User:Brant/Dragonstonian Empire

The Dragonstonian Empire, or sometimes known as Dragonstone, is a confederation of fourteen constituent states located to the southwest of Candvia and the United Provinces. Founded originally as the Dragonstonian Confederation, the creation of the Dragonstonian Empire in 1685 created the Dragonstonian Empire known today. As the kings of the original fourteen states pledged fealty to the King of Dragonstone in 1685 during the formation of the Dragonstonian Empire, the King of Dragonstone is also the Emperor of the Dragonstonian Empire.

History
The area known today as the Dragonstonian Empire was originally settled by Viking and High Penguins in the eighth century. Many of these penguins were seafarers, and sought to find new lands to settle in. The eventually built trading posts on many of the islands, the fastest growing of which became villages, and eventually towns. By the ninth century, one hundred years later, each of the islands had a decently large population, and were either predominantly Viking or High Penguin.

This eventually led to war between the groups, as each group allied with each with each other against one another. The islands descended into chaos and war over the next one hundred years. Eventually, however, kingdoms began forming on the islands, with some of the larger islands having more than one. While this managed to put an end to most of the warfare, it was also the cause of more, as the kingdoms fought each other to gain more control. The more powerful kingdoms tried conquering the smaller kingdoms.

By the tenth century, the larger and more powerful kingdoms had expanded their territories over the smaller kingdoms, forming the borders of the fourteen states known today. While the larger kingdoms continued to war with each over the next few centuries, from the tenth century on, the region was much more stable. Instead of constant war, many of the kingdoms instead turned to trade, and began forming alliances with one another, and also neighboring kingdoms as well.

As the middle ages progressed, the High Penguin Confederacy sought to expand its territory, and began attempting to conquer neighboring lands. In response to this expansion, for the first time, the kings of the kingdoms met in Dragonstone, the most powerful kingdom, and signed the Treaty of Dragonstone in 1216. This treaty created the Dragonstonian Confederation, a loosely aligned, military, political, and economic alliance between the fourteen states. They also attempted to ally with neighboring Candvia and the Osloven Empire for protection.

However, as the 16th century approached, imperialist countries such as Castilla, Francterre, Lisboagal, and Puffle'and attempted to colonize distant lands, to create their colonial empire. Over the next century, these countries began conquering and establishing new colonies. Seeing as a simple alliance wouldn't work anymore, the fourteen kings convened in Dragonstone once more, where they discussed the threat. The kings, together, signed the second Treaty of Dragonstone in 1685, establishing the Dragonstonian Empire.

The Dragonstonian Empire was quick to establish good relations with both Candvia and the Osloven Empire, as many of the previously independent states had done. It also improved the military to be able to protect the country, and attempted to establish good relations with some of the Ninja Archipelago countries, many of which were imperialist, in order to protect themselves. The High Penguin Confederacy attempted to conquer the Dragonstonian Empire in the Dragonstonian-High Penguin War in 1710, but was defeated. Puffle'and attempted to do the same in 1723, but was defeated by an alliance of the Dragonstonian Empire and Francterre.

The Ninja Archipelago countries eventually got involved in their own wars, and forgot about their plans to conquer the Dragonstonian Empire. Thus, the country eventually entered isolationism for the next few hundred years, interacting with mostly neighboring countries. After the invasion of the Osloven Empire, the Dragonstonian Empire joined the war against Khanzem, sending around 1,000,000 soldiers into the fight. The Empire participated on the Osloven front and eventually the push onto Smackemsillyton, the capital of Khanzem. Most of the soldiers ended up making it back alive.

The Dragonstonian Empire mostly remained out of Antarctican politics after the Khanzem War, but did join the side of the Nationalist Bloc during the False War, and also joined the Allies during the STINC War, sending 70,000 soldiers into the fight. The Dragonstonian Empire mostly fought on the home front and the Snowinian front, along with minor involvement on the other fronts. Like with the Khanzem War, the Dragonstonian Empire emerged with minor losses after the STINC War, and would join the Revolutionists ten years later during the Antarctic Revolution.

