Senikun of Santochi

The Senikun of Santochi (formerly Confederation), also known simply as Santochi (San-TO-shi) is a nation in the South-West of Eldham, in the North East of Arsine and South-East of Astios. Santochi is located between Ravenguard and the AWE around Lake Chelon. It is named after the former nations of Santochi and the Confederation of Chelon following their merge in the Summer of 103 SMP (13/11/2021).

Origins
The founding cities of Langlade, Vasenkyo and Harajuku, while their origins are uncertain, predates the formation of Santochi as a single state. The only thing we know for sure is that they were small commercial outposts created to secure the chelon Strait, a necessary passage to go through for the naval commercial routes going from the Aquine Sea to Onthukhan.

Santochi
After fleeing from the old nation of Omsk, Knowone went to southern AWE, where he stumbled completely by chance on Vasenkyo. He received help from a particular nomad known as Wareagle, who helped him reform the city. Following some radical changes, he began reaching out diplomatically with the neighboring lands to acheive formal independence. Weeks later he finally acheived independence with the payment of $50,000 to the city of Bostad, naming the new nation Santochi in the Winter of 76 SMP (26/07/2021).

Confederation of Chelon
The modern history of the southern Chelon Lake coast began when a merchant named ImReallyExited became mayor of Langlade in the Winter of 77 SMP (30/07/2021) after having left Vasenkyo. Following his job change, he recruited everyone he could to help him develop the former outpost. Jakon Snakoza played an integral part in shaping the town into the city it is today. A change in the city's foreign policy led to tensions and later war between Santochi and the self-proclaimed Republic of Langlade, which ended in a draw. However, all this sudden noise in the territory of GoonGuard caught attention of the emperors, who demanded a formal annexation of Langlade. Erupto, who became president following the retirement of Exited, had no choice but to accept.

What became the Confederation of Chelon gained independence from Ravenguard in the Winter of 98 SMP (22/10/2021), under the name of the Republic of Cyris-Otello-Langlade(COL) following negotiations between Ravenguard's officials and Erupto, who was joined by MrAnanas and SucculentSauce.

Chelon Civil War
Autumn 100 SMP - Autumn 110 SMP (02/11/2021-12/12/2021)

Pre-conflict tensions
Following the formation of COL, tensions rose between the cities of Langlade and Cyris, and Kantara, due to Kantara's leader, Mr Ananas attempting to act outside of his powers in the constitution and consolidate power. On the 2nd of November, the senators Erupto, Specialsnacc, MrBlazeBlue, ThoughtfulWorm, Alan Becker, and SucculentSauce arrested Mr Ananas and put him on trial for treason and attempting to subvert democracy. Ananas was declared guilty, and it was demanded that he pays off 10k of debt and hand over the city of Kantarra to the COL government, but fled and declared war against Cyris and Langlade. Cyris and Langlade formed the Confederation of Chelon (COC) and a small skirmish followed, beginning the Chelon Civil War.

Siege of Kantara
The Siege of Kantara saw an army of the COC and AWE march on Kantara, breaching and taking the city with no casualties on their part. Ananas faced 100k in war reparations and the handing over of the city of Kantara, but instead fled the state and went into hiding, refusing to give up control. The following peace period saw a close relationship being formed between Chelon and the AWE, with several citizens receiving dual citizenship. During this time the neighbouring Santochi government proposed a merger due to the perceived strength of Chelon, which led to the two nations forming the Confederation of Santochi, in hopes that together they could fight off all future invaders.

Battle of Cyris
On the 6th of December, Mr Ananas had formed an army of 27 soldiers, a mix of mercenaries and Goonguard volunteers, but they were there based on lies. In the city of Cyris, an army of AWE volunteers and the Confederation of Santochi Militia gathered to defend with only 13 people. The following battle was a bloodbath with 25 Santochi casualties and just 5 of the Kantara force. Cyris was looted and damaged significantly with the city soon falling into disrepair after the battle was lost. Following their defeat in battle, the Confederation joined the AWE under protectorate status, but by the 7th, the majority of the Kantara force had realised they had been lied to and declared the result void, resulting in a diplomatic victory for Santochi and Ananas being banned from his former country.

Seizing of Kantara
In the Autumn of 110 SMP (Dec 12th), Santochi declared victory when they walked into the collapsed city of Kantara, which was found abandoned. Shortly after, the city was looted and demolished with the ground being salted and buildings reduced to rubble. This would mark the only continuous conflict in Santochi's history.

