Nova Albion

Nova Albion is an island and region of the United States of Antarctica located off the coast of Eastshield. The island is a part of the state of Eastshield, but maintains some of its own government agencies and organizations. The main administrative center is Moraga, while the largest city is Cahuenga, which is one of the largest cities in the United States of Antarctica. Both the Cahuenga Metropolitan Area and the Snow Freezecisco Bay Area are among the largest metropolitan areas in the country. With a population of 35,840,187 and a land area of 47,142 sq mi, Nova Albion is one of the most densely populated regions in Eastshield. Over 20% of Eastshield's population resides on the island.

If Nova Albion was an independent country, it would have one of the largest economies in Antarctica. The Cahuenga area is considered the center of the entertainment industry, while the Snow Freezecisco Bay Area is considered the center of the technology industry, with Germanium Valley being located in the Bay Area. Due to its hospitable climate, Nova Albion is a major agricultural producer, accounting for a significant amount of the total agricultural output of the United States of Antarctica. The territory has a diverse economy, being based around finance, government, real estate, and technology, along with many other sectors.

The island was home to a multitude of indigenous tribes for centuries before the arrival of the first settlers. Nova Albion was conquered by Tropicalian explorers in the late 18th century as the colony of Alta Eastshield, or Upper Eastshield. The population of the colony remained small, until the Nova Albion Gold Rush of the 1850s, which resulted in a massive influx from the Asiapelago and Ninja Archipelago. Nova Albion was granted autonomy from Tropicalis in the 1860s. It became part of the Water Kingdom during Olde Antarctica and its own colony in Colonial Antarctica before becoming part of the United States of Antarctica after the Antarctic Revolution.

Prior to colonization
Prior to Tropicalian settlement, Nova Albion was home to many diverse tribes and tribal groups. It was considered one of the most diverse places in the region both culturally and linguistically, with the island having dozens of indigenous languages spoken by the many tribes. Many of the tribes on the island had alliances or relations with one another, and often engaged in trade, with a vast trade network existed on the island. Organization of the groups varied from small bands to large polities, many of which existed on the coast, which was wealthy in resources.

The island is believed to have existed in legends during the middle ages in the High Penguin Confederacy era, with a story alluding to an mythical island known as "Kaliforníu". This name was often used previously to describe the mythical island before it was named Nova Albion. High Penguin merchants were said to have made stops on the western coast of the island in the middle ages, and some fishermen also fished off the coast as well. It is believed that some High Penguin settlements were established on the island in the 12th to 14th century, but they were eventually abandoned as the climate got colder.

Castillan and Puffish explorers ventured along the coasts of Nova Albion in the 16th and 17th centuries, and the western coast of the island was mapped to a degree. The island was named Nova Albion by a Puffish explorer, after a mythical place in Puffish legend. Castillan explorers also visited the coast from time to time to stop and rest during their long voyages. Most of the early exploration of the island never ventured into the interior of the island or on the eastern coast. Both countries claimed the island, but neither planned any serious colonization attempts.

Tropicalian control
To expand the power of his country in order to compete with the Sphenisdean Empire during the late 18th century, Tomas II, King of Tropicalis, began sending out explorers to colonize new places around Antarctica. Plans were made to colonize the island of Nova Albion, which had been mapped by Tropicalian explorers as well decades before. In 1769, an expedition by Freezecisco Snowpengy founded the city of Snow Diego in the south of the island. The expedition moved north, establishing missions and forts along the coast. Snow Jose and Cahuenga were founded as the first civilian settlements in Nova Albion, while Snow Freezecisco was founded as a fort, or presidio. The colony was named Alta Eastshield, or Upper Eastshield, as it was located off the coast of Eastshield.

Throughout the next few decades, the population of the island remained small, under 10,000 settlers and possibly ten times that number of natives, according to contemporary estimates. A small landed gentry began to develop of wealthy Tropicalian landowners, who lived similar lifestyles to the Tropicalian nobility back home. To encourage population growth, the local colonial administration began giving out land grants to settlers, who established "ranchos" throughout the island. Many of these ranchos became cities in modern Nova Albion, such as the cities of Rancho Posolmi and Rancho Snow Ysidro. High Penguin immigration continued to increase in the mid-19th century, and the population had increased to around 20,000 settlers by 1840.

Gold was discovered near the city of Moraga in 1848 by some High Penguin immigrants, which sparked a gold rush to the island. Thousands came from the Asiapelago, Ninja Archipelago, and the Antarctic mainland to the island to find gold. By 1860, the census recorded a population of 354,692 on the island, a massive increase due to the Gold Rush. The demographics of the colony had been drastically, and the previously dominant Tropicalian gentry found itself losing power in the colony, outnumbered by the new High Penguin and Ninja Archipelagoan settlers.

