The Empire of Arkillia
Nation's History:
The great empire of the region proudly points to its origins in the native people of Arkillia. During the times before the industrial revolutions, the land was filled with theocratic monarchies. Various god worshiping, human nations that all enslaved the Valkyerians, or "sky people". These Valkyerians, according to the nations of the time, claimed that they were god's gift to the humans, the universal "servants" of the land. Various interpretations of this existed, ranging from enslavement, to outright purging of "lesser peoples". Communities were periodically raided or destroyed completely. Dark times for the Valkyerians continued for centuries until enough was enough.
The Valkyerians of various lands began to flee to a rumored promise land in the center of a high mountain range. An isolated bit of rough territory that no nation set foot in. This event became known as "The Great Defiance" when many Valkyerians fled their homelands to this place of freedom. At first, this was a minor, isolated settlement. However their numbers swelled and soon they began to rival their neighbors.
When the first hints of Industrial Revolution came to be, the Valkyerian nation of "Arkil" experinced an amazing boom in technology and industry. They soon developed an incredibly advance military in comparison to their backwards thinking neighbors.
Eventually the nation of Arkil invaded and annexed its oppressive theocratic neighbors in a series of wars now known as the Liberian Wars. At the end of this conquest, the new Empire was stronger than ever, now that all the lands of Arkillia had been united. The second revolution of science and industry soon swept through, leading to a break through that allows the modern airships of today. An Arkillian named Joseph Kraft was a former miner, now chemist. He took it upon himself to try to solve the main problem around creating a practical airship, lift. From simple hot air to explosive hydrogen, the airship seemed plagued with all sorts of practical problems. As a native Arkilians, member of the people of the sky, he felt his natural duty was to find a solution. And he did.
After years of experimentation, he figured out how to turn a previously useless ore, Kavuria, into a usable "lighter than air" gas. It had a much higher weight capacity than Hydrogen and was much less dangerous. However, the substance was toxic to breath and refining it into a usable form took years ot perfect. But now the nation the Empire of Arkillia n has mastered the process of mining, refining, and using Kavuria. It caused a boom for the airship industry in the Empire of Arkillia, such that it is now as essential as any sea going vessels to their trade. With 80% of their shores being sheer cliffs and incredibly rough terrain, the airships were essential in connecting Arkillia's trade with the rest of the modern world. With one of the most modern airship fleets in the world, the Valkyerians of Arkillia have truly entered their natural realm. What will the future hold for the people of the sky?
Race:
Valkyerians, Valkyeria
The native Arkilians of the Empire of Arkillia are known as Valkyeria. Due to their races history, they have mostly remained in their homeland, unable to spread for hundred of years and now too afraid to migrate to other nations thanks to potential racism. In terms of their physiology, they are fairly similar to humans, but with very notable differences. First and foremost is their bird like features. All Valkeryia seem to posses feathered "wings" that sprout an inch above the ears. They also have short, feathered tails and unique dark facial marks on their cheeks. Typically, they have icy blue eyes and white hair, but occasionally are seen with orange or grey eyes. Valkyerians have much denser muscles than humans, making them have a much higher average endurance, and stronger bones. Valkyerians also seem to naturally preform better at high, thin air altitudes, where normally humans would have difficulty breathing.
Form of Government:
The Empire of Arkillia is ruled by the Chancellor of Arkillia, who is elected by the Arkillian Senate every 5 years. The Chancellor is the head of both the government and military, and generally makes most of the major decisions of the nation. However, the Chancellor does not have the power to propose laws, only to approve of them. For that, the Chancellor must gain support of 5 or more Senate members if the Chancellor wants to push any sort of legislation through. As for the Senate, each member represents a region of the nation and holds office for 7 years and may be reelected.
Current Leaders:
Chancellor of Arkillia:
Helena Vortzeria
HandelWind Kommandant:
Walt Hoffmesser
Streitkräfte Kommandant:
Kelfer Vankompf
Total Population
147,780,900 (roughly, but steadily increasing)
Nation's Location:
http://i.imgur.com/EZGTCqf.jpg
Nation's Geography:
To the north east, the nation is covered in pine trees and is very mountainous and rocky. The temperatures can be very dramatic during the summers and falls as they may be very hot during the day, but incredibly cold at night. These lands are also very dry and sit at high altitudes. As you move westward, the land becomes less dramatic and the pine forests turn into more vibrant deciduous forests over rolling hills. To the south the weather is more four seasonal temperate and varies between forests and fields with small streams and rivers running through them. These all feed into the large lakes that dot the landscape, small centers for the economy. The lands to the east are very rugged and mountainous as well, with the coast being a shear 140 meter drop at some points. Only until you get near the small bay of Arkillia does the coast become less dramatic and rugged. even hear though, the uneven land and poor harbor conditions leave only small fishing settlements as actual ports. Mostly the major port that is located their is an Airship hub, taking advantage of the stable and predictable winds of the area.