AWE Protectorate Era
Spring 109 SMP - Spring 119 SMP (06/12/2021-15/01/2022)

Following their defeat at the Battle of Cyris, Santochi decided to join the AWE in the Spring of 209 SMP as a protectorate until stability could be restored to the nation.

Shinshina Purchase
During this period GoonGuard agreed to sell the peninsula to the East of Harajuku (formerly Cyris) to the Santochi government. The peninsula is mountainous, but gave Santochi an Eastern coast, meaning the AWE and GoonGuard no longer shared that border.

AWE-Plagatean “War”
Due to the nature of Santochi's protectorate status, the AWE called on the Confederation and other allies to aid in the AWE's war against the Sapphire Commonwealth and Plagatea. Santochi had to follow the AWE's lead and declare war on the 31/12/2021. The conflict was peacefully resolved a few weeks later.

Independence
In the Spring of 119 SMP (15/01/2022) ten years after Santochi agreed to become an AWE protectorate, the Confederation of Santochi declared independence. The AWE and Santochi agreed to an alliance, which would take effect following Santochi’s independence. The Treaty of Kantara was signed in the Winter of 119 SMP (14/01/2022), formalising the alliance.

Independence Period
Santochi began reaching out to other like-minded nations following its independence. Santochi singed non-aggression pacts with the Republic of Nova Azcoria, and the Grand Duchy of Bannatyne. Despite this diplomacy, Santochi's progress was slow following their independence. That was until, a group of AWE citizens based in Fairhaven, requested to join Santochi as their own province, Elathaven. This boost in population helped get Santochi back on track, and it began carrying out further diplomacy. This led to the Confederation joining the United Eldham Democratic Accords.

Revival
As Santochi grew its number, several new settlements were founded. Bluebell, was one such settlement, built around a circle of stones in the Southern plains of Santochi by RanWithAPlan. Another settlement, the Lost Colony, built on icebergs floating on the Aquine Sea not far West of Langlade, was found by Jakon Snakoza following a diplomatic mission to Bannatyne. The Colony was founded by Bobector, who previously fled the AWE forests West of Vasenkyo. Bobector agreed to come under the Santochi banner, becoming the Westernmost outpost of the Confederation. The fastest growing minor town is Salokad, or Sun Gate in Santochii, which was founded by the Langladian, Tornotkk with the help of Saro Snakoza. With the influx of new towns and citizens, Santochi moved towards administering its settlements under a province system. The cities of Vasenkyo and Harajuku, along with Salokad and Bluebell formed the province Juko, the largest by land area. Meanwhile, Xelon Province would encompass Langlade, Jenoverd and the Lost Colony. Elathaven's only settlement is Vrijdagistan.

Coup d'état of 160 SMP, also known as the "Erupt'hour"
During the fifth Senate elections, some opposition formed after the vote of several inactive citizens, all for the SPQF party. This debate split the nation in half and after the results were revealed, the relative opposition turned into full-blown violent protests and several cities threatening of seceding from the Confederation. Seeing this, the Syndicate senator Erupto Tarnokku, who also founded the nation, decided to stage a coup (without the approval of his party this time) on his nation for the second time, and arrested his fellow senators, declaring a state of emergency and trying to contain the protests to avoid a Second Civil War. Naturally, this sudden move and the widespread use of censorship was very impopular amongst the Senators enemies who called for the return of the Senate. General Padawan Markus even went as far as declaring martial law in the areas he controlled, mostly around the military facilities, as he saw the coup as the path to a Civil War. During this time, Erupto gathered all the different city and party leaders to discuss about agreements and the return of free elections, and after several days of debate, agreements were reached. Erupto then stepped down from his mediator role but keeping his seat, and freed the other Santors, who agreed on implementing of executives who would be in charge of the ministries, and promising changes on how the elections will work from there.

Name change
During the Fifth Senate, which saw the implementation of a new electoral system, it was pointed out that the Confederation of Santochi wasn't actually run as a confederation but rather as a unitary state. This is why Senator ThoughtfullWorm and Executive Erupto launched a national debate to find a new name. It was Saro Snakoza's proposition that was chosen as the new official name : Senikun of Santochi (An equivalent of Republic in Santoxi).

Geography
The Confederation of Santochi is located in North-East Arsine and South-East Astios in Eldham, bordering Googurad by the south and AWE by the north. It is located on the eastern shore of the Aquine Sea and surrounds almost entirely Lake Chelon.

Governing Structure
The Confederation of Santochi government has a unicameral legislature : the Senate, made up of a varying number of Senators elected every 6 weeks, with two per province. There is officially not a single head of state, the entire Senate is the head of State.

