken near the peninsula putting tactics to the test before more major ground engagements are carried out. The open plains are found to be easy to cleanse but the hills prove a greater problem as the light forests and caves of the area can easily hold Ice giants who are trying to escape.

The Plagasm sends its finest regiment which is available through the portal which is being lead by some of the returning veterans of the Oni-Tarn long war. It can't send very much and also doesn't want to be using all that much as their ruling class does not have as much of an interest in the conflict as the other races do so this is what it can give without major payment on the alliances part.

...

A force of Ice giants has begun conquering plagasm territory, already the trappers and fishers of the north have been killed off and Mortuary itself is now under siege, the elite army which was sent through to aid the volters was unable to save the portal which has been damaged, it is fixable but will take much time to repair especially since the city is under raid by Ice Giants.

>>3900650
A route is mapped out which takes advantage of the scorched earth from the failed sun, its costs are projected to be lesser than the lansou rail. Going west from the town can also allow the rail system to be link up without clogging up the burned men tunnel if a rail is constructed which leads to sonnen from inorom.

Using designs adapted from volter potatoe diggers more labor effective devices are invented leader to yet another migration of out of work farmhands to the cities.

>>3901492
Previously scrapped designs are reborn now that the altitude issue for the volters and even other less acclimated peoples is fixed improving any new airships or sky carts produced for such transport.

>>3902188
From the winding paths of other blizzards a new hurricane blizzard is produced around balora, with further investment it is project to grow, mostly depending on if the ice giants of balora can obtain enough food to maintain and grow it.

From the mighty tendons of the finest of bull elephants ice giant proportioned ballistas are constructed and already one of the slower ships of the enemy has been fell by one of the at risk villages of the south east who have deployed a few.

The portal has been disabled and much of the sparsely populated plagasm lands of the north have been easily taken by invading independent war bands riding the coat tails of the main force. Due to the distances involved the ice giants of mortuary cannot communicate with the leader of all Ice Giants and thus their own leader must make a choice: try to shatter the still in shock plagasm forces in the city or retreat in order to lick inflicted wounds until either a larger invasion force can be mustered or sustained raids can keep the portal from being reopened.

Many far northern men come to aid the southerners in their war against the genocidal volter menace.

File: Elements - The Clusterclu(...).png (1.74 MB, 1192x930)

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>>3901443
A new invention pops up which may make the new elephants into irrelephants, that being the clockwork grav engine. It works as so: A worker crawls into a piston space and turns his anti gravity powers on and off every few seconds, this moves a piston which moves some gears which drives the machine forward. Many workers can be put in in order to drive heavier loads and to support things like the steerer and loaded goods. Its still fairly arcane but it certainly works for public displays of power and wealth by the nobility.

The center of the new city lies in the south, where the finest coast lies. The queen and her retinue help to fund many new and interesting projects, first among them is an application of the recently invented clockwork grav engine into ships which can chug along even when winds are not favorable. Such wealth has been gained by her due to her open ways that her advisers say that she should support another expansion ritual so that her lands may encompass more water.

IRON EMPIRE:
Action 1:
Invasion of Haze:
For years the tensions between the two iron nations has risen, and as the friendship between plagasm and haze withers the mutually beneficial relationship between the second empire and plagasm grows. These factors combined with the ascension of a new iron emperor means that the War For Iron Supremacy can begin, plagasm of course has (ironically) declared neutrality as they fear the iron empire and disdain haze to much to intervene. Already the areas around the railway of haze have been captured and used as launching off points for an Iron consolidation of the countryside, along with this the bay of iron is quickly being seized by the far better navy of the second empire.

Action 2:
The offensive focuses on taking the land around haze so that the city can be taken relatively peacefully.

>>3899752
A race of fat beings is spotted far into the new fringes, they laugh often and have mannerisms vaguely similar to drunken oni, at least from a distance.

The joint conquest is a success and doctrine is modified in order to cope with the shortcomings of the invasion.

The men of metal refuse as they are currently preforming their own military endeavors.

>>3900555
The buffers will need much more work before they can be effectively used by average totu but for the intellectual class and the nobility these techniques are slowly becoming more and more effective.

The Great Cannon as it is called fires huge chunks of mixed metal filled with planks with nails embedded, it is hoped that these planks may catch drifting enemies off guard as they grab something to stabilize them. An alternate fire mode involving sending a shock wave (which would be very dangerous to totu as well) through the water is also implemented just in case.

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>>3903755
MODIFIED MAP

>>3902401
The King of wrete can not spare much but a small elite force of Minotaurs, he hopes that the Volters can use them well, he made sure to pick those used to the coldest conditions as well so they should be useful in scouting.

>>3903687
(The burned men diplo’d you during this turn pls respond to them)
Among the foliage the first advanced mushroom farms are constructed, the buildings being made from stone blended with wood and fungal biomass in order to form a sturdy structure which implements the lessons learned from the east
The region, especially the heartland grows more dangerous to non-infected and foreign life as the days go by, where once migratory birds rested among the mushrooms while traveling to and from the north now lie corpses poisoned by mycetic juices.

>>3903755
Action 1: Reman Tonglos pass and expand West
Tonglos pass and the fortress-ring are fully liberated from mino control, and troops funnel into it, fully manning the ring and preventing any supplies from moving back or forth. The defenses should be sufficient to prevent a blitz or slow down a full attack, giving the time for the wider Tarnish army to respond to any incursion.

Action 2: Guard the supply lines
With the news that phosphate has begun trickling out of Koza at last, a vast wave of prospectors flood towards the city. Desperate Tarns evaporate phosphate crystals, sift through tailings, and search the ground behind the drill for traces of phosphorus. The Wild West-style environment breeds colorful characters, such as the contract-sheriffs. For a price, these mercenaries protect ‘otz shipments as they head down the canal.

War action: Elite Tarn forces
As the Tarns continue to eliminate the Oni raiding forces one by one, some units grow naturally more intense than others. These units study Dodug stealth tactics, practice dueling, and hone their strength constantly, until they can fight with the strength of many men.

>>3896970
The Tarns agree that the solution offered is reasonable but also understand the Totu concern of a unilateral loss of land. To that end, they surest that the neutral zone be extended one province Sonarii-ward, so that both parties are giving up land. The fort and oasis will be converted into a negotiation hall and trade hub respectively.

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>>3904282

>>3903772
>Of Fire and Earth
1. The Ice Giants have laid siege to the Plagasm city of Mortuary, and our research minded allies are threatened. Crown-Prince Aramon, long since returned from the Polity, takes his Alloheim's crown to govern in his stead as the God-King takes the train system to Faustic with his army, and marches north to Mortuary to break the siege. Due to the mountains, many of the cavalry are sent to Kazval to intercept any routed Giants and interrupt supply lines. The infantry army is smash upon the rear of the giants, with the wall serving as anvil for them to be hammer upon. Crippling wounds (fire lance to the knees, etc) are to be the considered doctrine. Golems enter direct combat with the giants, while the infantry attempt to use ballista with ropes to attempt to pin the giants from multiple angles before moving in to melee range, while prioritizing group fire blast upon the pinned giant targets.

The crippled Giants afterwards are taken prisoner.

>Of Rails
2. The Golden Dawn sees fit to finalize to inter-empire railway between Sonaria and the Burned Men; constructing a rail between Sonnen and Inorom, and Aestival to Nafflec.

>War:
While the Burned Men navy is large and strong, it is composed of many small and fast ships. A new class of ship is commission, titled the Rookery (Destroyer/Carrier). With a Tizta manned cannon crew upon its bow and aft, it can strike enemies from it's front and rear. The most shocking alteration is it's massive hull with many metal bay doors along the sides, Sonari bomber crews are able to rest inside with their munitions, and when the call to fight is given, the bay doors are pulled up and the flight of bat-bombers take flight to release their payloads, and then are able to quickly return to the ship for rest and reloads. Due to the massive food cost of the carrier, it requires a compliment of supply ships or be near a port to feed its crew.

(Will post a drawing of it)

>Diplo
>Totu
The Burned Men captains agree to aid the Totu in scouting the other scatter island chains to the north.

>Ogres
At first Burned Men explorers thought that the Ogres were merely some long separated mountain tribe of Oni, so distant that they had begun to diverge as people. With a feast of cattle to talk over, that was proven to not be the case. The Burned Men express interest in what the Ogres may be interested in trading.

>Ice Giants
The Giants besieging Mortuary receive a letter tied to an arrow, it reads.

"Abandon your assault upon our allies, for you will not find a good death, only a tortured existence afterwards. Lay down your arms and go home, or never hold them again."

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>>3904360

>Action 1: Colonization
With the support of the burned men, Totu colonists enter into their ships and venture north to claim new land.

>Action 2: Jet-packs
As opposed to their previous ship design, the tinkerers begin to experiment with containing the rocks within a compartment on the backside of a metal and leather jacket and allowing the Totu to use their force thrusts to generate thrust.

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>>3903823
Location: Part of the Fungal Forest
Nation Name: Mycete Creep
Capitol Name: Rot Keep
Race Name: Heterotrophic Mycetic Fungi
Race description/links/abilities:
Wood has existed since the beginning, from this raw energy the land itself pulled from the chi. Mana flowed into all life and so the wood came to speak and move, from it grew small plants, creeping along they move and grow till the magics built inside them and the fungus moved about and spoke, the wooden bones infused with elemental might.

