[hider=The Independent Collective Union of Ulfryae]
[b]Name of Nation: [/b]
Ulfryae;
The Independent Collective Union of Guilds, Clans, and Houses. 
(The ICU) or The Union. 

[b]Capital[/b]: Redleaf; A place of cultural wonder, sitting at the very base of the northern summits. People from all over Atlius come here for trade, tourism, settling down or foreign affairs. Many exotic goods and animals are traded here. One of the few cities actually donning skyscrapers and other architecture considered modern marvels, with the added benefit of containing the National Park of Redleaf and various other protected ecological elements contained within. It is the Jewel of the Union, a city to admire.

[b]National Population:[/b] 18,000,000

[b]Demonym:[/b] Ulfryaen, Independents, Unionists. 

[b]Ethnic Groups: [/b]
Ulfryaen; (45%) The majority of inhabitants, hailing from the highlands and grassy hills. They are a pale-skinned, generally hairy people with deep ancestral roots and proud heritages. Their history is rooted with polytheism, at times monotheism, although primarily they were known to worship a variety of deities following a variety of aspects for everyday life. They've since evolved to explore other religions, or remain agnostic out of respect for said aspects of their 

A mixup of a variety of other Atlius ethnicities also make their home in all corners of Ulfryae and Ulstag. 

(Note: Citizenship is granted to those who apply, taking a short psychological exam proving their willingness to vote, an open mindset, and a regard for self-gain as well as promoting the growth of everyone and everything around them.)

[b]Language(s) Spoken:[/b]
SMOKY (Common trade language)

Ulfryaen; Similar to the old celtic tongues, possibly leaning more on the gaelic side. 

A variety of ethnic languages from all around Atlius. 

[b]Religion(s) Practiced(If any):[/b]
Religions are not necessarily practiced, however most within Atlius are welcome. Accommodations have been known to be made to make worship, or the lack thereof, possible with as much peace as possible. 

[b]National Symbols:[/b]
- Flag: 
[img=http://i62.tinypic.com/11w55q1.jpg]

- Colors: Blue and Red. 

- Creed:
"Peace through action, and action through peace."

[b]Government: [/b]
Individual -1- State
Religious -3- Secular
Democracy -1- Autocracy
Dove -2- Hawk
Isolationist -3- Interventionist

Summary: 
The IC Union is a country in which the people make the law, to an extent. While the government primarily encourages individual growth, benefitting it's citizens and allowing them a chance to evolve the state in which they live, there are borders in place to prevent certain laws from dictating lives. 

The government is comprised of leaders and their benefactors, essentially a conglomerate of figureheads in a variety of guilds, clans and what outsiders view as "noble" houses, although what nationalists see as "honor" houses. The term may be confusing, but these houses are merely families and old nobility who now contribute their money and resources to the nation's benefit, rather than personal wealth and gain. Any one person in a leadership role does not hold more influence than another, and a council has been put in place to discuss general ongoings on their part. After five years, a leader will pass on their role to an apprentice who has been taught and studied in their role for a length of time, the leader than becoming apart of a large group of benefactors who lend their aid to that specific leader, and all future leaders until death or otherwise are unable. 

(These leaders are setup in Offices, and these offices are grouped into Councils. There are a variety of Councils for a variety of national aspects, and more offices than not are placed in several Councils, never confined to just one.)

It is worth noting the Council attempts to remain neutral in conflicts as much as possible, in order to retain it's variety of people from infighting or otherwise to benefit the economy. In extreme cases, they seek to protect their interests as much as possible, and will either give their hand to the most likely side to succeed, or continue to secretly aid all sides economically. 

[b]Economy: [/b]
Capitalism -3- Communism
Private -3- Public
Inequality -5- Equality
Summary: 
Of course, perfect communism cannot be achieved within the Union, and on the other side they view perfect capitalism as an inevitable downfall to the foundations they've laid down for the nation. To accommodate all sides, the Offices of Agriculture and Manufacturing promote their wealth to citizens in order to form a Volunteer's League. The league created a system of free labor, providing free food, housing, medical benefits, and so on. Although, nothing is exactly free. The Office of Currency & Marketing, which is one office in and of itself, was given the majority vote to impose increased taxes on privately owned business. The way the system works, allows businesses to be provided with free produce and products of which to sell and make a profit off of, the taxes collected from them are than put into funding the Volunteer's League, creating a circular economy from that concept. 