First Senate
Formed immediately after the merge between Santochi and the Confederation of Chelon, the Senate was made up of six people: Erupto, Worm, Jakon Snakoza, Alan Becker, Prime Mini, and Adventurejoe24. Additionally, at the time Santochi had a bicameral legislature, with the Council being made of three Consuls: Knowone, Weagle, and MrBlazeBlue.

The First Senate was considered somewhat of a provisional government as it presided over Santochi during the Chelon Civil War, and was made up of members of the previous two nation's governments. During this time MrBlazeBlue and AdventureJoe retired, with Worm taking Blaze's seat on the council. The First Senate was dissolved in the Spring of 113 SMP (22/12/2021) for elections which saw two seats open.

Second Senate
The Second Senate was formed in the Winter of 114 SMP (25/12/2021) following the elections the previous year. The newly formed Monarchist Party took one of the vacant seats under Senator Conquerer, while the second vacancy was filled by Yoshiah of the Market Liberals.

Third Senate
The Third Senate formed following the elections in the Winter of 128 SMP (19/02/2022), which saw a full election of the Senate. The Monarchist Party lost its seat, with the second Harajuku seat going to Gray of the Market Libertarian Party. Yoshiah, Erupto and Snaku all kept their seats, but both Vasenkyo seats swapped hands, with the longstanding Senators Alan and Prime Mini losing to an independent TheBigPig, and Katyusha of the Syndicate.

During this period Santochi began to stagnate and several officials resigned. This included Gray, Yoshiah, TheBigPig, Katyusha, Worm, and Knowone. This left just Weagle, Erupto and Snakoza as active officials.

Fourth Senate
The Fourth Senate formed following the elections which concluded in the Winter of 143 SMP (20/04/2022). This election saw province-based voting, with the three provinces being Xelon, Juko, and the newly formed Elathaven. The race was close in Elathaven, with nearly all members of the Province putting themselves forward as candidates of the new SPQF Party. While originally allocated two seats, Elathaven gained three senators: Breasts, Portelli, and Vermulst. Both Juko seats were left unfilled, however, Tiger1S2K got 100% of the vote despite withdrawing from the race as he wished to continue his military career.

During the Fourth Senate, the Council was abolished, giving Santochi a unicameral legilsature. Nearing the end of the Fourth Senate, it has been suggested that Santochi has entered a period of revival. The Fourth Senate is set to dissolve during the Summer of 160 SMP for elections.

Fifth Senate
The Fifth Senate formed in the winter of 160 SMP and saw a return to nation-based elections, under a Single Transferable Vote system (STV). The Senate was composed of 4 SPQF senators : Braerts, Portelli, Vermulst and Nabben, one Syndicate Senator: Saro Snakoza, and one Daikucho Party Senator: Tosa Sasabe. After only a few hours, Erupto decided on his own accord to coup the Senate, known as the Erupt'Hour, but all the Senators were eventually released after making agreements with the other leaders.

The Confederal Syndicate of Labour (Syndicate)
The Syndicate is a far-left broad-church libertarian socialist to democratic socialist political party fighting against colonialism, oppression, and worker exploitation. It merged with the Socialist Republican Party to form a united left alliance. The Syndicate promotes liberty, tolerance, and equality, through collectively owned farms and enterprises. The Syndicate is a member party of the Socialist International of Rathnir and Eldham.

The Daichuko Party (Harajuku Daichuko Riberaru party)
The Daichuko Party are a centre-right political party. They are the second oldest party in Santochi. They aim for economic reform in the form of pushing for a free market as well as the taxation and protection against foreign corporations by the government. The current leader of the party ,ThoughtfullWorm, was also the head of the East Arsine Trading Company, a trade company situated in south west Eldham focused on creating connections between traders as well as the construction of trade hubs.

Socialist Republican Party (Defunct)
The Socialist Republican Party (or SocRep) was a far left party advocating for common ownership of the means on production, and the eradication of capitalism. The SocReps merged with the Syndicate following the realisation that the two Parties shared the same goals and principles.

Monarchist Party
The Monarchist Party is a right-wing authoritarian political party advocating for Santochi to become a parliamentary monarchy, with a single state religion, and Prime Minister. The Monarchists formed shortly before the elections for the Second Senate, but have in recent years faded into irrelevance, forwarding no candidates in the elections for the Fourth Senate.

Senatus Populus que Fairhavenus (SPQF)
The SPQF is a right-wing political party based in the province of Elathaven. Formed shortly before the elections for the Fourth Senate, the SPQF does not have clear positions or policies.

