Faction overview: Ursus
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Administration and politics
Royal court
The Ursine government is an absolute monarchy ruled by the Emperor (Царь; Tsar). Nourished by its military background, The Ursine emperor is also the absolute head of the Ursine military who executes the “will of Ursus.”
The Ursine aristocracy (дворянство; dvoryanstvo) are made up of military fighters and industrial entrepreneurs. The system originated from its military awards to those who achieved great achievements in the wars. During the reign of Emperor Vladimir, industrial renovations were encouraged, leading to the rise of the new noble class that could balance the power of the military. The two-class system results in rivalry between the two factions, but the border has been blurred since the Great Rebellion; military leaders start to invest in Originium refinery industries whereas young entrepreneurs willingly join the military to promote their status.[1]
Similar with the neighboring Terran heartland nations, Ursus possesses an aristocratic hierarchy. These peerages are:
- Prince/Kniaz (Князь)
- Grand Duke/Velikiy Gercog (Великий Герцог)
- Marquis/Markiz (Маркиз)
- Count/Graf (Граф)
- Baron (Барон)
Ursus State Council
The Ursus State Council (Урсус Госуда́рственный Сове́т; Ursus Gosudárstvennyj Sovét) is the central government of Ursus, serving as both the legislative branch and the supreme state advisory body to the Emperor. It was established shortly after the failed First Ursus-Kazimierz War as part of Ursus’ early military reform. In the beginning, some of the Council members were retired officers or nobles who held military positions, but intellectuals of the aristocracies are slowly gaining the upper ground in recent years.[2]
Members of the State Council come from two different backgrounds: The upper house formed by aristocrats appointed by the Emperor, and the lower house made up of representatives elected by municipal government or recommended by the Emperor. And for a long time, the military actually had the right to interfere with the State Council due to its absolute power. The aristocrats’ upper house only started to gain actual power after a large number of local industrialists were recommended as members in recent years, especially after the Great Rebellion that stripped off the military’s power. Nevertheless, decisions made by the State Council must always be approved by the Emperor, who serves as the head of the Council.[2]
Military
The Ursus Army (Урсус Армия; Ursus Ármiya), full name the Ursus Imperial Guards (Урсус Импера́торская Гвардия; Ursus Imperátorskaya Gvárdija), is the military body of Ursus and the absolute body of the Ursine government. Owing to its militarist foundation, the Ursine military leaders strongly value their soldiers by treating them as the source of their political power. The Imperial Guards are further divided into fronts (фронт) that act independently under the command of their own respective generals. While the front system allows them to quickly recruit their soldiers to a number of millions within a short period of time, it has a severe loophole in which the soldiers are directly under the generals’ command, not the Emperor, which has resulted in several rebellions against the royal court. There used to be nine fronts, but after the annihilation of the Sixth and Eighth Army during the Great Rebellion, there are only seven fronts left.[1]
Ursine soldiers are composed of well-trained shieldgurads and artillerymen. The enhancement of large drones and domestication of fierce manglebeasts aid their soldiers in the battlefields. Specialized Casters are trained in special schools to enhance military Originium Arts. Along with them comes their specialized troops – the Wendigos, a Sarkaz tribe of the Royal Court, but most of them are treated as powerful pawns. Because of its immense use of armored troops and heavy artillery, the Ursine troops have left an impression on others by depicting them as barbaric warriors trampling civilizations.
- First Army: The front that supported the loyalists during the Great Rebellion.
- Second Army: One of the fronts usually stationed at the western borders. During the Great Rebellion, they were dispatched from the border to aid the loyalists at the siege of Deity Grypherburg.
- Third Army: The front under the joint leadership of Grand Duke Baikal and Viscount Kerque. They were known to have secretly manipulated Reunion and infiltrated Chernobog in order to ignite a war against Yan. Upon their failure, the leaders committed suicide to avoid political purge.[3]
- Fourth Army: The front led by Grand Duke Vanya known for participating in the Bloodpeak Campaign and siding with the loyalists during the Great Rebellion.
- Fifth Army: The front that acted as the vanguard of the loyalists during the Great Rebellion.
- Sixth Army: The front known for participating in the Bloodpeak Campaign and being the perpetrator of the Great Rebellion. It was later annihilated by the joint forces of the Forth and Fifth Armies. The Sixth was forever removed from the order, and the Ninth took the vacant seat.[1]
- Seventh Army: One of the fronts usually stationed at the western borders but was dispatched to aid the loyalists during the siege of Deity Grypherburg. It has replaced the position of the annihilated Eighth Army.