Their cities reside in forests with homes grown from fungus and other plant matter.
As population in an area grows, it's flora and fauna begin to change, their wood being warped and twisted into a new vision, the old decaying away.

Element: Wood

Elemental Passive Ability:

[Living Land] : Thorns, vines, hardened wood and spiked branches form a natural barricade around settlements. The land itself hurts and slows opposing trespassers.

Summary of Nation:
Wood, mold and fungus made life. Slowly spreading out, forming a basis of civilization for the new world.


Starting Crop: Various species of edible mushrooms
Action 1: Leaves hide us. We must hide our cities, and our people. Let the fungus improve blending in with the natural world. We must grow moss, grass, shrubs, flowers and fungus from our bodies. Our buildings will be made to resemble trees and great mushrooms. We will become hidden within the forest so all who come to find us become lost. These woods will become a maze with not being found but the living land itself consuming those who enter our domain with ill will.


Action 2: Work towards creating a great maze. We will use the building techniques we have learned combined with wood magics to grow out the forest. The lands around our cities will form walls of thorns and vines. Great mushroom walls will block pathways, secreting spores. Shrubs will grow in arching paths spreading rashes to all who brush past them. Roots will grow tangled snaring and trapping passing feet. This great maze will turn enemies away, leaving them to slowly be consumed by the inhospitable land.

>>3903772
>>The Yokai Lords

>1: Agricultural Reforms
With Giib now safely back in Oni-held lands, he takes a moment to address the many flaws he's become aware of in his own domain's agricultural fields. With the input of the Southern-Tarn, the rumors of modernized devices of the Sonarii, better use and rotation of the various crops, and just general land management practices: Giib hopes to see his domain florish anew as the long-standing breadbasket for the Oni people.

>2: Military Academy
With many of the original troops of Tonglo and Giib lost to PoW, death, or general attrition, Giib sees a need to focus on the baseline rather than specialize. It was a large boon he was able to get as many of his own troops out of the situation as he could. With the protection of the Tonglo Fortress, Walls, and guards, he can now reassign some of his men into other facilities of war. Namely, troop rotation and training. Rather than keep his entire force composed of highly elite veterans and survivors of the long-running war, Giib begins bringing in new soldiers and having them trained by veterans and past war heroes. While this might be an initial drain on the main standing force he can pull from, it should hopefully raise the overall quality of new soldiers, and make his armies among the most professional and organized.

>War Action: Spread Chaos and Greed for Phosphate
Meanwhile, the western Oni have to make their own plans. While they continue to fight the Tarn themselves where possible, many realize that it might be as if not more effective to let them fight amongst each other. The oni along the coast try to establish contact with the various pirates, rioters, and raiders sailing among the bay and running along the coast, giving both guerrilla groups safe places to rest and trade goods between one another. They offer knowledge of how coveted phosphorous is not just to the Tarn, but to the entire world, and how stealing it and selling it to the global market could set them up far better than the crumbling Tarnish council could. They suggest either passing it to the Oni, who could sell it to the Minos; or to establish pirating lanes south to sell to the southern-tarn, and more importantly the Sonarii, who would be able to spread the phosphorous throughout the world to the highest bidder.
If the Tarn aren't overly accepting of the idea, the Oni will instead offer to help out and work under the various Mino raiders to make their forces far more effective in coordination and tactics.

>>Yokai Lords
>Diplo
>Southern-Tarn
Yokai Lord Giib once again sends a message to the King of the Southern Tarn; thanking him for his input on agricultural practices, as well as asking the king's opinions on his northern kin's state of affairs.

>Mycete Creep
With the sudden activity in the north, Yugji sends a few rangers out to figure out and report what exactly is happening in the otherwise largely avoided fungal forest.

>Golden Dawn
Though the prospect of raiding the GD once more would bring a smile to the aging Yugji's face, he realizes that trying to poke the largest alliance in the world when they are actively engaging in war would be tantamount to suicide. So instead, he covertly asks the GD if they have any prisoners or other undesirables of both genders. Ones that would not be missed, would prefer to be taken off-hand, or otherwise could be 'encouraged' to 'migrate' to the far west.
Alternatively, though he is loath to admit it, he also asks them if they have found any forms of sapient life within the Fungal Forests on their own. And if any populations could be brought to him, he would be willing to pay for it.

Mun also asks if they have any info on the force that apparently forced the Bolter's hands. Truly they must be powerful and honorable people to have knocked the Volters off of their high horse.

>Sonaria
Though less familiar with them, Yugji also extends the same offer to the Sonarii. About taking undesirables, convicts, or otherwise off of their hands. Surely a nation as big as Sonaria would have need to put those who cannot be allowed to fly freely.

>Vol- Bolter Polity
With the announcement slowly trickling in through traders and sonarii mailmen, the various Yokai Lords begin sending their own congratulations and encouragements to the Bolter Polity. Though they are entirely earnest in their addresses and messages for defending what is theirs and the respect they have for the Bolters and their warriors, it is clear they are happy to demean the pacifists faction. They also give a little extra ribbing how quickly they were to cast off their notions of peace and begin a full-scale war over some basic raiding.

>>3905525
>Diplomacy: Yokai Lords
"Silence yourself, warmonger! The sons of Thunna fight to defend the sanctity of peace and life! But we want you to watch, watch and learn what happens to the wicked when that sanctity is violated, when all peace have been made an impossibility despite us! Thunder shall resound in the sky and lighting will come crashing down, tearing the Earth asunder and smiting the guilty, for such happens to those who hold no fear in their heart for righteous Justice and listen not to our warnings. For warnings we have given them, such as warnings we gave unto you, that we see not war as a game, but a great atrocity, the bane of men and gods alike; and so war we never wage lightly, but we shy not once from it. Those fools that finditr to be sweet and desirable the sons of the Thundergod shall find and punish, and teach them to loathe it as much as the defenseless innocents that were trampled beneath their unholy greed, arrogance and bloodthirst. We did not cast away peace, but it is the ideal of peace itself that spurrs us to violent action, for that one day the world may live without fear, that the halberd and the crossbow might find rest at last.

War is which that is easy to start yet impossible to end: you should know this better than us, what with your shameless smile drenched in the blood of a hundred thousand Tarns!"


The Polity's diplomats certainly changed their approach, recently.

>>3903748
(That's ok! And makes a heap more sense desu, appreciated!)

>Minotaurs
The first spotting of the Minotaur by scouts is taken negatively, word spreading quickly among back to the tyrant of a race larger, and more brutish than them. Another challenge to overcome, butchers begin sharpening their tools at the opportunity for new offerings to the great maw, while Firebellies begin to stock their bodies with incredibly hot offerings of spices and peppers.

>Burned Men
First contact is less than stellar, assuming the worst. However, the offer of food immediately puts them in a high regard. The Ogres are looking to trade manpower, fresh faced gluttons and better equipped bruisers giddy to begin their line of work. A paymaster lines up, lockbox strapped carefully above his gutplate, quill in hand, ready to begin striking deals.

>Tarn
The Tarn are viewed with extreme curiosity by the Ogres, most wary of any cave born body of water and what could be lurking inside, they can only guess what they could be acclimated from their home climate. For now, the Ogres decide to keep their distance, observing carefully, and inquiring about them from others.

>Action 1: Down One Floor Deeper
After hearing these satisfactory reports on the findings in the northern ruins, the Emperor orders the center of it to be properly explored. After some thought, he had additionally ordered that several of the pathfinders accompanying the scholar to be run through a crash course of rudimentary melee combat training, equipping them with newly (and quite poorly) made short swords. If our natural powers can't peirce that armor, then we must be prepared to fight anything down there that may don it.

>Action 2: Founding of the Saturnian Institute
These promising findings from the scholar lead the Emperor to officially found a scientific institute, and in typical fashion, names it after himself. Not only is it dedicated to training scholars, but also the research of new technology deemed necessary by the Emperor, which is in most cases a militaristic need. It is much less so meant for civil technology as it is for advancements of the military.

>Diplo: Tarn
The Emperor sends the same man who had initially invited the first Tarn to Satturnico, as well as a small supply train, to find other impoverished Tarn settlements. He is instructed to hand out a few pieces of food and advertise the same offer of servitude that the previous Tarn had.

1. Expand West

The reach of Salmancero's Hive grows with the strength of its Queen. The Hive pushes the borders of maritime science and the very borders of the nation with its experiments. New ships leave from the gravdocks of Salmancero where they skim above the wave, propelled forward by paddles driven into the water by the gravpiston engines that the Hive's thinkers had developed. Small, sleek ships of sheetrock cut and skim around the ever growing waters of the Hive, gathering fish for sale and consumption.

2. Establish Maria-del-Sol
At the edge of the mountain range another Hive is established by a Princess of the Iralon dynasty. Her political alignment is close with her mother, and the Hive, while nominally independent, has nearly unbreakable economic and political ties with that of Barceleron. Where Barceleron focuses on agricultural wealth, the new Hive of Maria-del-Sol seek to exploit the nearby silk and geysers for industrial cloth production. While the Osuzu do not wear clothing, they do have a love for decoration and fabrics. They serve as an expression of favor from drones to hivers to nobles to the Queen. The shifting trends from leather to other fabrics created the market that Queen Diana seeks to foster.

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>>3903772

>Action 1: City of Northern Transit
The increasing volume of traffic in the region as trade from Sonaria meets that of Golden dawn causes the city of Cethom to grow up along the Aestival-Tzitoros line (Located with the X in the attached image), with the branch lien down to Nafflec planned to pass through it. Though part of Ducal Nafflec, Cethom is intended to serve as a hub for the farmlands and forestries on the other side of the hills.

