A) Where did I want this occur,
B) When was this going to occur; and,
C) Who was going to be involved?
Naturally I wanted to incorporate the modern power-players, but I felt that modern engagements just seemed too, well, constrained (that, and it can be a little tetchy for those who may not be 100% okay with the current situations in the world being played out in miniature - it is something that has to be considered for some after all).
In order to keep away from having to explain how a terror group could take over most of the Middle East and Africa by itself under modern circumstances, I decided to do the next best thing - I rewrote the history books ;)
I decided to do what the latest Skirmish: Afrika is doing (a very interesting book - one I hope to review in the future!) and take my fight into Afrika and the surrounds. I may very well incorporate the lands of Skirmish: Afrika into my storyline in the future. But for now, I am using the equally interesting and very fun nation-generating rules of 'Not Just a Brush War' by Nordic Weasel games.
That - and hey, us Weasels have got to stick together!!! ;)
I have found the template by NWG to be a great and interesting way to make nations that I otherwise simply wouldn't imagine myself!
As such, I have made some very 'interesting' nations already using these templates... here is the first of the big four that will be a part of my coming world... the 'Kingdom' of Eulanus - a nation bursting at the seams... mostly because of the chaos within!
The Kingdom of Eulanus
The Kingdom of Eulanus is a Moderately sized nation with 14 million people who call it home.
The main resource of Eulanus is an abundant supply of building materials such as timber and basic iron, critical elements in the building industries of the many nations in the region. (I rolled a double on the score for 'Building Materials... I suspect Eulanus has a rather focused iron smelting and forestry industry, or really likes to cut down its rainforests).
A Largely rural people, the Kingdom of Eulanus is effectively 21 years behind the technology curve when compared to its first-world counterparts. Because of this, the nation still focuses what national industry they have into supporting the creation and supply of building materials, the majority of which is shipped worldwide for consumption by said first world nations... Eulanus has Plentiful Heavy Industry because of these efforts.
However, moving into the 21st century has not been kind to Eulanus, with said 'Kingdom' now being merely a throwback to ages past as chaos grips the country. Following the death of the absolute monarch Joseph Boto III, the nation began the process of being a Transitional Democracy, even though the transition was seen as Reasonably Legitimate, the process has since become Extremely Unpopular due to ongoing economic mismanagement and horrendous levels of endemic corruption.
Even with such corruption, there is still a manner of imperfect coherency within the nation as the ability to pay anyone to do anything does allow anything you want - for a price...
One of the greatest sticking points for ongoing social dysfunction is the attempts by the corrupt "democractic rulers" to try and enforce a form of leader worship (often considered the 'local religion' for the region). People find it hard to worship someone they elected into office.
Although the nation is a mess, it has found an unlikely regional power supporter in the form of the nation of Surentar. The cheap labour force that Surentar has at its disposal is often sent to work in the heavy industry of Eulanus - effectively as government-indentured servants providing Surentar with everything it needs from the lands of Eulanus. This process is kept well-oiled through the equally-oiled hands of the Eulanus officials; after all, you can get anything done in Eulanus if your money is good.
Not surprisingly, the Kingdom of Eulanus faces a number of issues - with the widespread corruption and unpopularity of the government, many people are turning to crime to make ends meet, with most resorting to open street violence to loot, steal and protest against the conditions. Even those simply trying to survive use the chaos to steal what precious food and medicine they can. Eulanus is beginning to seriously look as though it may transition into even greater chaos than what it already has...
Eulanus Military
Close quarter
fighters - with the endemic corruption and widespread near-chaos... it is
no surprise that the 'military' of Eulanus is tokenistic. Small arms and crew served weapons dominate
the armed forces, and anything better than a technical is seen as a reason to
claim armoured division status... These "troops" are not trained as light
infantry (if trained at all), they are simply that poorly equipped that they
literally have no heavier equipment.
The air force... for what it can be called, is focused on
strategic bombing, trying to replace the lost firepower and artillery that the
land forces simply do not have. The
age of the platforms, almost thirty years behind modern technology - means that
the Il-28 BEAGLE and Mirage III aircraft they use are hard-pressed to fulfill
this role. A few C-119's.. somehow still
flying, round out the air deployment (and ad-hoc bomber) capabilities of the force, although most
of these have been onsold for their scrap value...
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The fact that any of the air force is flyable at all is a feat in of itself - although many believe it is because the local air commanders see themselves as defacto warlords - and so having such power makes them even bigger "big men" than their army counterparts.
With the limited availability of any sort of true armour the tooling for machinery, as odd as the Air Force focus is strategic bombing - focused on heavy tanks. To this end, the Kingdom of Eulania had previously acquired a large number of IS-3 heavy tanks, which were able to be supported by local heavy industry. However, due to years of neglect and abuse, most are horribly dilapidated and have been either scrapped, abadoned in place, or are used as checkpoint guards. The few that remain mobile and functioning - a rare combination for any Eulanian equipment, are operated in limited numbers.
The kingdom of Eulanus does claim to have some 'elite' formations, however, these paramilitary units are more or less simply hardened criminals and hooligans who have been put on the government payroll to ensure compliance and attempt to 'restore order'. Naturally, any plan involving arming criminal elements and giving them (albeit limited and outdated) basic infantry training to ensure their loyalty didn't exactly work as planned - the paramilitaries are often seen using their power primarily to develop their own organised crime networks.
One of the few fields where the Eulanus military is actually well supplied is in the field of infantry support weapons. A huge arms deal in the late 90's saw large stocks of surplus ex-East German equipment transferred to Eulanian control. So, although dated, many Eulanus troops, whilst lacking pretty much everything else, do have their own organic anti-tank, anti-air and indirect fire capabilities.
As a whole, the Eulanian Armed Forces represent the equivalent of a disfunctional, ineffective, but well equipped militia with the ability to cause some damage with their infantry - if the tactics suit them and they can somehow be in the right place to fight... The average Eulanian knows his limits, but remains willing to fight.
So what's the beef?
Eulanus' current circumstances, the widespread corruption, street violence and lack of popularity, have seen two major problems arise. The first is a rogue general - a man calling himself "General Joker" (the story goes that he often finds it hilarious to conduct all sorts of atrocities on his captives) has taken it upon himself to establish his own area of control - essentially becoming a warlord.
The more pressing concern for the government, however, is the current talk of a Military Coup. Colonel Samo Maguto recently returned from Sandhurst academy in the UK - and rumour has it that his men under his professional and respected leadership - are beginning to be more than just the rouse-rabble the corrupt controllers in the capital can control. The Colonel knows this - and so do his political masters, only time will tell how this ends...
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As before, if you found this to be a very interesting little tale, you too can build your own adventures and imagi-nations with the help of 'Not Just a Brush War' as available in the link!
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