The new settlers of the island wanted more autonomy from Tropicalis, with some even calling for independence. Tropicalian troops crushed the Cahuenga Uprising in 1865, which consisted of a small group of High Penguin settlers demanding independence from Tropicalis. Fearing more rebellions from the population, the Tropicalian government granted the island autonomy in 1869, establishing the Commonwealth of Nova Albion, with its separate government consisting of a prime minister, Parliament, and court system. This satisfied the population of the territory, and there were no major movements for independence in the years afterward.

Khanzem War
During the Khanzem War, Tropicalis was invaded by Khanzem, and Tropicalis pulled many of its soldiers home to defend the country. The island was left to fend for itself, with only a small force of around 25,000 soldiers. With permission from the government, Puffish and Good Guy troops were stationed around the island to protect from a Khanzem attack. Despite this, Khanzem launched an invasion of the island in 1914, with naval invasions at Snow Freezecisco and Cahuenga. The Nova Albionans fought back fiercely, and with help from the Puffish and Good Guy forces, Khanzem was defeated, although Snow Freezecisco was left in ruins from the invasion. After the Khanzem threat was over, Nova Albion deployed around 50,000 soldiers to Tropicalis to help them fight back the Khanzem invasion there.

Nova Albion became a part of the Water Kingdom after the Khanzem War, as Tropicalis withdrew from the island and ceded control to the new regime. The island prospered in the years afterward, enjoying a large population growth as hundreds of thousands moved to the island from Olde Antarctica. The movie industry began to develop in the southern parts of the island, while in the north, around the Snow Freezecisco Bay Area, there was a massive growth in the tech industry. Thousands of companies were formed in the Snow Jose area, which began the start of Germanium Valley, considered the United States of Antarctica's technological center today.

Colonial Antarctica and Antarctican era
The island became a separate colony during the Colonial Antarctica era, independent from the other colonies that existed on mainland Antarctica. It was allowed to have its own colonial assembly and governor, but was still under the authority of the Puffish government. During the Antarctic Revolution, Nova Albion rebelled against the Puffish colonial government, joining the side of the Revolutionists. Nova Albionan rebels quickly seized control of the four main metropolitan areas in the state, and near the end of the war had taken control of the entire island from the Puffish. The Nova Albionans attempted to establish their own "State of Nova Albion" to be incorporated as a state of the United States of Antarctica after the war.

After the war, the new government of the United States of Antarctica decided to incorporate Nova Albion and its twenty counties into the state of Eastshield. The government of Eastshield wanted to incorporate many of the island's important industries, such as agriculture, entertainment, and technology, into their state, in order to compete with the economies of other states. This decision sparked large protests in every major city in Nova Albion, leading to the Antarctican government allowing the island to create its own regional planning agency to coordinate the twenty county governments.

Frosian War
The fall of the Frosian Islands during the Frosian War allowed for the Puffalians to carry bombing raids into eastern Eastshield, and some parts of southern Nova Albion came in the range of Puffalian bombers. The cities of Cahuenga and Snow Diego both saw occasional Puffalian raids due to its important port and large military facilities, respectively. This caused some panic across the island, fearing a major Puffalian invasion. A few days after the start of the invasion of New Delphis, all 35,000 soldiers in the Eastshield National Guard on the island were activated, adding to the around 200,000 Antarctican soldiers already stationed on the island.

Later into the war, Puffalian troops landed on isolated areas of the eastern coast of the island to try and establish a beachhead for future incursions into the island, but their small numbers allowed the local Eastshield National Guard to force them out easily. The fall of New Delphis and Polaris to Puffalian forces renewed fears of an invasion, along with reports of Puffalian units in the eastern Eastshield forests on the mainland. This came true when two separate Puffalian fleets attacked the cities of Snow Freezecisco and Snow Diego simultaneously during the war. Puffalian forces were defeated in Snow Diego within hours, but in Snow Freezecisco managed to defeat the first lines of defense and hold onto sections of the city for a few days, engaging in urban combat with Antarctican forces.

The Bay Campaign during the war, as it came to be called, lasted a few weeks as Puffalian forces occupied nearly half of Snow Freezecisco and a Puffalian fleet entered the Snow Freezecisco Bay, threatening nearly every major city in the area. A large offensive launched by a combined force of 120,000 Antarctican soldiers and national guardsmen forced the Puffalians out of the Snow Freezecisco Bay Area after about a week. Despite the campaign being relatively short, it was the deadliest and most destructive in Nova Albion during the war, causing thousands of deaths and billions of dollars in destruction.

