Pfwillic

Pfwillic is a country which stretches along the eastern coast of the continent Ias of the planet Drowlto VI. It maintains good relations with its northern and southern neighbors, Shens and the Union of Holma, respectively, though it has fought a series of border wars with its western neighbor, Menza. Pfwillic has a long history, with some of the oldest settlements on Ias having been discovered along the river Scarippa.

Geography

In total, Pfwillic covers over 1.8 million square miles of Ias and Aremi. Its greatest north-south dimensions are 2,751 miles on Ias and 310 miles on Aremi, and its greatest east-west dimensions are 612 miles on Ias and 856 miles on Aremi.

Pfwillic's Iasian territories are bounded in the south by the Cairncourse River, in the west by the Kul Mountains, and in the north by the Line of Arastor. To the east lies the Orange Ocean.

The Pfwillic-Menza border stretches for nearly 1400 miles. An 800 mile portion along the Kul Mountains is currently in dispute. Pfwillic claims a line along the peaks of the Spine of Kul, the highest mountains of the range, while Menza claims a line along the Wing of Kul, a lesser range twenty to thirty miles farther east.

Central Pfwillic is dominated by the Plains of Gat, a vast fertile plain encompassing some seven hundred thousand square miles from the foothills of the Kuls to the coast. To the north is the heavily-forested Sushens Plateau. Southern Pfwillic is characterized by the transition between the western reaches of the Endless Forest and the Logannic Marsh.

In addition, Pfwillic controls the southwestern third of The Lesser, the large island off the northern coast of Aremi. The Pfwillicer territory on The Lesser is known as Sonderland, and is characterized by rugged terrain, dotted with small lakes.

Climate

Population

By far the most populous nation on the continent of Ias, the census taken in 2000 SD indicates a population of 46,746,091.

Ethnic Groups

The ethnic situation in Pfwillic is notoriously difficult to categorize, as intermarriage was strongly encouraged - not to say enforced! - by the new aristocracy following the rebirth of the country in the snadaq. Additionally, the Pfwillic census does not ask questions about ethnic group. At any rate, the best guess of demographers is that nearly 95% of the country is some mix of the Gat, Rab'ka, and Sushenic ethnic groups of old. The remaining 5% - located on the Lesser - are Sonderlandese.

Languages

Unlike Menza and the Union of Holma, the Rab'ka linguistic influence on Pfwillic was not overpowering, but one more drop in an already full sea of language diversity. Accordingly, the centuries of Rab'ka control had the effect of mixing the many languages of the conquered and the one language of the conquerors. Moreover, the dialect of Rab'ka that came to the area already showed traces of Menzan influence. As a result, an entirely new language was created, suitably named Pfwillicin at the time of the state's re-emergence. It is the state's official language, although there are pockets of Holmani speakers in the southwest and Demiotic Sushenic in the north.

Religion

As the homeland of Eastite Duham, nearly the entire population adheres to it.

History

Ancient

Settlements along the river Scarippa have been found which date back to around -5500 SD. The first known major civilization along the river was Manu, which lasted from approximately -4800 to -3200 SD. Following the temporary redirection of the Scarippa around -2900 SD, many of the post-Manuc tribes of central Pfwillic relocated north to the foothills of the Sushens Plateau.

Pre-Sushenic

(the period from -2600 to -1100 SD, involves the Scarippa resuming its original course and the establishment of a series of city-states in the region)

Sushenic Empire

The Sushenic Empire expanded away from the Sushens Plateau starting around -1090 SD, and by -700 SD controlled the northern half of modern Pfwillic, down to the north bank of the Scarippa, from which point expansion stagnated. Imperial control was maintained until the formation of the Line of Arastor in -277 SD.

The Splintering

Following the dissolution of the Sushens Empire, the southern territories of the empire under the newly-crowned Emperor Balath began to pull apart almost immediately. Lacking the centralized power of Sushens to keep the peace, and with many imperial troops deserting their posts to return to their home half, order began to collapse in the south. By the time Balath's new government first assembled in -275 SD, more than one third of the southern empire was controlled by anti-imperial forces, including uprisings of conquered tribes, provincial governments declaring independence, and an invasion from the west by a coalition of pre-Menzan peoples.

In response to this collapse, Balath declared that he would rebuild the empire from the center, and focused his efforts on restoring order on the Sushens Plateau. By the end of Balath III's reign in -214 SD, nearly half of Sushens territory south of the Line of Arastor had been returned to imperial control, but full restoration would never occur. Nearly twenty nations, mostly loose tribal coalitions, had been established between Balath's empire and the Scarippa by -200 SD.