>Action 2: Coastal Defences
The increasing activity of the Iron Fleet, and the news of the attack on Haze, causes much worry in the Duchy of Glecoone. Wary of the Ironmen launching an attack by sea, the Glecooni begin work on a network of Coastal wards, defenses and Volter comms/tesla stations that they plan to reach from the southernmost reaches of the Duchy up toward Lansou and Vinconro.

>War Action: Advance on Balora
Beneath the fire of the Volter Skyfleet's weapons, the forces of the Sonarii expedition advance. Sonarii Air-manipulators seek to quiet and still any semblance of the raging blizzards to provide the Sonarii scouts and warriors easy flight... as well as to allow the advance of the forces from Tzitoros, led by Grulla Lek, one of Sella Lek's foremost princess daughters. Air and Force will cage these storms; and then the Tizta Artillery cannonade will open up at the Giant targets that present themselves.

>>3904282
>Diplomacy: Tarn, Totu, Golden Dawn
The Sonarii appreciate the Tarnish efforts in trying to come up with a counter-proposal, but they explain that neither they or the Tutu can use the crab-grounds as an oasis in the way that the Tarn might. Moreover, the disarming of the fort is not considered feasible until a little more mutual trust has been generated.

Fortunately, they announce that the last proposal made by the Totu delegate, for an expanded demilitarized zone between fort Emysist and Nacre, was considered acceptable by the Sonarii. As such, Sonaria now, finally, considers herself to be at peace with Jeleva's Basin, and wishes the Golden Dawn Inspectors good luck in ensuring that it stays peaceful and the terms keep being met.

>>3905525
>Diplo: Lord Yuji
King Greyne answers that Sonarii convicts are bound to receive due Sonarii justice; but he will keep in mind a suggested destination for any that the sentence of exile might be passed upon. What does lord Yuji wish these undesirables to -do-?

>>3902188
>Diplomacy: Nilfheim
Though Gurlon T'Ned is but a minor member of his Dynasty and a junior officer who does not expect to be heeded, he nonetheless attempts to signal a parley to converse with one of his army's opponents. Should one be arranged, the Lordling would approach with a scowl, wings wrapped tightly. "Couldn't your thieves have just let those goats go again?" He scowls. "Now I'm up here in the ass-end of the world, freezing my wings off; and to top it all I've got a Robe-Monkey commanding this whole section of this clusterflumph. You don't want us here, we don't want to be here; yet honour binds us to fight 'till we're bleeding and chilled. And all because you wouldn't bloody accept the sodding ransom."

Though most giants prefer to be on the offensive, the defense of the southern most giant state must be strengthened and maintained; They move onto the defensive, the people sharpening their blades and restringing their gut string bows. The ballista towers are to be manned by many, as they are what will pull down the airship artillery the goats use.
>Action 1
Balorian Giants stock up and prepare to defend their village

The ice giant navy, who is still docked in balora, take up their ships and prepare to attack the boats that believe they can take hold of Jarl Tjorvick’s land. The Isbrytier will crush the enemies in the water.

>Action 2
Send the Isbrytir and the navy to quell any sort of water based attack/resistance.

“Chief Vog, we must be focusing on defense of the nation. I know we are initiators of raids, but the annoying goats are mobilizing to cleanse us of this world! They are backed by three other nations that only wish to see our destruction as well…”

“ You are growing weak, Tjorvick. You know we must quell them in their homelands. Keep them from the giants claim, for they deserve to have no foothold in the north. Its already been decided for my warparty, and quite frankly also by some of your army as well. Holding them for the defense of balora is moronic. You know it is already lost, though they are strong people, those beast tamers. Maybe the will surprise me. Half of your defense forces have already shown wish to join my warparty, and we march TONIGHT”

Half the room erupts in pure cheer and excitement, while those who understand the Jarls reasoning look astounded at the others. Vog is an amazing general, and the Jarl knows he cannot have a rouge warparty. He agrees to Vogs demands and allows a war party to charge onward towards the city of Kazval, against his better judgment.

War Action
Vog the Skull Collector and his large force march on towards Kazval, with thoughts to besiege it. Mighty mammoth riders stampede down the mountains charged and ready to take down the city by force.

>>3904360
>Diplo- Burned Men
They receive no reply

>>3906096
>Diplo- Sonarii
The parley is permitted and sanctioned on neutral ground. They seem non-hostile, but due to the so called “diplomatic actions” that occurred in their meeting with the Voters they seem on edge and prepared for a fight. You see the ice giant faces melt from intrigued listener to disgusted by the word thief.

“We are not thieves”

Multiple Giants ready their blades, but the one running the meeting calms them down.

“Theft is abhorrent. Theft is one of the few acts that can condemn a Giant to a place of torment after his death. On the other hand, raiding is an honorable challenge to a fight, with the victor retaining all of the spoils.” He explains.

“ The way you speak makes it seem as if you have no wish to be up here. Why fight for such a weak nation? They show weakness in pacifism, and even though they hold that to their most important philosophy, they break it in an instant. They don't even have the balls to kill them, they left our men to lay there as wet logs. We had to bring our own disgraced men to peace. Also, we attempted to trade back their men, yet they deemed their lives not worth what we asked, and now we are at war! These Goats are extremely strange, and seem to bend there ideals to whatever suits them at the time. To us Giants, it just seems like they are only using you. Maybe once this is all over, we may be trade partners, but I assume for now, your honor binds you to fight us; A sad fact that we feel sorry for.”

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>>3903856
Most Major Oni incursions along with the majority of the known mountain passes from which minotaurs might invade from are captured, although it is still believed that smaller oni supported chaotic forces still exist in small numbers around hamet.

After major government and private investment more major supplies of phosphate can now be shipped around, this is used to hold back chaotic forces for the time being along with fertilizing the best areas of the still held empire.

A small portion of the army, mostly made up of the long time veterans of the war has become notable for being different from the rest. They have fought for a long time and most of them do not even think their families in the chaotic zones may still live, thus they desire the right to lead their own forces after the Oni are mopped up so that they may reconquer and gain lordship over the lands which are currently considered no mans land.

Due to the emergence of a major independent faction in Kohai the Southern Tarn have sent their army into the waters of that area in order to "bring order and crush radical insurgents", they claim that they will not be invading past the area which this insurgent group controls. (which essentially encompasses the Kohai general area)

>>3905524
Although these new agricultural techniques are not entirely applicable to rice, at least initially the exploration of more advanced agricultural techniques leads to a discovery: Double Cropping, Double Cropping can be used around the wet river areas of the empire (which means that this is not applicable to the jungle) and involves planting rice in early spring and harvesting in mid-summer while then planting another crop right after the first harvest allowing for a winter crop to be harvested. While the first crop is not particularly good tasting on its own chickens and pigs don't seem to mind all that much and thus they can be fed using this crop throughout the year through rice storage supplies. This has increased the meat available to even the peasantry considerably and will lead to a more robust lower class to pull from in the event of a war which requires such breaking of tradition. This extra meat can also be exported at a better price leading to more gold inflow from places like Tzitoros, Illfried and Aestival.

By extending guard duty hours and pulling from retiring forces for the time the new blood can be taught the lessons and techniques learned during the war.

Tarnish support is dwindling in non-chaotic areas but growing in the bay region, the southern piracy and in hamet. Though a tarnish push has eradicated most major oni force still left west of Koza.

The ruler of the Southern Tarn states that he is hopeful of their situation due to the reclamation of major phosphate stores and the slowing of the advance of chaos, he also sends news of his war of stabilization in the far west against a major tarnish independent force.

>>3904360
It seems word from mortuary was a bit to rushed as the "siege" turned out to only be a few very scary ice giants, although perhaps a siege might have been better considering the fact that the portal is broken, the plagasm will be fixing it but its going to take a while and thus the mortuary force has been sent north to reclaim lost areas and purge ice giants for the time being, although a good portion of the force has stayed behind in order to defend and offer their services in return for cheaper food for the economically devastated region. No living ice giants are recovered although payment for a live ice giant is offered to the plagasm and so they should have one by (next turn).

The rail has been completed on the burned men's part, for now at least.

These ships show their stripes when one fairly easily devastates a coastal ice giant village from beyond the range of conventional ice giant retaliation.

>>3905312
On the largest of the new islands a large area of very hard to break graphite like rocks are discovered, they can be removed from one another but breaking a sheet proves incredibly difficult, let along cutting it into a proper shape.

The decreased technical weight from the rocks allows for totu to blast off very quickly, though jetpacks take a while to refill and its doubtful this is a good idea in war due to a loss of rocks being a very bad thing, thankfully it has good use as something to do as a pastime for nobles and high ranking totu in general and it certainly will have use as it provides a form of fast transport which is at all comparable to that of the speeds and aerial grace of the sonarii.

>>3905441
More external emphasis on looking like a normal tree is placed on the newer, higher buildings of the civilization along with breeding out the harmful poisons in many previously useless kinds of mushroom.

The forest is made denser with false clearings and spike shroom pit traps being placed just often enough while spores containing toxins designed to daze and confuse are pumped into the air.