Government
Nova Albion is not a territory of the United States of Antarctica, and is within the complete authority and jurisdiction of the Eastshield state government. However, each of the twenty counties on the island are a part of the Association of Nova Albionan Governments (ANAG), a regional planning agency that coordinates the county governments in certain issues such as economy or transportation. This agency also helps to represent the island and act in its best interests in the Eastshield state government, helping to ensure some form of autonomy for the island. Together, the island has representation in the form of 38 seats in the Eastshield State Senate and 77 seats in the Eastshield State Assembly.

As the island isn't a territory of the United States of Antarctica, the administrative center is considered to be in the city of Moraga, as many important state agencies in Eastshield are located there. It is also the location of the headquarters of the Association of Nova Albionan Governments as well, and the headquarters of other important government agencies of the island. Various national and state agencies have branches around the state, such as the branches of appellate courts that exist in many places around the state. Nova Albion has indirect representation in the South Pole Council, as four of its largest cities have representation in the South Pole Council.

Armed forces
There are a total of 214,267 active duty servicemembers of the Department of Defense from Nova Albion, along with an additional 186,937 servicemembers in the reserve forces, for a total of 401,204 servicemembers of the armed forces from Nova Albion. As it is a part of the state of Eastshield, Nova Albion's military force is the Eastshield National Guard, of which there are 31,176 servicemembers from Nova Albion. Cahuenga County has the largest numbers of recruits in the military, but the region overall is underrepresented in terms of servicemembers in the military. The region has 1,789,878 veterans serving under the United States of Antarctica, most of whom fought in the War of 2002 or the Frosian War.

Economy
The region of Nova Albion has among the largest economies in Antarctica. With a GDP of 4.5 trillion Fish, Nova Albion accounts for about 17% of the total GDP of the United States of Antarctica, and about 34% of the GDP of the state of Eastshield. The largest sectors of the economy in order are finance, trade, transportation, services, government, and manufacturing. Despite suffering from a decline within the past twenty years due to an increasing water shortage, agriculture remains an important sector in the economy and continues to grow in revenue every year. Agriculture accounts for only about 2% of the regional economy, but produces a large proportion of the total national agricultural output.

The per capita GDP for the region remains among the highest in the country, but varies from the different subregions within Nova Albion. The island's Snow Joaquin Valley, or often referred to as the Nova Albion Central Valley, is among the poorest places in the country, a sharp contrast to the region's overall wealth. The Central Valley has historically been neglected by both the state and national governments in favor of more developed areas like the Bay Area and Cahuenga. On the other hand, areas in the region like Germanium Valley in the Snow Freezecisco Bay Area are considered some of the most affluent places in the United States of Antarctica. Nova Albion has an unemployment rate of 6% and a poverty rate of 14%.

Culture
Nova Albion's culture is deeply rooted in the culture of the United States of Antarctica, but has significant influences from both Tropicalis and Latin Antarctica. Immigrant groups from the Asiapelago, Ninja Archipelago, and Latin Antarctica have also influenced the island's culture as well. For much of its recent history, the island has been portrayed as a kind of paradise. Its sunny weather and diverse geography has made it a popular tourist destination for those around the United States of Antarctica and beyond. The island's economic prosperity has also generated the idea of the "Nova Albionan dream" as well. Nova Albion's gold rush in the 1850s has been compared to the island's economic boom in recent years.

Transportation
The island is connected by a vast network of freeways, expressways, and highways across the entire island. Nova Albion is notable for a high ownership of cars, which has contributed to its freeways being one of the most congested in the United States of Antarctica. Some of the first freeways in Olde Antarctica were built in the 1940s in Cahuenga. One of the most well known landmarks on the island is the Snow Freezecisco Bridge, which used to be one of the longest bridges in Antarctica. There are many bridges that cross the Snow Freezecisco Bay Area, such as the Cross Bay Bridge that connects Snow Freezecisco to the city of Encinal across the bay. State roads and transportation lie under the responsibility of the Nova Albion division of the Eastshield Department of Transportation. The main office of the Nova Albion division is located in Moraga.

Cahuenga International Airport and Snow Freezecisco International Airport are the two busiest airports on the island, and one of the busiest in Antarctica. The Port of Cahuenga in southern Nova Albion handles about 10% of cargo traffic in the United States of Antarctica, owing to its important position on the trade system SABER. In the north of the island, the Port of Encinal, which is one of the largest ports in the country, also handles a large amount of cargo traffic. Rail travel between the cities is provided by Antarctic Express Nova Albion, which manages three main rail lines connecting the major metropolitan areas on the island. Cahuenga and Snow Freezecisco both have subway systems, while Moraga, Snow Diego, and Snow Jose have light rail systems. There are also commuter rail networks in the Bay Area, Cahuenga, and Snow Diego as well.

Trivia

 * It is based off of California.
 * Moraga is based on Sacramento, while Cahuenga is based on Los Angeles.