- Eighth Army: One of the fronts that sided with the Sixth during the Great Rebellion but was later annihilated. It has since been removed from the military with the Seventh replacing its position
- Ninth Army: The former front that later took over the vacant seat of the Sixth after the Great Rebellion.[1]
Emperor's Blades
- Main article: Emperor's Blade
Judiciary
While the Ursine Emperor is the head of state, martial law is the absolute body of the nation’s constitution. Oftentimes, the Ursine military conducts purges in the name of martial laws, or they could just threaten the aristocrats simply in the name of violating martial laws. The martial court is usually overseen by a military leader or a nobleman.[4]
Outside of the military law comes the civic courts. Each Ursine nomadic city has its own city laws, police, and judges. On the other hand, the civic court is not independent; the Emperor, the aristocrats, and the military have the right to interfere with the legal process, though the Emperor’s interference is often a rare case aside from royal pardons and diplomatic negotiations among the nobles.[4]
Administrative divisions
Ursine land administration is divided into oblasts (область), or provinces. Each oblast is formed by several nomadic cities and sedentary settlements. The head of the oblast is the governor of the oblast who is appointed by the Emperor, and the oblast council is the head of the government formed by various noblemen who own a nomadic city.
Aside from the oblasts, there are the territories (край; krai) that are out of the control of the oblast council. These territories are usually administered by the military under their martial law. During the reign of Emperor Vladimir, territories were given to military leaders as their own fiefdom, which further expanded Ursus’ border.[4]
Geography
In terms of topography, the west of Ursus is made up of lowlands whereas its eastern part is composed of mountain ranges, forming a terrace-like landscape. A long strip of temperate steppe is located in its south which possesses a milder winter.[2] Much of the population lives in a much warmer lowland in the central region.[5]o the west of Ursus bordering Sami is a frigid lake named Lake Kolossal, the lake from which the Kolossal Prime Vein is named after, and the tundra is close to the Mrykwood of central Sami, but there is no clear defined borders due to the forests’ constant changing in location.[6]
The Ursine biome is mostly made up of tundra that is frozen year-round due to its proxy to the Infy Icefield. Because of the frigid climate, the northern part is unsuitable for agricultural activities. Nevertheless, the cultivation of "mossoats," a kind of moss bearing cereal-like spores that could survive in the winter, becomes prominent in the region, but its insatiable harvest due to its minute quantity and its complicating method in cultivation cause the region to be prone to mass famine.
Much of Ursus’s land are the direct consequence of its military expansionism against it neighbours. Despite owning large swamps of land, much of them remain undeveloped and barren due to its climates.[2]
Economy
Ursus relies on two heavy industries: weapon manufacturing and Originium mining and refinery. These two help support Ursus’ military expansion. Much of the industries are centralized at the capital of Deity Grypherburg. Following suit is the eastern part of Ursus where factories could be found in each nomadic city.
The western part is regarded as the least developed region due to its constant warfare against neighboring countries, but the region is rich in Originium ores due to its proxy to the Kolossal Prime Veins. These mines are mostly owned by the military, and soldiers often enslave the Infected to extract the mineral before being delivered to refineries in the central and eastern parts.[5]
Demographics
Ursus has a total population of 80,000,000 people. It is predominated by the Ursus race, but there are other races whose origin could be traced back to slaves of the Hippogryph dynasty. At one point, racism was predominant, but after Emperor Vladimir initiated a nationalistic program, other races had the privilege to become a noble simply by serving in the military.[7] A few Hippogryphs still survive and could be found in the aristocratic circle.
Social status is prominent in Ursus. Those who dwell in the temperate central region are made up of middle-class and the aristocratic, whereas the barren western region is composed of enslaved Infected working in mines and lower-classed soldiers. Treatment of the Infected is the worst as they are viewed as the lowest in social hierarchy, leading to constant purges and massacres upon them.[7]
Culture
The Ursine culture has long been famous for its brass nature, such as warmongering, beer-drinking, and physical might, which result in countless stereotypes across Terra. However, Ursine culture does possess a soft side noted by its literature, drama, and folk songs. Especially during the reign of Emperor Vladimir, dramas and novels that fantasized Igor the Great were prominent, many of which came with a strong propaganda vibe, and these epics almost drove realist literatures to extinction at one time.
In recent years, there is a trend of pop culture among the youth as Ursus tries to reprimand their relationships with neighboring countries. These teenagers greatly admire foreign cultures from Columbia and Kazimierz. However, the movement is usually suppressed by the officials, so they have to obtain video tapes and discs in underground markets.[7]
Yurodstvo
The Yurodstvo (Юродство; lit. “Holy Fool”) is a holy figure in the Ursine faith who even shares equal political power with the Emperor. The Ursi believe that the Yurodstvo possesses immense wisdom despite possessing maniacal behaviors, and they see his wisdom coming from countless trials testing his nature of humanity. Legend says that only one man who finally passed the test was crowned with the sacred title.[7]
However, the Yurodstvo actually comes from a rather horrible origin: he is in fact a sage who was corrupted by the demons of the north, aka. the Collapsals, but was able to restrain their psychic power under a mysterious ritual despite his mind being long corrupted. The Yurodstvo's psychic power is able to trespass the laws of physics to enhance his demonic power. Because of this, the Ursine royal court has to keep him within the palace. On the other hand, his special trait allows the Emperor to extract fragments of the demons, replicate the ritual, and create their infamous supersoldiers – the Emperor's Blades.[8]
References
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