>>3905909
As the group gets closer to the center the heat level increases and more suits are uncovered the further the group gets to the central area, the tumarians themselves do not much care for the heat although the prospect of their weapons growing ever more soft and meltable makes this expedition a weary one. After hours of exploration the entrance to the central region is discovered, the door glows hot like heated iron and the air has grown thin from the intense heat but it is still bearable. Upon reaching the inner area using some ventilation shafts the central room is uncovered. It is a strange place, with broken glass objects scattered across the floor and a great many colored circles adorning a strange table.

The room they have entered is exposed to a great burning "sun" which lies behind broken glass, it whirls and pulses with great energy while the rest of the facility lies still and dead. Unlike the metal of the room the metal of the holding area seems to be able to take such intense heat and upon the nearing of one of the men to the sun the metal begins to emit a lightning like static which is absorbed by the sun.

After an hour of steady observation and some fiddling with the tables something interesting is made to occur where in after a certain series of the buttons are pressed the sun sends a pulse into one of the men, turning his metallic exterior into liquid (though it still stays in place) and causing him to emit an intense burning glow which makes him look like he is made of the fire of the sun. He exhibits what seems to be a greater energy and power to him which probably makes him a far better fighter, after a few more hours of fiddling the combination is reached once more and another one of the men is imbued with this energy. Sadly these sun powered men seem to be to much of a fire hazard to safely take home and thus are taken back in a large metal container which can take the heat which is pulled by the ship. Their power is great but it dies down over a while and by (next turn) they will be back at baseline power levels.

Many tarnish technologies and metals are learned from at this new facility, improving the general technology of the empire up to tarnish levels.

>>3905929
Common workers are fit into ever cramper spaces in their task of providing anti-grav energy for the higher ranking hingashi who drive and use the floating platforms of the civilization.

The discovery of rich gem deposits increases Maria-del-Sol's growth as investors and workers migrate to this new great hive.

>>3906037
As the final regions of frontier finally close the era of the outlaw and the law enforcer come to an end, the stories gained along the way finally fading into the pages of history.

The emplacements are dug in and the stations set up, if the Iron empire ever thinks of invading the sonarii should now have ample warning of their attack by sea.

The great storm is blown north, though it still hangs heavy over balora proper. Though the great ice ship now prowls these waters, threatening all sonarii docks and even the two new burned men ships which have been set loose in the area.

>>3906271
The Isbrytier is proving itself a capable naval vessel, though the new many canon ships being deployed by the burned men may soon threaten it.

Food stocks are prioritized and much meat is preserved in ice so that it may be eaten at a later date.

The army now approaches Kazval, it is now at its northern wall and are about to attack in force.

>Action 1: Embrace of the Sun
The findings of the northern ruins are a of immense interest to Emperor, as well as the general Empire as a whole. Saturnius immediately orders the findings to be extensively studied to be harnessed for their own use. The prospect of supremely powerful soldiers is more than attractive, yet the impractical location and effects it currently has makes it significantly less useful than it could be otherwise. This may also be useful for the creation of long ranged weaponry, the scholars tell the Emperor, though they have yet to truly find out every aspect of this discovery to give a solid answer on this topic.

>Action 2: A Second Unknown
Hearing of preliminary findings of ruins to the southeast of Satturnico for some time, and after the colossal success of the first expedition of the same variety, the Emperor orders another team of scholars and a hefty sum of pathfinders to search through the ruins. With a solid foothold on the unknown mainland, and with strangers everywhere, now is the best time for strengthening our position. We do not yet know who it is that is destined to attempt to destroy us.

Action 1: Reorganization and redistribution
With the immediate threat to Koza gone, the army reorganizes into a somewhat more efficient structure. Rookies and the perennially unsuccessful are diverted into peacekeeping and phosphate-distribution efforts, while the more antisocial sorts are reorganized into smaller task forces and pointed in the general direction of the Minos. The remainder of the army sticks around koza, rebuilding defenses and defending the phosphate systems against raiding. This should reduce the army’s burden on the nations agricultural supply, improve the distribution of phosphate to the rest of the kingdom, and quench some of the chaos that has been occurring in the rest of the country.

Action 2: The Southern Tarns are strongly reminded that under no circumstances are they to take any military action whatsoever in the areas of the Northern Tarn. A military force is sent west to drive home the message and to “relieve” the Southern Tarnish army of their “peacekeeping” duties. They take a significant amount of phosphorus with them as a bribe for the locals. The Tarns have no intention of starting a fight, but they have no plans to back down either.

War Action: While the Oni threat appears to be relatively contained for now, the Minos still represent a clear and present danger. Tarnish forces, made up mostly of small companies of veterans, begin sojourning north. They coordinate with one another to slowly reclaim the land the Minos took while the army was focused on Koza, while providing citizens of the bay areas with protection against pirate and Mino raids.

>>3906096
The Tarns applaud this peace effort and hope that this will be the permanent end of conflict between the Sonarii and Totu.

>>The Yokai Lords
>Diplo
>>3898879 Tonglo-Bathys
The game goes on for a while longer, each side struggling to get a proper hold on the other's city piece. Instead of a single piece taking the city, like earlier iterations of the board game, the city piece must be under threat from 3 separate pieces before it is considered 'sieged' and 'seized'. While Tonglo almost gets her core force to completely subsume Bathys' city, he ultimately gets the drop on her city from the flanks. Tonglo for her part curses herself, but offers an honest smile and a promise for another game when they get the chance.

The games go on for a couple more weeks as the war progresses, Tonglo inviting Bathys to play and exchange thoughts every night. Tonglo gets bits and pieces of info from the guards and by Bathys, understanding at least the basics of how the war is going and the Tarnish nation as well. Even as her cell is moved around once Hamet gets pulled into the conflict, she still tries to get the tired Bathys to wind down with a drink and a game.

"I can feel your people's presence, you know," Tonglo says as she let's Bathys make the first move of their most recent game, "Around my domain, I mean. As the Yokai Lord, we are tied to our city through ritual, our spirits intertwined. When your forces have come up to my boarders, I feel them at the edge of my soul."
"Just so you know, I know, what sort of position we are in. But they have not yet breached the gates, staying far away from the firing lines. My Fort holds strong against any push, and keeps the rest of Giib's domain from feeling the lashings of war like our two peoples' have."

"So unless you plan on breaking through the bulkhead, it appears you and Giib are at an impasse once more. And this is where I want to return our talks to my previous offer."
"Before you casually throw away the idea of letting us jointly own the city of Koza for both of our benefits, I want to bring up something you mentioned in our first match. The need to "dismantle the pattern"."

"Where do you think we are right now, at this very moment in the war? Bring me that map, and I'll show you. Do these borders not smack of familiarity? Your people on the coast and in the pass, while Tonglo holds the gate into Oni land? What's different is Giib's domain sits nice and pretty and fed, with his temperament is as greedy as ever. While your people are starving, divided, and tired."

"So tell me, what do you think is going to happen in the near future? Do you truly think Giib is going to honor the valiant and heroic stand you have put up to keep your nation together? No. He has not been here with me, with you, with your people, to do that. He has his own people and ambitions on his mind, with the ever tantalizing phosphorous on the horizon. You can hold off one army, you can hold off two. But how many more can you take before your spirit finally breaks? How many more before your nation's spirit is worn away?"

>>The Yokai Lords
>Diplo
>>3905736 Bolter Polity
The initial impact from the new Volter diplomatic possition leaves many oni diplomats impressed and enthused about what this war is doing to them. Finally the volters seem to have developed some common sense, and have grown a backbone! With the news of the war going on far out of reach of the Yokai Domains, Yokai Lord Mun offers to finally establish an official comms network in his city, if only to keep a tighter regulation on the volters in his nation and to provide front-row seats on the war effort.

Though, not to the volter's faces, many oni begin to question and worry about the volter race in general. A quick and merciless response to attack is well known to the Oni, but such actions are usually regional and localized, with the present lords taking action while the rest go about their lives. To throw the entire populace into a bloodthirsty frenzy at the flick of a switch is vaguely disturbing to the Oni, and combined with the very bipolar first-contact with the volters, leaves them less and less trusting of the temperamental goats.

>>3906096 Sonaria
Yugji admits he isn't quite sure what their final destination looks like, other than it would be "not his problem, not your problem, and not our people's problem" and says it's largely to gain leverage to benefit his own citizens.

>>3906876 Minos-Yugji
Though Yugji has set up the initial hooks to try and get a breeding population, he decides it would be best to get a taste for what is in store for him before he accidentally sours international relations by pressing the matter. Yugji agrees to pay one of the minor lords for a small amount of looting privileges, to see what the ruins have to offer.

>>3906320

The Sonarii broadens his wings before setting them back down. "You struck them without warning, attacking civilians for plunder rather then any strategic goal. That may be lucrative; but honorable? I question that description most highly indeed."

"Why do we fight for the Volters? Because they pledged to fight for us, if the situation was reversed. Because they honored that call when faceless fiends moved into our lands; and side by side we stood and fought together against a force of destruction and corruption."

"You are right, that our honor binds us to fight you. Maybe once this is over, perhaps we might be partners in trade, but I ask you; when might this be over? You do not want us here and we do not want to be here; yet here we are. What grounds do we have for an honorable peace in the future, when you refuse fair ransom offers for those people you have taken?"

>>3905929
In the north and south fertile fishing grounds are discovered and all of the jungle is finally integrated into hingashi civilization. To the west reports of silvery floating islands which cast huge nets into the water are heard, upon these islands bipedal creatures can be seen moving silvery material and objects around. Scouting ships reveal that the pylons have extended farther than was previously thought. This may mean the hingashi are not alone in this world, and such a prospect shakes the claws of some of the more comfortable queens.