Jollypoggers Party (Defunct)
The Jollypoggers Party was a self-proclaimed centrist party, based on the principle of random chance. In essence, it advocated that decisions should be taken through random chance, such as through rolling dice. It officially merged by its leader, Buchiski, with the SPQF party following the elections of the Fifth Senate on Monday 27th 2022

Individualist Party
(WIP)

Anarchist Party
The Anarchist Party advocates for a Mutualist society, whereby the state is dissolved, and replaced with self-governing free associations of individuals, where private property is abolished, and artisans freely create and trade their products on a market.

Santochi Socialist Party (SSP)
The Santochi Socialist Party is a sub-party of the Syndicate based in the town of Salokad. One of the defining characteristics setting it apart from the broader Syndicate movement is anticlericalism.

Moderate Party (Defunct)
The Moderate Party was a self-proclaimed centrist party, mixing the ideas of the Daikucho Party and the SPQF. The Moderates dissolved within a day of forming. The leader, Johne, joined the Monarchist Party

Langlade
Taken over by ImReallyExited, Vanuxx and specialsnacc on the 30/07/2021. The town follows an early industrial European architectural style. Urbanization is concentrated on the northern side of the Langlade Peninsula, with more agricultural land uses on the southern side.

Representation in the Senate : Erupto, Jakon Snaku.

The District Council, based in the Municipal Hall, is dominated by the Syndicate, governing the town since before the formation of COL. This has allowed rapid development of free public housing, the Langlade Brewing Coop, and expansive communal farms.

Climate and Geography : Langlade is the western-most city of Santochi, with Lake Chelon to the East, and the Aquine Sea along its western coastline. The local climate is temperate and humid, with the native vegetation primarily made up of coniferous woodlands, but urbanization radiating from the Northern tip caused significant levels of deforestation. With several lowlying areas being almost completely surounded by water, Langlade can produce large quantities of food due to fertile soils, despite being the smallest district by land area.

Economy : Langlade is dominated by the primary and secondary sectors. The primary sector consists mostly of horticulture, agriculture, forestry and mining, while the secondary sector is predominantly focussed on brewing and commodity processing, such as smelting and food processing. Finally, the construction inductry is significant in Langlade, due to its increasing urbanization and industrialization, and therefore is supported by the other industries due to its resource-intensive nature.

Harajuku
Harajuku, (formerly Cyris) is the second eastern-most settlement of Santochi, not directly on the shores of Lake Chelon, but with easy water access to the North of the city. The city was renamed following the battle of Cyris following the damage endured during the battle and the reconstruction that followed. The construction has primarily been undertaken by ThoughtfulWorm, transitioning the town from a European Baroque style architecture to a more Japanese-themed one as more Santochi setlers moved from Vasenkyo bringing there culture and ideas. To mark the 1 year anniversary of Langlade and Vasenkyo was built a gigantic Government complex in front of the sea, housing many offices, the Senate Chamber and a reception hall.

The former ruler of the town, SucculentSauce was the first High Seer and Saint of the Holy Sect of Terranianism. Notable events during this time period included Saint ThoughtfullWorm, Grand Architect of Cyris, beginning the construction on the grand temple of Cyris, which is now destroyed, as well as the establishment of the EATC (East Arsine Trading Company).

Vasenkyo


Vasenkyo has seen the most consistent and complete development, reflected by it formerly housing the largest population. Located on the northern shores of Lake Chelon and bordering the AWE to the North, Vasenkyo follows a simple Japanese theme within its impressive surrounding walls. Sadly, its former ruler, Knowone, died in the Chelon Civil War and the city was taken over by Weagle.

Jenoverd
Following the conclusion of the Chelon Civil War, Santochi began the construction of a new fort to protect the Confederation in future conflicts. An island on the western coast was chosen due to its strategic location at the mouth of lake Chelon, able to control the passage through the Chelon Strait.

As of the time of writing, the fort's construction is paused due to Lieutenant Lolrobbe's retirement.

Salokad
Salokad is a small village built on the Xenxina Peninsula, East of Harajuku. It is a Japanese-styled village, surrounded by the Shenshina Mountains. At the top of the mountains stands the ruined Shenshina temple, built during the Protectorate Era. The newest district of Salokad is located on a polder just at the bottom of the stairs leading to the temple.

Sudarenko
In an attempt to develop the southern territories of Santochi, the Senate decided to give to the new citizen RanWithaPlan their own city : Bluebell. However after its initial house and mushroom, the city was soon abandoned. The Senate decided to try with another person and create Oakemold, but not only did they not build anything, but they destroyed the surrounding landscape. Executive Erupto, after studying what could be done with the terrain, decided to merge the two settlement into one : Sudarenko. The city is to be of a European style, housing the SNBC HQ, alongside with a small river port controlling trade routes through said river, as it goes trhough Arsine and connects 2 seas.