On top of that, a portion of taxes collected from citizens, not businesses, are saved up and put towards the Volunteer's League's efforts towards creating small, individual farms of which to self-sustain the nation's people. The Office of Agriculture circulates their wealth entirely to this effort, with the help of other related offices, in hopes to be rid of a market that sells food, and be in a state of a market that primarily focuses on selling individual products.

Of course, complications are to be expected, but these are the goals the Council of Economy strives for.

(Of note, those who work for free are categorized in the Volunteer's League. These include those with special professions that are protected by the Councils, meaning they'd rather let someone with a less important job, or even one who does not work yet is able to, starve or go poor before they let one of their own befall such a fate. These free-working professions include doctors, laborers, farmers, certain manufacturers and select individuals employed in the military, including the majority of veterans.)

[b]Society: [/b]
Open -1- Closed
Liberal -2- Conservative
Tolerant -1- Intolerant
Summary:
The society of the Union revolves around open-mindedness. It would be false to say there isn't conservative quality among the populace, but for the most part many of the Union's citizens welcome and enjoy participating in new cultures, as well as researching and taking the time to understand other religions. Those with closed minds, stubborn qualities and an unwillingness to comply with others on an equal scale are typically scorned, ignored, shunned and so forth. Of course, many leaders do not encourage shunning or scorning no matter the person, emphasizing that change is within everything, an important way of life. While the masses have a hard time seeing eye to eye on this, leaders and their benefactors, including apprentices, attempt to preach that ideal and practice it as well. Relentlessly attempting logical reasoning as well as optionally generally agreeing to stubborn individuals in a way that they can break through to them. Many have referred to this as "The Mindset Movement", millions of citizens in the nation actually claiming to be apart of it. 

[b]Military:[/b]

- Coat of Arms:
[img=http://i61.tinypic.com/29qe3iv.jpg]

[img=http://i58.tinypic.com/2n7fakm.jpg]

- Size: 600,000 strong, with 50,000 in reserves. 

- Branches:
[b]The Council of the Guard:[/b] A branch focusing entirely on bolstering the defense of the nation. Several offices focus anywhere from single, organic units, stationary mechanized units, and armored mobile units. (50,00 Units from the Reserves are placed into the Council of the Guard.)

-- [url=http://oi59.tinypic.com/rbxmk0.jpg]Office of Entrenched Warfare [/url]; Men and women of all ethnicities armed with clockwork-revolving carbines, standard issue sidearms, a sharpened spade for digging trenches and close & personal warfare, and handled grenades. These enlisted soldiers are trained in digging trenches, defending themselves from chemical warfare, holding the line, and so forth. 

-- Office of Fortified Defense; Primarily men who are trained under excessive stress while building fortifications. This includes, but is not limited to, concrete bunkers, field HQs of all kinds, sandbag fortifications, palisades, trenches, setting up technical communications or otherwise equipment, bolting on stationary artillery and the likes. Most often training is done under live fire to simulate assault and stressful situations, making these men acclimated to such things. Additionally, these men are sometimes armed with an armament of personal defense, such as a revolving pistol, a trench knife, or occasionally requisitioned rifles of all sorts.

-- Office of Stationary Artillery Emplacements; These men are in charge of day to day maintenance of artillery emplacements, manning and operating said emplacements, acquiring targets for operators, feeding and operating ammunition to the emplacements, and keeping track of requisition orders for the artillery and its ammunition.

-- Office of the Mechanized Guard; The men and women whom operate the variety of armored vehicles, steam locomotives, and mechanized walkers. The Division of Mechanized Walkers are trained daily on how to maneuver these clanky, large machines through the steep inclines and thick snow of the hillsides and mountain sides, remaining situationally aware of allies in the trenches around them, and defensive tactics. The Division of Locomotive Operations are put in charge of supply runs, operating the various weaponry aboard, and keeping track of requisitioned orders. The Division of Armored Vehicles are trained and put in charge primarily of what was already mentioned.

-- [url=http://oi57.tinypic.com/mbuaef.jpg]Office of the National Guard Command;[/url] Led by General Williamson, of whom commands the entirety of the Council of the Guard, the office is a general mixup of officers, colonels, their benefactors, communications officers, lieutenants and other commanding positions.

[b]The Council of Militarized Warfare:[/b] While war is not exactly a want or a need for the ICU, the Ulfryaens insisted on a branch of military of which to focus on ground and sea offensives should the need arise. (420,000 strong.)