>>3906037
(Addendum)
The sonarii are able to whisk away the blizzard form balora for a time and in that time they are able to blast away at significant portions of the ice giant city. After that time however the storm kicks up in more force than ever and the sonarii are pushed back into the sky above the sea (along the lines of the map)

>>3906876
>>The Yokai Lords

>1: Long-Range Ballistics
Though the use of siege and artillery has been long standing ever sense the Oni were first exposed to the rest of the world, it appears that their advantage with rudimentary devices is reaching its limit. With the advent of physics, however, several siege workshops begin tinkering with physicists to develop not only the devices capable of lobbing ordinance extremely far distances, but also the calculations and methods to properly aim the things, within a reasonable margin of error.

>2: Agricultural University
With Giib's institutionalizing new methods of combat training and bringing about new agricultural developments from the wider world, Yokai Lord Mun feels the need to round out his own domains' knowledge base. As such the first proper Oni institution of education, focused on agriculture, is established in/around Mun. Where farmers can learn traditional farming practices, research new methods or crops, and understanding the basic economics for selling produce.
Mun even offers to send invitations out to the more agrarian-dependent nations of the world to collaborate.

>War Action: Proper Armor/Uniform Manufacturing
One of the biggest problems with fighting the forces of nature itself, is the lack of proper equipment for daily use. While initial attempts at making outfits and articles of clothing to protect the Oni from rainfall and mud were promising, a more developed style must be found. Along with this, the later parts of the war with the Tarn started to highlight some of the problems bare-chested, lightly armored, or sandle-footed oni had when on the front lines. Designs with better protective capabilities, with guidance from the field-medics who point out the most frequent locations of damage and injury on an Oni, will hopefully be found.

>>3906876
>Hazy Flames and Mouths
1. In the intention of aiding Haze's wish for independence, the Golden Dawn hires Ogre mercenaries, lead by noble commanders with some peasant levies to serve as peace keepers, and defend the city.

>Spirit of the Forest
2. The Fungal Forest has shown its wakefulness, and has made requests of the Burned Men. Wastes, spoiled foods, etc is sent west via train for the Rot Wood's re-purposing, and cattle are occasionally sacrificed as blood tribute for all that the forest gives to the men of flames. Many new golems come to be with the forest's blessing. A practice of replanting the awakened trees begins, and any fallen/dead golems are to be returned to the forest's viney grasp.

>War
>Encircle and Immolate
As the Ice Giants stand at the northern wall of Kazval, the Golden Dawn's infantry army marches upon their rear, seeking to encircle them. The cavalry lead a sally against the besiegers, harassing them from a distance once they leave the cities gates to distract them long enough for the infantry to arrive.

>Diplo

>Ogres
The Burned Men offer the Ogres a lockbox of royal gold, whatever arms they can loot from the dead of the Iron Empire, and will feed the Ogres during the campaign if they join them south to aid Haze against the Iron Empire's aggression.

>Oni
While female criminals are few and far between, brigands, thieves, and their ilk are no stranger to the Golden Dawn. Criminals are offered a choice, the harsh physical punishments and penance of the Burned Men, or to be given to the Oni, to pass off to the Minotaurs for several years penal labor.

Alloheim cracks a sly grin. "These Giants are hard, proudly people, who think of nothing but a good death in battle. Reminds me of a certain group of friends that were once enemies I know. They shocked the Volters greatly if you pardon the pun, and the Volters seek to take back their due. The Giants seem to be masterful raiders, but the element of surprise and deceit can only work once if you are aware of it the second time."

He states that the forest itself will have to decide if it wishes to go with the Oni.

>Mycete Creep
A Golem-Keeper relays the Oni's wishes to house a population from the forest, and if the fungal life would find this agreeable?

>Totu
The Burned Men offer to purchase the revolving cannons of Jevela's pride in exchange for the raw materials used to construct them, and as a show of good faith for the future of the Totu people, offer to have the master-smiths of the Burned Men construct a crown for the Queen.

>>3906926
Diplo: The news of a new race to the south travels quickly, and it isn’t long before a group of diplomats arrives to formally greet the Tumarians. They bring a variety of lavish gifts and exotic foods. After some cordial conversation, the Tarns get to the meat of the conversation: they want to hire some Tumarian mercenaries to fight in a war they are currently waging on the western front. In exchange, the Tarns offer up boat technology and the linkage of Tymarian sea lanes to the Tarns own current system.

>Diplo: Totu
The Totu are reminded of their promise to remove themselves from Giibs army as soon as possible. Given that the Totu have their own lands, are at peace with all the mainland nations, and have been helped by the Tarns immensely, there is little reason for them to continue to assist Giib. The Tarns request a solid answer as to why the Totu still have not held up their end of the bargain.

>>3906876

>Diplomacy: Haze.
The Sonarii historian in charge of curating and preserving the collection of 'Letters of King Largh' is not the only Sonarii to shake his head and mutter darkly at the fate of Haze, simply the most historically informed. How many times had the Long King asked the Haze of their abilities to withstand the Iron might? Suggested and offered support in building fortifications? But all went unheeded, and now the Iron empire is back over the lines they might have drawn.

A blunt communique is sent by Sonaria to Haze to ask if they have any capacity to preserve their independence; or indeed, any desire to do the same. At the rate that the Iron Empire is advancing, perhaps evacuation would make more tactical sense. As the Larn hills have yet to be touched by the fighting, and are high defensive ground, the Sonarii believe them the best and last place for citizen refugees from Haze to evacuate to, as the railways are likely to be heavily targeted by the iron empire. The communique suggests that non-combatants begin evacuation immediately, and that the hills be seceded to Sonaria for the duration of this crisis so they can be given the full weight of the Alliance's Diplomatic and Military protection; and to preserve some vestige of the Haze people should the last defenses fail.

Sonaria also offers to loan Haze weapons and gift them supplies, if they are honest in their belief that the Iron Empire advance can be stalled by their forces.

>Diplomacy: Golden Dawn & Ogres
>>3908357 >>3905871
With these strange beasts hired by the Burned men, Sonaria will make transport available for them to reach their destination. Also, connection to the Soanrii postal network is offered; should the Ogres make a firm connecting border with any existing client.

>Action 1: Brothers in Larn
The city of Larnet has long attracted migration from Haze of those Iron Men less wedded to the Ideals of the Haze cult, and more interested in honest work then either recreational pleasures or the thought of going south and stomping about the parade grounds. However, the Haze are brothers to the Larnet Iron Man community, in many cases literally; and have considerable influence on the politics of the wealthy industrial Duchy.

Calling in many favors and signing a number of new contracts, Duke Topelboc has active regiments from Damheust, Tiztavaros and Bertlowr redirected to his Duchy to 're-arm and re-supply'. At the same time, he orders his well-armed Ducal Forces to cross the border into Haze to defend and fortify the line of the Larn Hills, and to shepard, provision and protect any refugees who might flood there for safety from the fighting.

>Action 2: Canon Superiority
Though Sonarii Canon shells are rated fairly highly with their potent design, the Canon themselves (of both Air and Force) varieties have started to fall down the rankings as our neighbors experiment and innovate. Our technology must at least be bought up to standard, if not better.

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>>3908959

>>3908681
>Diplo: Tarn
The Governor of Satturnico is the highest ranking authority on the mainland, and is the one who deals with the Tarn. Upon hearing their request, he has the Tarn wait for a few days to await the word from the Emperor. In the meantime, they are given ample housing suiting their status. The words of the Emperor return, and are given to the diplomats by the Governor.

"The first formal meeting between our peoples, and yet you have the audacity to ask us to lend you our men? You ask for our people to die in a war caused by your lack of control? And what would we have gotten in return? Trade with a crumbling empire? We have taken care of your own people when you couldn't, and we shall surely do so for more. You may keep your gifts, but the food stays, we shall feed *your* people for you. Tarn leadership is no longer welcome in Tumarian territory until further notice. Do not let this lead to conflict."

The Governor has the diplomats leave Satturnico, and gives out the food to the local Tarn as ordered, but additionally keeps a sample of each kind for domestic growing, should the climate permit.

>>3909106
The Tarns are taken aback, but ultimately accepting. The Tumarians are given the food(mostly raw fish and mutton, with some oysters and urchins mixed in) and the the Tarns take their leave. As they reach out of earshot, one of the newer diplomats whispers to the other.
“Fucking dryfaces, eh?”
“Trust me, it doesn’t get better. Out there, everyone’s a nutcase.”

It was decided to keep the Stormship force at a vanguard-level size. Supply is going to be a lot more important than firepower right now, and we will have the time to expand later. We had put the airfleet under command of the Sonarians so that they handle the assault while we get to defend our own city.

Action 1: The Electric Guitar
'In the beginning there was silence and darkness, all across the Earth. Then came the wind, and the hole in the sky. Thunder and Lightning came crashing down, hit the earth and split the ground, fire burned high in the sky. From down below fire melted the stone, the ground shook and started to pound. God made heavy metal, and he saw that it was good. He said to play louder than hell, we promised that we would.'