Geography
Juko is the largest province by land area, taking up the majority of Santochi's mainland. Juko covers the North and East of Santochi, and has a warmer arid climate. The deserts of GoonGuard lie to the South-East of Juko, while the Xenxina mountains shelter Juko from the lake to the East providing much of the provinces water. The plains stretch across most of Juko, on both the Eastern shores of Lake Xelon, and to the border with the AWE North of Vasenkyo. A band of dark oak forest stretches across the centre of the province, on the eastern side of the river.

Socio-Cultural Aspects
Juko contains both Harajuku and Vasenkyo, putting all of Old Santochi within its borders. Despite having two major towns, Juko has a smaller population of primary residents, although rising in recent years. Juko has perhaps the most distinctive cultural identity. Originating in Vasenkyo, Harajuku soon adopted the architectural style as new settlers came in, most the former citizens having died during the battle of Cyris. Vasenkyo architecture features distinctive white walls, and multi-layered blue-green roofs towering into the sky. Meanwhile in Harajuku, adapting to the local resources, features layered roofs of darker tiles, primarily blackstone and deepslate, while mimicking the multi-layered roofs, and spacious houses to allow airflow. Due to its proximity to the lake the Santochi people have created a range of fish based dishes as well as become master seafairers leading to this area being known for its trade and markets.

Geography
Xelon (named after Lake Xelon) covers the South and West of Santochi, featuring a more temperate and more humid climate due to the lack of shelter from the Xenxina mountains in the East. The Aquine Sea makes up the Western border of Santochi, with the winds bringing higher levels of precipitation than the sheltered Eastern stretches of Santochi. This cooler climate gave rise to the coniferous woodlands, which formerly covered the entirety of the Island of Langlade, but now just cover the Southern portion. This same woodland can be seen along the Western border of Juko Province, just to the North of Langlade, with Vasenkyo on one side, and the coniferous woodland to the other. Several islands on the Aquine Sea are also part of Xelon, notably Jeno Xetoxi and the smaller To-Abe-Xelon (Rock of Xelon Mouth). Other parts of Xelon include Xetoxikrad, and the Lost Colony, a settlement on an iceberg in the Aquine see.

Socio-Cultural Aspects
Langlade is the primary and oldest settlement of Xelon Province, with Jenoverd on the island of Jeno being the base of the Confederal Militia. Langlade has a less ordered architectural style, with houses crammed together on winding streets, helping to deal with the cooler climate. Houses are typically made from timber frames, with whitewashed, clay walls, being a common occurrence in the town centre, while further out, walls are typically made of exposed oak wood. Particularly on the Southern shores of Lake Xelon, diorite stone walls are more common. Throughout the town, roofs are typically made of dark oak, and are gently sloping often with no discernible pattern. A low-lying area on the centre of the island holds fertile soils, which has allowed Langlade to sustain its development and has helped give Langlade the largest population of all the towns. Sandstone can be seen in Xeloni architecture, typically only used for important structures, with the Langlade Hall being the first to be built of this material in Santochi. More recently, the construction of Xelon Kolajd (Chelon College) on the East of the island also saw extensive use of sandstone. Built by the Snakoza's, the structure was in part a way of experimenting with the use of sandstone before the construction of the Senate could be undertaken. Being the second oldest area of Santochi, the Langlade Peninsula has a distinctive culture, having for example as a regional dish the Langlane Sea Goulash : It it primarily uses fish and potatoes, two very common ingredients in Langlade, and is cooked with beer. It is mostly consumed by the working class of the region, although many travellers and merchant enjoy eating it in taverns.

Elathaven Province
Elathaven is more so a political and cultural part of Santochi than a Geographic area. Made up of primarily AWE dual ncitizens based in the town of Fairhaven of the AWE, Elathaven's primary settlement is the town of Vrijdagistan, an island on Lake Ela to the North of the Santochi mainland.

Language
The primary language in Santochi is the Santoxi language (the x is pronounced sh) and has very diverse influences due to it being at a crossroads between several continents and great powers. Although Santoxii is the only official language of the country, the southern and less connected parts of the country speak in a slightly different language known as Southern Santoshi : they write "sh" instead of "x" and make almost no oral difference between "an" and "en".



Religion
The Senikun of Santochi does not have any state religion, and the majority of the Santoxi population is atheist -which is extremely rare in Eldham-, although the Elathaven citizens tend to worship a local god known as Vridag, a gigantic Salmon-shrimp.