Economy:
Internally, The Empire has a Mixed Economy with various areas being either Market or Traditional economies. The Government does regulate various areas of the market, but ultimately it is a free market. The nation tries to create a "Balanced Trade" which goes by the motto "Do what you do best, buy the rest". Thus Arkilian exports usually focus around the aviation industry, ranging from selling commercial airships, airship components, and most importantly, refined Kavuria. While the substance Kavuria is widespread in the world, Arkil's refining techniques have made it much cheaper to buy than attempting to produce your own, usually giving nations more options to focus on other aspects of their economy while receiving cheap Kavuria to float their airships.
Nation's Major Export:
Airships (commercial), Experienced Aviation workforce, Refined Kavuria (Grades A-F. This marks of the quality, thus efficiency of it. The higher the grade, the bigger your ship can be for less Kavuria), Aliminuim Alloys, grain, and rice.
Nation's Major Imports:
Stronger Steel Alloys, various food items, Furs, Jewelry, Naval goods(ranging from ships to machinery), concrete, heavy machinery, gold, copper, and exotic goods.
Technology Overview
The Empire of Arkillia is, obviously, an incredibly modern nation. It's main focus rests heavily on Airship technology as well as other aspects of aviation as you may expect. From all sorts of designs and companies competing for their place on top, the industry is booming. As a bi product of this, the Kavuria industry is also climbing ever higher in industrial advancements. All other industries have also benefited from this, from electrical companies, fuel companies, ect. The nation is very progressive in technology, striving to be the best at what it does.
Military Overview:
The Empire's military has a high focus on aviation and its airship fleet, but still maintains a strong, balanced ground force to support the air forces and vice versa. The military takes both men and women of the nation, and even has a female only squadron known as the "Strike Witches".
Population
6,945,710
Despite the Empire's focus on aviation, the ground forces remain to be very rugged and flexible, so their equipment reflects that. The Army is known as the "Streitkräfte" and handles most ground operations as well as paratrooper divisions.
Arkillian Infantry
(Going from left to right)
Paratroopers:
Highly trained infantry that are dropped behind enemy lines. They use various select fire automatic rifles, marksman rifles, and pistols. They are usually equipped with sabotage gear and are dropped to either hold positions until main forces arrive or to create havoc in enemy supply lines.
Standard Infantry:
Regulars of the Empire, they usually carry semi-automatic rifles and service revolvers. They usually have one or two per squad equipped with specialized equipment such as machine guns or AT weaponry, and may be given sub-machine guns for urban fighting environments.
CQC/Special Forces:
Veteran combat units that specialize in urban warfare or remote combat operations. They usually carry their own personal equipment, ranging mainly from trench guns to single hand axes. They also wear heavier armor, yet despite this, can be surprisingly swift. Least common among the ground forces.
Arkillian Armor:
E-76 Heavy Tank
This heavy tank is designed to be both a tank killer and an infantry support vehicle. Thick slopped armor and its large 90mm cannon mounted on an electric driven turret make it a terrifying behemoth. However, it's overall speed is slow and its great weight means it requires extra effort in logistics to move these large tanks around. Thus, they are not very common on the battlefield.
E-22 Medium Tank
This tank services to be the versatile backbone of the Empire's armored forces. It carries a 76mm cannon with decent armor and speed. It's flanking armor is a major issue at the moment, as it is fairly thin and easily penetrated. However, its speed and machine guns make it an excellent infantry support vehicle and it can be easily produced.
M-48 Light Tank/Tank Destroyer
This is one of the newer tank designs and it comes in two variations. One is the light tank version, with a 47mm cannon, and two heavy machine guns. It's great speed allows it to be a decent reconnaissance vehicle as well as support for infantry. The second version has a modified, high velocity 57mm anti tank round with specialized armor piercing rounds. In combination with its speed, it can be quite the terrifying hit and run tank destroyer.
E-22T Armored Transport Vehicle
(Yes, yes, I too see the Cirnos on the APC....)
This armored vehicle uses a modified E-22 chassis. It was enlogated and its internal components were moved about to make it into an APC for regular infantry. It is armed usually with a 20mm autocannon and a heavy machine gun, but other variations include an AA and self propelled mortar version.
Ryler's 2-22 Truck
From the "Ryler's Automotive Company", this is an example of some of the logistical support trucks used by the Empire.
Artillery:
N-6 Infantry Mortar
Standard heavy mortar used by infantry units. Crewed by three soldiers.
N-120 120mm Howitzer
This howitzer is the most common in the Empire, used both as an artillery piece, anti tank gun, and anti aircraft gun thanks to its wide variety of ammunition.