Thus the time came to revive the ancient traditions of thunder, and out of the hallowed vault we brought the Thunder Priests' holy artifacts and tools of trade, their Electric Guitars. Long were they left strumming on inferior, unpowered versions, practicing most quietly, but as volters march to righteous war again they do so by the fury of their thunderous lineage. We entrusted the relics in the most capable hands, and invested into recreating more of them. Through powerful shreds and mighty riffs the holy men rouse the hearts of the faithful; they summon forth the most of their Power and strike fear in the hearts of the wicked. Wherever and whenever the sons of Thunna fight, they do so by the sounds of battery and heavy metal, whether they strike from their airships, defend their homes or sally forth halberd in hand; the great power of the Thunder Priests is the catalyst, and they chant the thunder songs of war, carried above all sound by the miracle of the Thundergod, for his voice is their voice. The enemy will learn to associate this with his impending doom, and our soldiers shall be pushed to heroism and diligence when this matters the most.

>Action 2: Polar Supplies
Tactical analysis of the raid on Kazval revealed to us the ways of the icemen's mastery of ice: not content to command ice and craft it, they also brought it along with them. We know they can conjure great storms of snow we call 'blizzards' and freeze our troops to death in the worst cases. It's cold they're going to attack us with, not just men, which we could easily dispose of otherwise, and it's not very easy to man the walls for extended periods of time when you are freezing to death. Which does not take too long in that climate, truth be told, and it could be over in less than a day just for that. If we're going to hold Kazval, or fight any kind of decisive engagement with them then we must be ready to survive and also fight in blithering cold. We've created a polar survival kit for our troops, that includes super warm clothing, medecine for frostbite and instruction manuals for officers on survival training. As long as we're paired with them, we can use burned men firebending to warm ourselves and use fuel to keep the city and the troops on the wall warm. We'll never fight in the cold at the same level of efficiency as the giants do without bending support but we can avoid dropping dead on the ground after twenty minutes in their vicinity. All we have to do for today is outlast their assault, and sure as the dawn follows the dusk we shall weather this snowstorm.

>Action 3: Flashbang Grenades
Flashbang grenades were a project first developped during the law enforcement reforms. Based on observations of the explosive flammability of magnesium and aluminum during the Sonarian attempts to create armoured wingsuits, it was discovered that it was possible to create an explosion of blinding light with the right mix and electrical ignition of these materials, as well as a deafening bang. Pretty harmless otherwise, it would mostly uncapacitate and disorient a target for a time, which was of interest to peacekeepers as it enabled the capture of criminals without damage collateral or not. It was shelved due to lack of time and not that much need in the end, but with the war happening we have much used planned and tested a working prototype before considering releasing it on the production line. It has a very obvious use in special forces, but we plan to have most of our troops supplied with them, distributed from top to bottom. While it may seem highly inferior to currently known alternatives on a battlefield because it does not cause direct damage, it can very possibly render a target unable to defend itself, and therefore as good as dead; moreover its greatest asset is to be found in its versatility and the special tactics it enables. The flashbang is a great tool for harassment or special operations, and while a lethal grenade like the giant's cryos may take out one or more soldiers, the flashbang has the ability to stun a greater number of them.

>War: The Defense of Kazval
"Today, Kazval is under attack. Again! This time they come to finish us all off, but this TIME! This time they won't face children in their beds! Our family and kin, defenseless and free for the slaughter! No, they're facing US! Their pissed off brothers, their vengeful fathers! Us SOLDIERS! They've gone away like thieves in the night, taking our people into slavery, fearful of our vengeance, and yet... They have the IMPUDENCE to show themselves again! The nerve to call this 'honour', to return to the land of the Thundergod for more... Like we're going to let this happen!

Listen to me! They've come to ANNHILATE US! They say that we are cattle! That we are property to them, or that we shall die! We did not start this war!... But we sure as hell will end it! WE, will annhilate THEM! They've come here to face JUSTICE and DIE !!! Sons of the Thundergod, defenders of Kazval, the enemy that took your wives and killed your elders is right here behind this wall, and YOU, are Thunna's holy fucking searing vengeance! LET THEM EAT LIGHTNING !"

If the enemy thought they could hit the same city twice they were fools. The Polity only ever makes the same mistake once.

Kazval became the hub of operations for the Alliance's offensive up North. This meant that all the supplies and troops were stationned there, as well as the airship base. It was linked to the rest of the world by a railroad and a sea access that by now had become largely safe, making the city virtually unable to fall due to lack of supplies even without counting on the air supplies. A better wall, and Tizta cannon emplacements. It housed the burned men's cavalry, as Alloheim did not take them into the mountains of Mortuary; it also had the elite contingent of minotaur warriors from Wrete. There was the airbase and a fair amount of Thunderbirds since we decided to keep them as supply ships instead of upgrading. All Stormships were gone under the command of the Sonarian admiral to support the offensive. Most importantly Kazval housed the near entirety of the Northern Volter Army minus those that were gone on the airships. It had an entire (volter) army's worth of regular bolters, a whole regiment of Thunder Guards, more than seventy Thunder Priests and two Disruptor field operations brigades. On top of this were about two thousand civilian volunteers, many of which had lost a family member to the raid.

Attacking Kazval right now was, at best, a poor idea.

>STRATEGIC BATTLEPLAN
The Icemen made a serious mistake coming here. Crossing the desert while our Thunderbirds can land troops behind them and our ally's cavalry ride around means that our enemy will be cut off from supply immediately and permanently. Which is bad news for those that would hope to besiege us or stay around for even a limited time, the Polity being reputed for relying on foreign food trade to feed a quarter of its population. Next to nothing grows around Kazval besides potatoes and there's only so much in the cold ground, so the enemy cannot forage. Therefore it is expected that the simplest way to defeat the enemy army is to wait their supplies out. Of course, we believe the enemy is aware of that fact and came to Kazval with the intention to storm the city immediately and take it in the first days of the battle with a short, brutal attack akin to their raid, as this seems to be the only course of action they could ever be taking. In conclusion, the only factor of victory here is whether we'll be able to survive the first week of assault on our walls, after which the enemy army would have no choice but to turn back under heavy harassment or starve to death.

>TACTICAL BATTLEPLAN
>Defense By Day
Giants are not to be underestimated even when we seemingly hold the advantage. They are a heavy brute force with serious destructive abilities.The first objective to victory is to resist that destructive force and keep them from breaching our defenses. The Tizta cannons and airship batteries will target Mondraki in priority and their portable ballistas to attempt denying the enemy their main siege weapons that could endanger said units and more, and afterwards shell the enemy from a distance. The walls are manned by bolters, Thunder Guards and Thunder Priests, with a reserve force of them holding back to replace worn down troops. We expect blizzards screwing our visibility, and to that end we've devised a system where Thunder Priests shall communicate to us whether or not their wall section is under attack through the sound of their guitars so that they may be reinforced. Civilian militias do the jobs without danger, such as running around carrying supplies and messages, seeing that the warming fires stay lit to keep our troops warm for winter is coming.The small minotaur elite mercenary contingent is kept in reserve as well as the two disruptor teams and under no circumstances save for serious emergency are they to be taken into the fight.

>Heavy Metal In the Night
It's unlikely that the giants would pierce our defenses in a single day if at all, and should that happen then this part of the plan would be moot. But assuming what we expect most likely, the assault will be called off so the enemy side rests. Not us though. Under the cover of the night, we unleash our Disruptor operatives, alongside small contingents of bolters and some Thunder Priests, and our minotaurs. The minotaurs will guide us and cover us in unnatural darkness to surround the enemy camp and slaughter their outside patrols. After some recon, we throw our flashbang grenades to blind and deafen then, then we strike from the darkness, at the sound of heavy metal and lightning bolts. Minotaurs, strenghtening us and strenghtened by us will go and smash incapacitated giants while the rest of our forces attempt to locate and destroy strategic enemy assets, priority number 1 being the food supplies, number 2 being artillery pieces, and number 3 being enemy leadership targets, though such mini-raids are not intended to last for more than a minute or less, and the operatives are to take only minimal risk. Sabotage is secondary to the mission, what we plan is to constantly harass the besieging forces to make them unable to rest, sleep, relax. We are to repeat our raids haphazardly and randomly all along the night, and as time goes on we fake raids by playing the guitar or throwing flashbangs without following suit, or we attack without making any sound. If the next day the giants are dozing off when it's time to assault our wall, then our troops have done good and desert they daily sleep, safely inside the walls. To do it all again the next night.


Such are our battleplans, based on what we think would happen and how we would do it, and so merely a presumption. Hopefully nobody reads them out loud to the leader of all ice giants. We are displaying them here informatively but we trust you not to spread this information to enemy hands.

Remember, sons of the Polity, that when they first came to Kazval the giants murdered Commander Vujili as he attempted to surrender and parlay hoping to stop the bloodshed. The giants will either kill you or execute you, it is your choice and you therefore know what is at stake. May Thunna be with you.


>Possible prisoners
Though we expect absolutely no giant to be taken willingly, and the nature of our plan is making it extremely unlikely to get into this situation, any giant surrendering is not to be trusted and treated with suspicion; but we have decided to take them into custody should we be able.

>Diplomacy: Haze
Some magnetic disruption had caused us to be unable to properly communicate back and forth with our southern diplomats, but it seems to have calmed down. While we know that Haze received our dispatch, we're not sure of what they answered.