Government
The head of the empire is the Emperor of the Dragonstonian Empire, who is also the King of Dragonstone. The Emperor as an entity merely acts as a figurehead, representing the Dragonstonian Empire in foreign relations, but holds little power in the country, aside from his own Kingdom. Additionally, the Imperial Parliament, whose members of Parliament are elected from each of the states every four years, is responsible for making the laws. Also, the Empire's judiciary, the Supreme Court, is made up of fourteen justices, one appointed from each of the states by that state's king.

Economy
As the economies of each of the states are unique, and each based on a certain sector, it is hard to determine the overall economy of the Dragonstonian Empire. However, most of the states have a rather large oil industry, and some have a decent sized export and import industry as well. The Emperor of the Dragonstonian Empire, as an entity, controls many mines both in the country and out of the country, and most of his income is from the mining industry. Small mining industries do exist on some of the states.

Culture
Since it was originally settled by both High Penguins and Viking Penguins, most of the Dragonstonian Empire has a large ethnic High Penguin or Viking Penguin population, with some states having one of the groups as the dominant group. The culture of the individual states is influenced by the majority group in their state. Additionally, the Dragonstonian Empire also has some Snowinian and Ninja Archipelago influences, depending on which state traded with the countries. Overall, there isn't a defining culture in the Dragonstonian Empire, but most states have unique cultures depending on which groups settled them and who they interacted with.

Geography
As it is close to both Candvia and the United Provinces, the Dragonstonian islands share a similarity geographically with both regions. All of the islands are covered in grassland and forest, with many of the larger islands having rivers and lakes. Most of the islands in the Dragonstonian islands are relatively flat, but some of the islands are hilly, and many of those islands are rocky. These natural features have ensured their protection over the years, as they allow for a better defense in war.

Transportation
Unlike with other government ministries, in which each state has its own independent ministry that report to the central government, the Imperial Ministry of Transportation is a single entity that controls the transportation systems of the Empire. The Imperial Ministry of Transportation has fourteen smaller ministries under it, one for each state, but the state ministries must report to the Imperial Ministry. This is to ensure better cooperation for more efficient travel.

The two most common modes of transportation in the Dragonstonian Empire are land and sea travel. The two modes of land travel, road and rail, are both used commonly, though road travel is used more often. Most roads in the empire are paved, and roads connect each of the major cities, along with tunnels and bridges connecting some of the islands. There are also many highways, under the Imperial Highway System. The second mode of land transportation, rails, are used commonly, but not that common. There are train lines connecting the cities and islands, and some of the cities have subway systems. Sea travel is also common, with ships traveling from and to the islands each day.

The last mode of travel, air travel, is commonly used, but not as much. Until recently, the Dragonstonian Empire was mostly isolationist, and thus not many airlines had destinations in the Empire. The air industry in the Empire was pretty small. However, due to reforms by the current emperor, the Dragonstonian Empire became less isolationist, and some airlines began flying to the Empire. The air industry began expanding, and the government poured some funding to the improvement of airports. Thus, air travel has been a growing mode of transportation.

Military
Each of the states is responsible for maintaining its own military, and is combined into the Imperial Dragonstonian Armed Forces, which has 650,000 active members. The Emperor maintains a private army of his own as well, called the Imperial Armed Forces, which has about 20,000 soldiers. The Imperial Armed Forces is primarily funded and controlled by the Emperor, though the states make small contributions. In the recent years, in response to the rise of imperialist countries, the government has poured a lot of money into the armed forces, making it a much more powerful force.

The most powerful force in the military is the navy, which had 100 ships as of 2017. The navy is primarily used to protect shipping routes in the surrounding area, and to protect the surrounding sea in general, but in recent years have participated in fighting pirates around Antarctica. Next, the second most powerful force in the military is the army. The army has primarily protected the country, but have been participating in peacekeeping missions around Antarctica, notably in the Antarctic War on Terror. Lastly, the air force is the least powerful, though the government has been attempting to change that. The air force has 500 aircraft as of 2017, most of which are new.