-- [url=http://oi59.tinypic.com/24ct98p.jpg]The First Ulfryaen Infantry Regiment;[/url] The FUIR are always the first to the fight. They are trained often in a variety of warfares, be it trench or open, boarding tactics, acclimated to an assortment of weather conditions and so forth. They serve as the primary marine fighting force as well as basic infantry. Grenadiers, Saboteurs, Assault and Riflemen Divisions are what make up the FUIR.
- 18 Infantry Regiments are also classified as Ulfryaen Infantry. They behave the same, and are trained the same. The FUIR is simply a more difficult branch to aim for during basic training, and is uniquely classified by the second Coat of Arms, with the words "Through" and the symbol patched onto their right sleeve. (Squads are grouped in 10s, with a saboteur and three grenadiers each. Riflemen and Assaulters are randomly mixed in by skill, and an Officer is in charge of every squad. Lieutenants are in charge of up to five squads, Colonels in control of lieutenants and so forth.)

-- The Offices of Mechanized and Artillery Based Warfare; Similar to the mechanized guard and artillery emplacement guard, these men and women operate motorized vehicles, steam based vehicles, artillery emplacements both stationary and mobile, and so forth. Not only manning the wheel and the weapon emplacements, but also acquiring targets, establishing communications, handling ammunition and fuel, and keeping track of requisitioned orders. This also entails officers in charge of these vehicles and artillery emplacements.

-- Office of Scout & Reconnaissance; A very small number of those enlisted are placed here by order of skill with accuracy and hunting, those with exceptional traits in both of these areas find themselves here. While the name implies it is a nonlethal branch, they indeed also focus on covering fire, eliminating select targets and other things of that nature. 

-- [url=http://oi59.tinypic.com/2ronvo4.jpg]The ICU Foreign Legion;[/url] An elite unit comprised of ethnicities from all over Atlius, and exceptions have been made to those wishing to join without civilian status. The training is rigorous and difficult, four months of intensive and redundant endurance, accuracy, stress and multi-warfare combat situational training. Of the 420,000 soldiers enlisted in the Council of Militarized Warfare, only around 8,000 are known to be in the ICU Foreign Legion. This unit is primarily put into extreme combat situations, overseas efforts for allied support, and at times are deployed as a national guard effort from threats within the nation.

[b]The Council of the Navy:[/b] A branch with several offices dedicated to air and sea assaults and defenses. 

-- Office of Aerial & Naval Boarding; While the FUIR are known to substitute themselves as marines, the rest of the 18 infantry regiments are not. Therefore, this office acts as the main marine fighting force, men and women who've trained in fighting on sea and air, boarding ships with disciplined ferocity and intent. Squads are grouped in 10s, with at least three of them being Saboteurs. 

-- Office of Aerial Bombardment & Naval Artillery; A small group of men and women focused on acquiring targets, operating a variety of airship weaponry, naval ship weaponry and feeding ammunition to said weaponry.

-- Office of Aerial Division Warfare; Men and women whom man and operate fighter planes for smaller skirmishes, a rather large section for the Council of the Navy.

-- Office of Paratrooper Divisions; As the name implies, these men and women are trained in basic free-fall combat tactics, parachuting behind enemy lines, or reinforcing a held line of battle. A special division subset of this office, derived from a few hundred men enlisted in the ICU Foreign Legion are known as the Hell-Divers. They are the ones deployed to parachute right onto enemy lines, causing an initial shock to enemy troops as they deploy their chutes at the last possible second, raining hellfire down upon them as soon as the parachute has been deployed. 

- [b]Readiness:[/b] In such a meritocratic society, the military and offhand roles in the army are a way of life for these people. Training, drills and the like are preformed daily, although training requiring ammunition is done in moderation. Nonetheless, the armies are not exactly primed for mobilization on the go, but are prepared for such an event. At the moment, however, there is a degree of lax behavior, as to be expected with peacetime. 

[b]Territory:[/b]
- Important Locations:

-- Nohrmarch; The heartlands of Ulfryae, to the far north within the many mountains and thick, dense forests. Many old, gilded cities and medieval cities and towns dot this county, with stone walls older than most empires around today.

-- Ayrdreath; The southern crescent bending into the seas, and the newest addition to the two counties in Ulfryae. Seaside castles, new cities erected within the past fifty years, tourists all around and caravans coming to and fro. The Port City of Amsrich is held here, and most of the trading conducted in this county.

