A lot of people have this idea of Sasten as being this monolithic nation that just sits around and kind of just is. While grounded in reality, that's not entirely correct; Sasten is not a static entity, and it has its own troubles as much as any other nation.
I've been developing and sitting on this idea for two years now, born out of a land expansion I made around that time. I also admit that I have less than 10 RP posts in any Eras RP outside of META in all the years I've been here. I think it's time I fixed that.
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Currently I'm debating as to whether to make this an open RP or a closed/invite-only one. This RP isn't a shot-in-the-dark, it's a story, with a known beginning, and a known end, and while navigating unexpected events between point A and point B is a major part of RP, things can get too ridiculous or out-of-hand for me to be able to get there in a manner that works.
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Background
As of the present time, the Sasten you see on the map is not actually one country, it's two: Sasten is one, and should be the one most of you are familiar with, but there's also another smaller one - Geraten. I won't waste time describing Sasten because it's basically exactly what you know now with a slightly smaller land area.
Geraten is a different case. Up until relatively recently in history, specifically the last hundred years, Sasten was not a single cohesive country, but rather a bunch of smaller ones that progressively got annexed until Azarten was (nominally) the only one left, renaming itself to Sasten 71 years ago. Geraten is the last remaining holdover of that period of disunity, existing primarily because the new Sasten never thought it worth the time, resources and diplomatic penalties to annex the rump of a nation they'd previously beaten. Geraten itself is a military autocracy, led by psychotic and partially insane former generalissimo Erven Kadzen with few inclinations to do anything but increase his own power. By 2008, the population had largely had enough of him, and launched a massive and devastating civil war that continues to this day. Fully half the population has already emigrated to Sasten as refugees, while those remaining either struggle among the ruins, or else comprise one of the many politically-driven armies, militias, and militant groups. The actual Geratennic army has largely had the upper hand in the fighting, but still only controls about 60% of the country, the remainder divided among the various groups and often plagued by infighting.
Sasten for its part does not exist in a vacuum. Ten years of bloody civil war on its doorstep has left its mark on Sastennic politics. While the King's authority has largely gone unchallenged given his handling of the situation, keeping Sasten mostly uninvolved, the constant reports of violence, the throngs of refugees in massive temporary cities, and the constant sounds of gunfire and artillery near the border have nevertheless kept the population on edge; a single event could be all it takes to shatter the illusion of safety.
The other side of Sasten's political system is barely functional. The elected parliament has been in deadlock for five years, even after two elections specifically intended to break it; it passes on average one piece of legislation every eight months, forcing the King and his Council of Ministers to rule by decree in a manner not seen in over 130 years. The population has taken notice of this, and their approval of the democratic portion of Sasten's government sits at just 22%. Many blame the concept of democracy itself, but a significant number have begun to question whether it's actually the King's interference in the political process that is the real cause. Both republican and anti-republican sentiment is on the rise, leading to increasing polarization of the political situation; this situation is further complicated by both sides being divided into extreme-right and extreme-left camps. As a functionally autocratic state, Sasten is well-equipped to crush this sort of dissent before it begins, even without resorting to violence and "oppression", but the King has been reluctant to do so for fear of breaking the "people's King" illusion he clings to. As it stands, Sastennic politics are approaching a showdown that the King may not be able to prevent.
This instability is practically a dream come true to Geraten, and especially to Erven. For years he has fantasized about breaking Sasten down from the inside, swooping in to restore order to a cheering populace, then finally using Sastennic industrial and military power to rule the world. This is a fantasy, but one he clings to nonetheless. The Geratennic intelligence apparatus has thus embarked on a massive cyberwarfare and subterfuge campaign intended to sow disinformation in Sasten's various political camps, forcing them further apart and closer to violence and revolution; thus far, they've barely even been met with a muted response. While he may not be able to control his own country, Erven could very well complete the other half of his goal in destroying Sasten.
I've been developing and sitting on this idea for two years now, born out of a land expansion I made around that time. I also admit that I have less than 10 RP posts in any Eras RP outside of META in all the years I've been here. I think it's time I fixed that.
---
Currently I'm debating as to whether to make this an open RP or a closed/invite-only one. This RP isn't a shot-in-the-dark, it's a story, with a known beginning, and a known end, and while navigating unexpected events between point A and point B is a major part of RP, things can get too ridiculous or out-of-hand for me to be able to get there in a manner that works.
---
Background
As of the present time, the Sasten you see on the map is not actually one country, it's two: Sasten is one, and should be the one most of you are familiar with, but there's also another smaller one - Geraten. I won't waste time describing Sasten because it's basically exactly what you know now with a slightly smaller land area.
Geraten is a different case. Up until relatively recently in history, specifically the last hundred years, Sasten was not a single cohesive country, but rather a bunch of smaller ones that progressively got annexed until Azarten was (nominally) the only one left, renaming itself to Sasten 71 years ago. Geraten is the last remaining holdover of that period of disunity, existing primarily because the new Sasten never thought it worth the time, resources and diplomatic penalties to annex the rump of a nation they'd previously beaten. Geraten itself is a military autocracy, led by psychotic and partially insane former generalissimo Erven Kadzen with few inclinations to do anything but increase his own power. By 2008, the population had largely had enough of him, and launched a massive and devastating civil war that continues to this day. Fully half the population has already emigrated to Sasten as refugees, while those remaining either struggle among the ruins, or else comprise one of the many politically-driven armies, militias, and militant groups. The actual Geratennic army has largely had the upper hand in the fighting, but still only controls about 60% of the country, the remainder divided among the various groups and often plagued by infighting.
Sasten for its part does not exist in a vacuum. Ten years of bloody civil war on its doorstep has left its mark on Sastennic politics. While the King's authority has largely gone unchallenged given his handling of the situation, keeping Sasten mostly uninvolved, the constant reports of violence, the throngs of refugees in massive temporary cities, and the constant sounds of gunfire and artillery near the border have nevertheless kept the population on edge; a single event could be all it takes to shatter the illusion of safety.
The other side of Sasten's political system is barely functional. The elected parliament has been in deadlock for five years, even after two elections specifically intended to break it; it passes on average one piece of legislation every eight months, forcing the King and his Council of Ministers to rule by decree in a manner not seen in over 130 years. The population has taken notice of this, and their approval of the democratic portion of Sasten's government sits at just 22%. Many blame the concept of democracy itself, but a significant number have begun to question whether it's actually the King's interference in the political process that is the real cause. Both republican and anti-republican sentiment is on the rise, leading to increasing polarization of the political situation; this situation is further complicated by both sides being divided into extreme-right and extreme-left camps. As a functionally autocratic state, Sasten is well-equipped to crush this sort of dissent before it begins, even without resorting to violence and "oppression", but the King has been reluctant to do so for fear of breaking the "people's King" illusion he clings to. As it stands, Sastennic politics are approaching a showdown that the King may not be able to prevent.
This instability is practically a dream come true to Geraten, and especially to Erven. For years he has fantasized about breaking Sasten down from the inside, swooping in to restore order to a cheering populace, then finally using Sastennic industrial and military power to rule the world. This is a fantasy, but one he clings to nonetheless. The Geratennic intelligence apparatus has thus embarked on a massive cyberwarfare and subterfuge campaign intended to sow disinformation in Sasten's various political camps, forcing them further apart and closer to violence and revolution; thus far, they've barely even been met with a muted response. While he may not be able to control his own country, Erven could very well complete the other half of his goal in destroying Sasten.