N-380 240mm Siege Gun
This heavy piece of artillery is used mainly as a siege weapon on fortresses and strong points. Not usually seen nor used in typical engagements as it often has to be specifically requested by the general in the battle.
Air Force Overview
Now the Empire of Arkillia may have a decent ground military, but what they are truly known for is the massively impressive fleet that guards the skies above and rains hell down below. The Arkilian Airborne Fleet is the main focus of the overall military, with great funding and research put into making the best airships they possibly can. Here are the current classifications of the fleet:
Typical Arkillian Trade/Civilian Airship
This airship is the most commonly scene design from Arkil. They are produced to transport large amounts of cargo and sold to other nations. Speed varies based on cargo, but without all the armor and guns of military airships, they are typically much faster and more maneuverable. As they say, time is money!
Arkillian Destroyer
The most numerous combat airship of the fleet, this serves as the backbone to the Airborne Fleet. These airships are commonly scene patrolling the airspace or escorting fleets. Main Armament consists of three 105mm cannons and a secondary armament of four turrets that house twin 7.7cm Flak cannons. They can reach a top speed of
40mph.
Arkillian Light Cruiser
One of the older ship designs, these provide the more common "heavy muscle" in battles. Armed with six 150mm cannons and one single 38cm cannon as well as four 7.7cm Flak cannons, these ships are essentially stronger, heavier destroyers. They have a top speed of 35mph.
Arkillian Battle Cruiser
Thanks to its lighter armor and more powerful engine systems, this newer addition to the fleet has mobility and heavy firepower. It carries seven turrets with twin 20cm cannons and four 7.7cm Flak cannons. With all this, they can still maintain a good 35mph.
Arkillian Heavy Cruiser
An out of date ship, these used to provide the heavy firepower of the fleet They are armed with three turrets that contain twin 20cm cannons, four broadside turrets with one 8.8cm cannons, and two turrets that house quad 7.7cm Flak cannons. They can reach a top speed of 25mph. They are currently being decommissioned in favor of the newer Battle Cruiser design.
Arkillian Fortress Class
Both the least common and largest airship of the fleet, it is said to carry enough ordnance to destroy entire cities. Exaggerations aside, it is still a terrifying ship. Armed with six turrets carrying twin 32cm cannons, eight turrets carrying 8.8cm cannons, and around twelve turrets carrying duel 7.7cm flak guns. It also has a bomb bay that can easily carry up to 10,000 pounds of bombs. Only two of these ships exist as they are a nightmare of logistical support. It could be even said that they serve as intimidation weapons more so than actual strategic weapons. The top speed of this ship is a breakneck 15mph.
Arkillian Aircraft Carriers
As a newer ship with only four in deployment, they are multi-deck aircraft carriers that can carry a large number of fighter and bomber aircraft as well as soldiers and invasion forces. Strike Witches are also usually based out of these carriers. Top speed of around 24mph
Aircraft:
The Arkillian Strike Witch
The Arkillian Strike Witches are a female only fighter squadron that use leg mounted flying machines known as "Strikers". They are an elite unit of aces, often tasked with unique machines for their quailities. They usually carry 20mm autocannons or heavy machine guns into battle, and while they are very much more exposed to AA fire, they are incredibly nimble and fast, climbing like a rocket and turning on a dime.
The AW-7 Multi Role Aircraft
This push engine aircraft is the most common strike fighter in the Empire. It is armed with four 30mm cannons and has a top speed of around 380mph at 10,000ft. It is well balanced with a great climb and dive rate as well as famed for its strength under high G maneuvers. However, it's turning speed is somewhat poor, thus pilots are trained around using "boom and zoom" tactics as opposed to conventional turn dogfights. It can also carry up to 500lbs of bombs. Launched both from Carriers and airbases.
The AT-40 Attacker Aircraft
This push engine aircraft is slow but very maneuverable. It is armed with twin 40mm cannons and can carry up to 1000lbs of bombs. It's main role is to attack ground and naval forces with its powerful cannons and heavy bombs. Thus it is vulnerable to high performance fighters as it climbs slowly and generally does better at lower altitudes. For protection it also as a rear facing turret with twin 12.7mm machine guns.
The AB-77 Heavy Bomber
(Please mind that it does not have jet engines despite the image. The image is just for you to get an idea of what I have in mind.)
The main bomber of the Arkillian Airborne Fleet, it can carry up to 2000lbs of bombs and its protected by various strategically placed turrets armed with 20mm cannons. It is a lumbering aircraft of sorts, thus it is very vulnerable to fighter aircraft, however it has been known to be a "bullet sponge" thanks to its smartly designed fuselage and inline built rudder system.