-- Ulstag; To the west, Ulstag was once a protectorate of Ulfryae. Many of it's inhabitants very closely resembling Ulfryaens themselves, and considered so. The entirety of the county is filled with ancient fortresses, old and abandoned stone-worked villages and towns. It is a cultural remnant of ages past.

-- City of Amsrich; A more modern city than Redleaf, it borders the southernmost coastline with many harbors, seaside castles and fortifications, and filled with marketplaces, bazaars, cultural districts and the like.

[b]History:[/b]
The Union wasn't always a diverse, open-minded trade center. It began as the Kingdom of Ulfryae, a land full of pale-skinned, bearded men and fair, elegant noblewomen whom constantly warred between clans and wrote various manuscripts of mythologies and epics. They were warriors, knights and rulers, however they were also scribes, historians and traders. It wasn't until around the year 1018 did all of this change.

A man known as Godfrey Adams began the Adamite Movement, a cultural and governmental revolution of sorts. He declared himself the true ruler of the nation, peacefully outing the current king's position and declaring an entirely new regime change. Opening the borders, allowing free trade, bringing up new ideals and aspects to how the government could better help the people. It became a meritocracy of sorts, those being elected into positions of power by their proven worth in that category. 

And the nation was ruled rightly so from then on. In 1159, the county of Ulstag was established and fortifications were built. At the dawn of 1200, a series of clans were put into place, and primitive version of the government in place today had begun. New ethnicities began flocking to the borders, whether by trade or seeking amnesty or shelter. Ayrdreath was founded in 1242, and eventually trade was conducted with the various rising empires. In the late 1300s, a professional agreement was reached with both the esteemed neighbors to the north, Linesseland, and the federation bordering on the other side of the Octovia Sea, Torvari. Since than, the government continues to refine itself to better suit the people and the nation ever so slightly expands its borders, trade, and production.

- International Relations:
-- Linesseland, Naval-based airship imports, steel exports.
-- The Torvari Federations, military-based motorized vehicles, weapons and ammunitions, and copper imports. Gold, lumber/steel-based building material exports.

[b]Notes:[/b]
[/hider]

[hider=Weapons, Vehicles, Artillery and Mechanized Walkers.]

[b]Infantry Weapons[/b];

-- Ulfryaen Revolving Carbine; A common rifle in the Council of the Guard. It's barrel has been cut down a few lengths than older versions of the rifle, possibly classifying it as a carbine. A well rounded weapon for holing up in the trenches. (URC Carbine for short.)

-- UR11 Sidearm; The universal cartridge loaded pistol for just about every common infantry unit. It's small, it's quick to the draw, and swift on the trigger.

-- The Williamson Revolver; A common sidearm for most commanding figures, used primarily as a sign of respect and authority. This large, long barreled revolver is loaded with a .44 caliber and has scored some sizable holes through exposed flesh. 

-- Mark U-V Automatic; The primary rifle for all infantry regiments and marines in the Council of Militarized Warfare. Cartridge-fed, firing a 21-round clip, it is a simple enough weapon that gets the job done. 

-- Mark U-S Longbarrel; A shotgun designed for lethal spread of a farther range than most close ranged shotguns such as a trench gun. Usually wielded as a primary weapon by Grenadiers. 

-- Mark U-S Trench; As the name implies, this variant of the Mark U-S Longbarrel is incredibly lethal up close. A common sidearm for the Office of Entrenched Warfare, and a primary weapon for Saboteurs in many infantry regiments. 

-- The Ulfryaen "Poppy" Grenade; A unique design, this ball-shaped grenade is attached to a primarily iron-based handle that stretches about five inches from the grenade itself. After the safety is pulled, it can be thrown at angle where it can explode just overhead a group of rival infantry, raining an explosive shockwave toppled with incredibly sharp shrapnel over their heads, and is at it's most lethal when thrown this way. The force of the explosion has also been known to deafen and shock a large group of individuals yards away. 

-- The Calgary Poppy Launcher; A short, stout grenade launcher designed to take even the handle of the poppy grenade and fire it off at large distances or even directly at armored vehicles, artillery, walkers, and so forth to punch a sizable hole. Commonly used by Saboteurs and Grenadiers in infantry regiments and marines. 