The Federation of Gat

Between -200 and -100 SD, a series of wars between the minor nations of the Plains of Gat destroyed most of what civilization remained. Eventually, a tense equilibrium developed between three of the primary powers, and the minor nations who had not been conquered aligned themselves with one or another. In -76 SD, two of the powers, the Gat'ta and the Kulastas, whose territories lay along the north and south forks of the Scarippa, formed an alliance and attacked the Raakaala, who lived further upstream. In only a few months, the alliance drove the Raakaala out of their cities along with what few of their vassals did not abandon them, and forced them to flee across the Wing of Kul.

Following the exile of the Raakaala, the Gat'ta-Kulastas alliance developed into a complex interdependency and eventually a joint government. In 51 SD, the Priest-Chieftain Hama Mo'sha of the Kulastas declared the formation of the Federation of Gat. The Federation was a quasi-representative state, with its various constituent tribes choosing their own representatives to hold seats in a unicameral legislature, the Council of Chiefs, presided over by a king chosen from that body. Though not required, the throne was rarely given to a non-Gat'ta or Kulastas.

Already a significant power before consolidation, the Federation soon began to expand in power and influence. A number of nearby tribes were incorporated into the Federation within twenty years, all but one peacefully, and a fleet of merchant ships was constructed almost overnight, exploring the coastlines of Ias and across the Orange Sea to Aremi and Lopna's western coasts. Once trade routes were established, the Federation began to become increasingly urban. As tribes became scattered, and as the number of city dwellers who belonged to no tribe grew, representation on the Council started to be determined by geography rather than tribal affiliation. Many of the modern counties of the central Pfwillicer provinces have borders that date back to this period in Federation history.

Pfwill and the Invasion of the Rab'ka

Eventually, as the Federation of Gat's trade policy was seen as prejudicial by those north of the Sushens Plateau, they viewed the Rab'ka conquest of neighboring Menza with mixed emotion. "To be sure," wrote Nab Ahklu centuries after the fact, "the Rab'ka represented an existential and theological threat to the cultures of Ias, as they saw their ways of life subsumed into Duham. But at the same time, how did the Gattic way of life benefit the northerners? It did not!"

Spurred by hopes of reconquering the Sushens Plateau and ingratiating themselves to the Rab'ka without suffering an invasion, the army of Shens joined forces with the Rab'ka and invaded the Federation. The combined force was sufficient to drive the Federation's armies to the south bank of the Scarippa, where the Rab'ka-Shens alliance began to fracture under the stresses of the Rab'ka's assimilationist policies demanding that the Shens consent to being incorporated into their empire. Soon, the forces of Shens retreated to the north, and the Rab'ka were forced to split their forces to defend two fronts and consolidate their gains.

The Federation was not secure, however. Though able to raid the eastern coast of Ias with impunity and hold the crossings of the Scarippa, the loss of several major cities and the cost of war began to take their toll on the Gattic trading empire. As the money dried up and endless skirmishes with the Rab'ka took their toll, unrest and dissent began to paralyze the Council of Chiefs. The final straw was the invasion of Holma by the Rab'ka, allowing the invaders to surround what remained of the Federation.

Pfwill's Gambit

Main Article:Pfwill's Gambit

Desperate for a real victory, the Captain-General of the Federation army, Pwfill, drew every man he could back from the fortifications along the Scarippa and Cairncourse and marched for the Ivory Bridge over the Scarippa at Blessed Hollow. Over the three weeks prior to his army's arrival, the garrison at Blessed Hollow feigned desertions and defections, encouraging the Rab'ka to attempt a crossing right into Pfwill's ambush.

After destroying the Rab'ka at the crossing, Pfwill marched north, winning a series of victories before finally meeting the full might of the Rab'ka outside of Lausicz. The Federation's army was surrounded and destroyed, and Pfwill himself committed suicide rather than surrender.

Following Pfwill's defeat, the Council of Chiefs surrendered to the Rab'ka unconditionally.

"Power Beyond Measure"

Although there has been settlement in Pfwillic since the earliest days of human habitation on Drowlto VI, it was The Rab'ka Invasions that created a true world-class culture, as the elite of the now-broken Federation of Gat quickly aligned itself with The Righteous Abode. In so doing, an entirely new and unique culture was created.

Collapse of the Rab'ka in the East : The Snadaq

Indeed, it was a descendant of Pfwill who is said to have set into motion the events now universally recognized as the snadaq.

The Growth of Modern Pfwillic

With the plains of the south and highlands of the north reunited, the state now dubbed Pfwillic took shape.

Government

Pfwillic is a parliamentary democracy.

Category:Drowlto VI Category:Pfwillic