We had taken note of the events happening in the Iron Lands... Haze, despite its definitively unique culture is very close to the Polity ideologically, benefitting from a more liberal society that loathes conflict. It is a rare treat in the world of today, and we are supportive of their actions, but the Second Iron Empire seeked to subjugate them. For several reasons, this makes the Polity and her allies uncomfortable, and after much deliberation we had decided to intervene. We, the Polity, officially proposed an annexation treaty to the city of Haze, effectively enabling them to consider themselves an integral part of our nation, and therefore legally ending the hostilities with the Second Empire, as the nation of Haze would no longer exist. If the Second Empire were to pursue its hostile actions towards Haze, they would then be attacking citizens of the Polity and be considered aggressors in war against our nation, and therefore our alliance as well. Of course, it was quite an underhanded move, and we don't expect the Second Empire to take it very kindly, but quite frankly we've had enough of entitled bullies and warmongers.

1. Did you see those Wasps from Hammerfell? They have flying hives. Flying. Hives.

The gravpiston engine has not just opened sailing. The pistons that drive the water wheels are turned to driving the massive silken wings of a new type of hive. This large structure is carried aloft by its crew of Wasps that negate the gravitational pull on the hive proper, then board and man the engines to continue to produce lift and thrust from the wings. The first to develop such a machine was the Hiver #187262 PHIL, also known as Philemeus, a clockwork scholar that had migrated from Galiveron to Salmancero to work on grav piston engines. The gravity defying hive operated on the same fundamental principals as any Osuzu did and came configured in a shape that was not at all dissimilar to a wasp itself with the "Queen" at the head, engines in the back to power both wings, and substantial cargo and transportation space. The goal was to develop a means of transporting goods over long distances without a gravline network to support it and without the rigidity that the gravlines provided. The first few models produced are slow lumbering sky beasts that move no faster than any Osuzu. Covered only with a thin wooden skin, these transport sky boats ferry goods between the many Hives and their subhives which provides the impetus for wide growth as goods and services can be spread further and further across the continent supported as they are by Skyves.

2. Land Clearance
The Swamps west of Hinga are finally drained and turned into proper farmland to support the exploding wasp population. As the number of Hives and subhives increases across the continent the pressure to both provide for ever larger broods and to placate unruly Princesses continues to be a pressing matter. For the Hinga Queen, the issue remains to control the nation's largest farmlands and food supplies. While other hives have industrial or commercial concerns that keep their hives relevant Hinga's relevance stems from family ties and sitting atop some of the most productive farmland on the continent. Maintaining and leveraging this food source will continue to be her method of political and economic relevancy in a Hingashi that is turning to the clockwork over the muscle for its productivity.

>Action 1: Recall
From all locations in which they reside, Jeleva recalls the Totu and provides transport through the port of Gurtland -- A town which she is technically still the ruler of. A division of soldiers is sent to escort the process, ensuring no totu is left behind.

>Action 2: Network Defense
Despite the failure for useful wartime implementation, Mairsil is permitted to continue drilling the technique, utilizing the Totu's group bending ability to enable mobile cover and propulsion to the artillery divisions.

>Diplomacy (Sonarii)
Although the borders are now managed, It is to the belief of Jeleva and the rest of the civilized world that the atrocities committed by the Sonarii at Gurtland are unjustified and demand reparation.

>>3906876

>War Action: Tizta Rolling Advance
With much of the Sonarii element of the offensive swept out over sea, and rumored to be making flight-time back toward the nearest allied base for repairs and recuperation; Grulla Lek assumes full unsupervised command of her army in the field. She divides her forces into two firing lines of Tizta (with Cannon, Force-shocks and Bows as well as their force-protectives) and with the co-ordination that only her psionically-linked sub-species can master (knowing the Degenerate breed of the Other they were uplifted from to be feral, bordering on rabid, and barely controllable animals) and, when the Ice Giants are not standing enough targets directly in front, they will keep alternating their advances to keep a steady advancement into the mostly-deserted town.

Yes, she has the Volter Stormhip force supporting her with fire and thunder from the sky, and a few of the more scattered Sonarii elements that have made their way back even now seeking to control and calm the weather. But right now, Command is hers; and she aims to show the world today what the Tizta bring to Sonaria and the alliance. Szélfelet wills it be done that this town be taken, and any Volter prisoners within returned to their homes. And she is Szélfelet's instrument, as she is her Mother's. Adjusting her seat on her padded, protected Elephant she gives the order to Open fire, and to prepare an advance once the numbers are sufficiently thinned.

>>3909715
( >>3910669 >>3908357 )
The leadership of haze agrees to this and the agreement is signed but the Iron Empire keeps marching. The Iron Guide has stated that when his people invaded Haze they had declared war not on any political entity but instead on the "poor excuse for an Iron Society" and that this action is both an insult to the legal ins and outs of warfare and is thus illigitimate. He states he hopes that the polity retracts this agreement or else a war which should have been a "righteous and honorable local conflict" could be escalated to a war in which thousands of sonarii and iron men will die for no good reason.

>>3910838
>Diplomacy: Second Iron Empire
"The people of Haze don't want you here and you will respect that. If you want to create your idea of a model society you can do so within your own borders.

If you do not want good men to die, you will relent, for we will not as we pledged to defend the weak from the likes of you. You are not righteous nor honourable; you are oppressive bullies with a serious misunderstanding of personal space. We expected you to complain when you were threatened with rightful justice, for it is the way of your ilk to think themselves entitled to take from others.

You are not. Here is our message to the Emperor: 'Come and pick on someone your own size'. "

>Action 3 retcon: The Second Army
The manufacture of adequate flashbang supplies will have to wait. We need to draw upon our monetary and manpower reserves to raise a second army and send it to Haze as soon as we can. While we cannot afford to take away from the siege of Kazval, we will scrounge the bottom of the barrel and take from the defense forces of our other cities, the border patrols, volunteer disjunctors to get into the military and other reserves; smugglers will have to wait. We pull disruptors away from our foreign embassies to constitute a new operational brigade, and conscript the service of the most remote and backline Thunder Priests and their escorts. We do not take any stormships with us but all the few thunderbirds that we can spare will do as an expeditionary force.

Since we can no longer count on flashbangs, we adjust our war actions accordingly and adopt a more conservative attitude to night raids.

>>3910838

>Diplomacy: Iron Empire

Hearing the statement from the Iron Guide, the Sonarii Ambassador to Steelhold states that it seems odd to claim no declaration of war against the political entity of Haze when their troops are openly marching through the countryside. If it truly is the case that no war was meant and they only wished for the Haze Society to improve itself; then they now have the opportunity to withdraw their forces and let the Volt Polity begin societal improvements for the region. Perhaps the Iron Empire could even fund or provide for training training programs within Haze to try and encourage forms of activity or policies more in their favour.

The Iron Guide is reminded that everything north of the Rift Sea was formally seceded by Steelhold to Haze by ancient treaty, back in the days of King Anpa. This treaty to confirm these rights and borders was signed by both The Iron Empire and Haze, as well as the Head Necrarch of Plagasm and Duke Vyden of Glecoone. If the Iron Empire's Army would turn back and return to those borders set by the ancient treaty then Sonaria would support the resumption of Haze as a neutral and independent nation between their borders; but by any and every definition the Iron Empire currently stands in violation of that ancient accord. It is therefore entirely within the rights of the Haze to take all measures they deem suitable to secure themselves and choose their means or location of government, and the responsibility of all signatories - which, the Ambassador reminds, includes the Iron Empire itself - to recognize and respect those treaty-set borders which the forces of Steelhold have crossed.
>>3910511

>Diplomacy: Totu (Jeleva's Basin)

The sight of Totu attempting to take to the skies, observed in the distance from the upper fortification levels of Emyrist, makes a number of Sonarii less apprehensive about the thought of the peace lasting. Finally, the Totu are aspiring toward flight and a greater place within the structures of the world, lifting themselves away from the grounded mundanity that had so long held them back.

The Sonarii Ambassador based at Fort Emyrist states that they have received no evidence of other nations who have formally communicated that they are in agreement with this belief of Jeleva's. Nonetheless, Sonariia is a wealthy and magnanimous nation, and we would be able to join with the Totu and express our regret at the unfortunate incident, and all of the activities on both sides that led to it; and perhaps begin a program of repatriation for any Totu cultural artifacts that might be uncovered within the deserts.

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>>3906876
Nation: Mycete Creep
Capitol: Rot Keep
Race: Heterotrophic Mycetic Fungi
Element: Wood
Elemental Passive Ability: [Living Land] The land itself hurts and slows opposing trespassers.

Summary of Nation:
Wood, mold and fungus made life. Slowly spreading out, forming a basis of civilization for the new world.


Action 1&2: [Wandering Roots] From our very limbs life blossoms out. Our bodies are made fused of wooden manas, moss, flowers, mold, vines and much more sprout from our brakened skin. Our feet now imbued with the haste of life move, roots lifted plowing through the land with each dragging step. From these roots we draw inspiration. From the spreading forest we see the way. Shamans will focus their powers, many will pray and give sacrifice, great thinkers will work with elementalists to imbue the Rott Keep with a new magic. From wood springs all life, roots grown deep. Yet in time even the land comes to move, in slow passing eons mountains rise wither and fall, even oceans evaporate, the march of life is eternal. March we shall. The Rot Keep will be made to craw. Our buildings, grown from plants, madera, and fungus will now grow roots that writhe with life, these roots will allow our buildings to walk. With our structures camouflaged as a natural part of the forest this new ability to move our city will allow us to remain safely nestled within our forest. Any who enter will become lost in the mazes, perishing from the living land while we kite away, hidden in the woods.

