Difference between revisions of "Weyr"

Revision as of 02:30, 1 April 2005

Weyr

Flag of Weyr
Motto: Leave us alone or else...
No Map Available Yet
Region	Arda
Capital	Wye, City of
Official Language(s)	Weyrik, English, Sindarin, Russian, Japanese
Leader	Kira li'Starhavven
Population	204 million
Currency	the Weyr
NS Sunset XML

The First Distributed Kingdom of Weyr is a small state located on an artificial island in the Central Pacific. having recently come out of a short civil war, the Kingdom's current leader, Kira li'Starhaven, is attempting to rebuilt the nation while at the same time bringing it onto the world stage. The Kingdom is best known for its extensive use of thaumaturgy, and for its lack of law.

History

Geography

Government

The High King

The High King figures prominently in the political and cultural scenes of the Kingdom. Going contrary to the historic trend of decreasing power, High King Kira li'Starhavven wields power comparable to that of the ancient kings of Cloudhavven. Able to pass laws without going through the legislative process during times of emergency, and capable of vetoing twice any legislation passed by the bi-cameral legislature, the High King plays a major part in the governance of the Kingdom.

Ascension to the position of the High King requires the approval of the current King and of the two legislative councils, and the successful claiming of the Staff of Twilight. There is no requirement for the heir apparent to be the eldest child of the King, but the heir must be related to the King, however distantly, in order to not be incinerated by the Staff.

The Distributed Representation

The Distributed Representation is a directly elected body that forms one half of the Kingdom's bicameral legislature. Representatives are elected from each distribution once every four years, with no more than four terms permitted during a representative's lifetime. As with the old High Council, each distribution receives a number of representatives proportional to its total population. A two-thirds majority is required for the approval of any measure. Acts passed by the Representation go on to the Octagonal Council.

The Octagonal Council

The Octagonal Council was formed after the Sixty Minute war, and originally consisted of the eight Distributed Lords. Under the urging of High King Kira li'Starhavven, the Council agreed to have an elected councilor for every permanent lord. Octagonal Councilors are elected once every four years, with no more than four terms permitted during a councilor's lifetime. Elections are timed to come in the middle of Distributed Representation elections. Currently there are a total of sixteen representatives on the Council. A two-thirds majority, or eleven out of sixteen votes, is required for approval of any measure. Acts passed by the Council go on to the Distributed Representation.

Thaumaturgy

Thaumaturgy permeates all levels of the First Distributed Kingdom.

Military

Mormegil

The Black Swords emerged during the aftermath of the Sixty Minute war, and quickly became renowned for their military prowess. Despite the popular belief that the Black Swords are undefeatable warriors, many of their victories have come through guile and bluff more than skill of arms. Named Mormegil by the quendi population of Shadowside, along whose side they fought against Loyalost and demon forces, for their black battle harness that name was made official when they formally became the High King Kira li'Starhavven's personal guard. The Mormegil combine thaumaturgy, technology, and training, although the lack of recent action has made some question their ability to protect the Kingdom.

The Mornmegil are the only force under the direct command of the High King. Despite accusations of kidnappings and covert operations in undeveloped states, the Mormegil have never been used in combat after the formation of the Distribured Kingdom.

Peacekeepers

Created to give the Kingdom limited military capabilities outside its borders, the Peacekeepers are geared towards humanitarian missions in the style of the former Expeditionary Corp. The military arm of the Peacekeepers relies on armored infantry and strike craft, but does maintain a small tank corps. The Peacekeepers cannot operate within the Kingdom's borders, and require the approval of both legislative houses and of the High King for deployment.

Self-Defence Force

The Self-Defense Force (SDF) is a catch-all term for the Kingdom's regular armed forces. Headed by four marshals, each commanding her own directorate, the SDF comes under the control of the King during times of war. With the arsenal left from three centuries of weapons development, the SDF is considered more than equipped to handle border integrity and space column patrol duties. Despite its significant material resources, the SDF has comparatively few personnel, with less than a million total employees in all four directorates.

Envisioned as more than a fighting force, the SDF maintains a significant logistics and engineering capability, and dedicates more resources towards civic works than towards traditional military functions. Most recently, the SDF has joined with the Tower to restructure the Kingdom's steamer and highway network.

Freecorps

The freecorps were a system of independent paramilitary organizations unaffiliated with any governments. The freecorp system proved to be incapable of replacing a standing army, although the five major freecorps did form a unified military structure during the last months of the Old Kingdom. The system was never replaced after the obliteration of freecorps' military assets during the Sixty Minute War.