-- Mark U-Z "Hellfire"; A drum fed, automatic machine gun with a wide barrel and cushioned stock. Low recoil with an incredibly high rate of fire, this unique weapon is used by paratroopers and "Hell-divers" in the subset of the foreign legion as they plummet onto enemy lines.

-- The Adamov Scoped Rifle; Created for use by the Office of Scout & Reconnaissance, the rifle itself is nothing to gloat over. Its simplistic design, clear scope and bolt-fed ammunition provides the user as decent a view and firepower as most any other common sniper rifle. 

---
[b]Armored Vehicles and Artillery[/b]:

--[url=http://oi61.tinypic.com/outrtx.jpg] SAD-J Combat Jeep[/url]; Outfitted with a machine gun in the passenger seat for heavy suppression, with a bronze played gatling gun on top for heavy anti-infantry use. Its fast, its deadly, and it does exactly what it was designed for.

--[url=http://oi59.tinypic.com/2nki4wg.jpg] SAT-H[/url]; A sort of halftrack design, carrying up to 5-10 soldiers in the back, commonly one squad, with relatively small cannon in the front and a hefty machine gun for ease of covering fire as it unloads troops.

---
[b]Mechanized Walkers[/b]:

--[url=http://oi60.tinypic.com/2yz08ra.jpg] SAT-W[/url]; A walker designed for troop transport, through means of heavily armored, all terrain walkers. Fitted with two front cannons, and firing holes on both sides of the body for troops to safely unleash havoc on the battlefield. Not many of these are made, due to the use of steel needed and the fuel consumption, but are an influential force nonetheless. Can carry up to 30-40 soldiers, commonly three to four squads.

--[url=http://oi61.tinypic.com/2wrnbwn.jpg] SAP-W[/url]; This walker was designed to be mobile than most walkers, providing thick steel and swift mobility between the enemy and the operators inside. The dual cannons inside are of a higher caliber than the SAT-W, although the steel frame is significantly thinner for use of making it faster and less fuel consuming. 

--[url=http://oi58.tinypic.com/2z5oyg6.jpg] SAC-W[/url]; A walker entirely designed for both important personnel transport, such as ICU Foreign Legion dropoff, or even FUIR carriers at times. It's secondary use is a mobile command & communications structure. These are essentially not as common, as they contain thicker steel and a wider body of which to contain either more communications equipment or more soldiers. Two relatively small artillery cannons are placed in front, with two in the back as well. One artillery cannon of significant size is places on the top, with space inside to accommodate recoil. Known to cram up to fifty soldiers, or five squads, if communications equipment is nonexistent. 
---
[b]Navy Airships and Fighter Planes:[/b]
- The following are imported via trade relations with Lenesseland. Steel is mass produced in the Ulfryae, and is exported to Lenesseland in exchange for airships and fighter planes, as well as parts and replacement parts for said ships.
--[url=http://th04.deviantart.net/fs71/PRE/i/2011/297/9/a/elysa_protectorate_battleship_by_lionel23-d4dsvnc.jpg] Talon Class[/url]; Every one destroyer is imported via an exchange of 10% of the year's production of steel. 

-- [url=http://th00.deviantart.net/fs11/PRE/i/2006/235/9/b/On_Patrol_by_The_Necromancer.jpg]Anchor Class[/url]; Every one of these mobile airfields are imported via an exchange rate of 5% of the year's production of steel.

-- [url=http://th02.deviantart.net/fs70/PRE/i/2011/220/2/2/republic_legion_battlecruiser_by_lionel23-d45v1xz.jpg]Needle Class[/url]; Up to two are imported via an exchange of 2.5% of the year's production of steel. 

-- [url=http://fc03.deviantart.net/fs70/i/2011/365/8/9/austro_hungarian_squadron_by_malaveldt-d4kstfc.jpg]Pest Class[/url]; Up to five are imported via an exchange of 2.5% of the year's production of steel.

-- [url=http://fc09.deviantart.net/fs70/i/2012/166/4/0/sf_328_by_thexhs-d53lbig.jpg]Hunter-Killer Mk.1[/url]; 10:1.5%

-- [url=http://fc09.deviantart.net/fs70/i/2013/294/4/0/strelkan_p36c_armored_fighter_by_dan338-d6rbcko.jpg]Bullet Mk.1[/url]; 
5:1.5%

-- [url=http://fc06.deviantart.net/fs70/i/2013/144/6/5/sxb_384_by_thexhs-d66fste.jpg]Warlord Mk.1[/url]; 1:1.5%
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