War Action: The Creep Must Spread. We will declare war on the element Earth. Earth is weakened by wood for we feed upon it. Our elders have decreed that for the forest to thrive it must consume the ground beneath. In our conquest we seek to expand the forest, terraforming nearby lands.

>>3908357
The forest grove hears the message. Roots and bushes shiver causing the grove to blurr in motion, the tree tops spread letting more light trickle into the clearing. "You speak of Deamons who walk the land... they will for us to live with them... to learn of us... learn secrets of the forest.... In light we see you, speak no lies" the final utterance drags out with the shaking leaves and worming roots reaching a crescendo then quickly fading as the last word hisses, lingering in the air, slowly the hiss turns to a buzz of insects as the breeze stirs the now natural grove.

>>3908959

>Action 1 Replaced/Continues: Secure the Railheads.
With Volt Polity and Golden Dawn (and their hired Ogres) forces moving in to secure the remnants of the Haze, and many using the Sonarii rail and airship-skyway networks to do so, Sonaria will instead seek to increase security of and on and defend their transport networks, wary that the Iron Empire might choose to turn their aggression further afield. Defensive positions are assembled south of Isgwill and in the Larn hills.

>>The Yokai Lords
>Diplo
>Sonarii (and the rest of the alliance)
Yokai Lord Giib sends a greeting to the other sonarii dukes and king of sonaria.
He is requesting the assistance of sonarii air benders to help dissipate and blow away the storms the Tarn have been using to gain a huge advantage in their fights. To rid the unnatural storms that scar the skies and ravage the earth. If they are also willing/capable of providing some airships or aircarts, giib would also like to use them for supportive roles in artillery spotting and logistics, not necessarily as Frontline fighting forces. Giib extends this offer to some of the private Volters captains that do not wish to get their boats drafted in the fight to the north, and instead take a safer, supportive roll. Meanwhile, some interest is also shown in the plant like golems that the Golden Dawn seems to employ as shock troopers.

The oni, and especially Mun, are interested in the various wars going on far and wide across the world. The oni have never had a chance to fight these men of metal, or Giants of frost. For more political favors, Mun is willing to support Giib by providing the alliance mercenaries as payment. They assist the Oni in their war, and they will support the alliance in theirs. Giib also agrees to support the signature of the RMD treaty should he receive support and finish this war.

>Totu
Upon hearing that a land far away is now safe for the Totu, and that both the Tarn and Sonarii will allow them to pass, Giib is willing to let his great allies go if they desire.
The Totu under his command are thanked for fighting so valiantly, and offered the opportunity to freely pass back to Totu lands if they so choose. The Totu will also be welcome to cross back through the Tonglo pass and welcome in Oni domains, limited possibly by the war of course.
Those that wish to continue fighting will ensure future payments to the queen of the Totu.

>>3913569

>Diplomacy: Yokai Lords Giib and Mun

King Greyne is quite uncertain about the ability of Sonarii Aeromancy to challenge Tarnish storms generated by their Aquamancy; but as even if the plan was successful it would not directly harm the Tarnish forces he is willing to lend Lord Mun some airbenders allow the Yokai lords to try the experiment, and to try keep their croplands environmentally stable and desalinated. He is also quite willing to provide aircarts; as the devices are commonly available to citizens of all friendly nations at standard market rates he sees no issues at all with the Yokai taking a purchase order.

For Airships, however, he suggests that the Yokai lords contact the Volt Polity; right now numerous demands on these transport resources means Sonaria doesn't quite have any spare Airships to offer.

With much of the Eastern Sonarii Transport network currently being utilized by the Polity and Golden Dawn for their deployments and material requirements, he suggests that the Oni mercenaries under Sonarii employ make their way to Tzitoros so that Sonaria can more easily deploy them where needed.

>Diplomacy: Yokai Lords
After much deliberation the Polity decides to accept the embassy invitation of the Yokai Lords, if ever out of diplomatic tradition than anything. They make it clear this is no way to be seen as anyhing else. The Ambassador's name is Illian Dokori, Thunder Priest of diplomatic clan Dokori and he has the horns to show it, on top of being temperamental and gifted with an impressively commanding voice, just like the hammer-dropping thunder-rousing lightning-swinging god he calls a father figure.

As of now the diplomat remains tight-lipped on current events and diplomatic demands from the lords for has quite a headache and waits his hungover to pass like the refreshing storm follows the morose clear skies. No, he won't 'force himself'. Deal with it Lord Mun.

>>3913696
(cont, sorry)
Immediately after taking residence in the embassy Illian kicked out all of the Oni servants while loudly proclaiming he can't stand lackeys and replaced them with good, well paid and slightly less sycophantic volter employees. Being also a Thunnapriest he has his own squad of Thunder Guard elite bodyguards to ensure his safety and so got rid of the Oni 'complimentary, mandatory escort' as well. There are always two of them standing at attention outside of the front gate, long halberd straight by the side and ornate red armour shining; the building itself has been refurbished with wondrous machines, voltaic mag-mosaics and the miracle of electrical light to show off. At soirées Illian Dokori proves a learned gentleman if one that drinks on the rather heavy side, while complaining perhps too loudly about the local 'pigswill of a liquor, it's murky and bitter and disgusting'. Illian made some waves when he headbutted one of Mun's guards for not getting out of his way in the street, though in his defense said guard took him for a funny-looking merchant and made the usual comments about height that volter merchants suffer in the Oni lands since forever.

>>3908959
>>3908357
>Diplo
The lockbox is hastily collected from the Burned Men, happily counted and stored around the neck of the paymaster. He writes up a crudely drawn contract, and with a signature, the force mustered. The concept of a postal network is alien to the Ogres, but the paymaster considers the idea to relay, it might work more elegantly than bellowing.

>Action 1: Rally
The Paymasters promise of coin, and talk of a job has swathes of Ogres lining up, ready to fight. A few bruisers clubbing their way to the front, establishing a pecking order. The crowd bear crude weapons, clubs, cutting machetes, and flint axes, with a few bearing more well formed weapons.

>Action 2: Expansion
The Ogres start getting a feel for their environment, spreading as they can, trying to keep their word going, looking for opportunities for work.

>Action 3: Religion
Looking as if a walking larder stocked with cuts of meats, bottles of blood, hooks hanging from the butchers thick hide, the butcher begins moving through the mercenary company. Given a wide berth by the rest of the company, a walking mouthpiece of the Great Maw, he begins his work. Taking innards of a cave creature from a hook, he swallows a fistfull of the meat, attempting a prayer to the Great Maw through a mouth full.

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>>3905525
The wind whistles listlessly through the forest trees. Breeze stirs the leaves to life. Glimpses of motions resembling men flicker about, branches moving against natural patterns. Insects buzz and march along, matching the crunching of boots on the ground.

Action 1
Move all non-warriors of the nation to the safety of the island.

Action 2
The cryomancers of the nation begin to build their magics to create a large ice wall

War action
The Jarl joins the half of his warparty from Jotenheimr and makes the decision to move on balora, in defense of his nation.

Diplo from Vogs warband to the voltpolity-
“This idiotic yarls knows not how to pick his targets. We are glad to see you embrace the heat of battle. Ally with us, and we will end this war.” Vog states

Make me Jarl, when this war is over, and I can promise you a powerful war party to aid you in the destruction of those you deem fit!”

>>The Yokai Lords
>Diplo
>Bolter Polity >>3913886
After several hours of introductions, negotiations, considerations and ranking of alcohol, the Yokai Lord Mun and the Ambassador come to an agreement.

The Bolter Polity promises two-three stripped down Thunderbird class airships and the crew to man them. These airships have most siege armaments and all volter-Ecomms removed, providing more storage and room for bombing squadrons, spotting, or resource/troop deployment.
In exchange, Mun provides one of his forces as mercs to the Volter Polity, to be used as they see fit. These are separate from the forces given to the Sonarii. As well as Giib's promise to sign off on the RMD-treaty the Alliance has been harping for.

The respective parties are allowed to hold onto the airships/mercs indefinitely until the other party returns their loaned forces. More as an insurance than anything.

>Mycete Creep>>3919508
The rangers in the fungal forest feel a disturbing remembrance of the tales of the brave oni that went beyond the pylons ages ago. A world filled with horrifying beasts and deadly phenomena that lurked just out of sight. Though here, the spirits of stealth seem to be weaker than normal, and the forces group up to form a more protective column formation as the 'men in the shadows' dance beyond the foliage.
This unnerving situation continues until the rangers emerge into a small but open glade.

>>3920516
"Three airships. Yes. Very good. From our own surplus, yes. State crew. Let me sign and let's be done with it, because I wasn't joking about the headache. I think I'm coming down with a fever... Your climate here is so... Moist."

Illian slowly serves just another glass of volka and downs half the bottle himself.

"Ah well, good thing I have this medecine, alcohol purifies water and bodies you know? ...No no, not like this, when you take a shot of volka, you slam horns afterwards, that's the tradition...... AHAHA! YEAH! Mun, hey, Lord Mun... I had my electric guitar ready and everything for going up North... Look... Isn't she a beauty? That's my tool offoff... of office. Let me... I'll do you an oration, right now! IN THE NAME OF THUNNA! "

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uj94yZja608

The diplomat proceeds to shred shamelessly

"AND I COMMAND YOU TO KNEEL
BeFOre The...
GoD of THUNDER and ROCK AND ROOO-o-OOOLL !!!..."

The aftermath of a drunk goat with fever rocking it out wasn't exactly pretty and smelled bad but the God of Thunder surely was well praised that day.