Unit Organization

• Ships
  • Parasites
    • Squadron -- four craft
    • Wing -- three squadrons (twelve craft)
    • Swarm -- three wings (thirty-six parasites)
  • Large Craft
    • Platoon -- 3 destroyers and two cruisers
    • Company -- 3 Platoons and one Ship of the Line (9 destroyers, 6 cruisers, and 1 Ship of the Line)
    • Battalion -- 3 Platoons and 3 Hive Cruisers (9 destroyers, 6 cruisers, and three carriers)
    • Regiment -- 3 Companies (27 destroyers, 18 cruisers, and 3 Ships of the Line)
    • Battlegroup -- 2 Battalions (18 destroyers, 12 cruisers, and six carriers)
    • Corps -- 3 Regiments and two Battlegroups (117 destroyers, 78 cruisers, twelve carriers, 9 Ships of the Line)
    • Systems Group -- Half of all forces in a sector
• Ground
  • Infantry/Cavalry
    • Squad -- 4 Soldiers
      • Usually a squad of marines is made up of a machine gunner, a grenadier (40mm cannon), and two rifles.
      • Armor for grenadier squads is usually the Grenadier; armor for light infantry is usually Dragoon
      • Cavalry units are mounted on 'Chevalines'
    • Platoon -- 12/16 (3/4 Squads)
    • Company -- 60/80 (5 Platoons)
    • Battalion -- 180/240 (3 Companies)
    • Brigade -- 540/720 (3 Battalions) + artillery + engineer + logistics
      • Artillery, engineer, and logistics units generally make up one additional company each
  • Armor/Artillery
    • Squadron -- 2 units
    • Platoon -- 6 units (3 Squadrons)
    • Company -- 30 units (5 Platoons)
    • Battalion -- 90 units (3 Companies)
    • Brigade -- 180 units (3 Battalions)
  • Combined Units
    • Units beyond Brigade level are merged to create combined-arms groups, which are adjusted in makeup to suit specific battlefields and missions.

Classification

• Platform Classification
  • Strike -- designed for high mobility, but at the cost of power and protection
  • Assault -- designed for combined mobilility, weapon power, and armor
  • Siege -- designed to carry powerful weapons and armor, but at a reduced maneuverabiluty and deployment capability
  • Light -- designation prefix that all weapons beyond it are low-yield
  • Heavy -- designation prefix that all weapons beyond it are high-yield
  • Missile -- carries guided weapons with effective range beyond one light second. Usually mounted on Ships of the Line
  • Torpedo -- carries guided weapons with effective range below one light second
  • Cannon -- carries unguided turret weapons. No theoretical range limit
  • Grapnel -- carries grapnels and pods for boarding operations
• Platform Designation
  • Corvette -- designed for short-range patrols, predimonantly in planetary orbits
  • Destroyer -- craft larger than a corvette, designed for a particular task, with limited armor and weapons but significant acceleration and maneuverabilty.
    • Anti-parasite -- carries point-defense clusters such as gatlings, flak cannon, and interceptor missiles.
    • Anti-capitol -- carries specialized weapons for destroying capitol craft.
    • Missile -- carries heavy missile arrays. Doubles as an anti-parasite destroyer after missiles have been expended.
    • Parasite -- essentially a light carrier. Carries a limited number of parasites, including automated drones.
  • Cruiser -- craft approximately two hunded fifty meters in length, typically outfitted exclusively with heavy cannon and designed to destroy larger craft in squadrons.
    • Missile -- has detachable missile pods and long-distance scanner arrays.
  • Battleship -- craft approximately three hundred meters in length, carying heavy armor and conventional cannon, and outfitted with a forward-facing heavy main cannon
  • Carrier -- craft approximately three hundred meters in length, carryign relatively heavy armor but no antiship weapons, designed to deploy and support parasite operations.
  • Ship of the Line -- any craft designed for extended operations away from major resupply points and capable of controlling large groups of craft, and equipped with heavy cannon, missiles, parasites, and torpedoes. Usually approximately one kilometer in length.
  • Dreadnaught -- any craft designed to function as a mobile maintenance and resupply facility, but also mounting heavy weapons and armor.

People of Note

• Kira li'Starhavven, High King, Paper Alchemist
• Josiah Willard Gibbs, Consul-General
• Firnon li'Skai, Commander, Mormegil
• Ren li'Wye, Grand Alchemist
• Lord Ash