Federal Republic of Cognia

Cognia, officially the Federal Republic of Cognia, is a nation located in the Northeastern corner of Eldham. It was formally established after the dissolution of the Ellysian Empire during the Second Coalition-Ellysian War. The nation was dissolved when it merged with Garxijos Yawos to form the Confederation of Garxijos on July 21st, 2021, but re-emerged following the dissolution of the latter on 22 January, 2022.

Founding
The first city that comprises modern day Cognia is named Buchwych. It is unknown precisely when it was established, but it was located in a mesa and originally named Korkh by the local natives. On May 31st, 2021 the area became a colony of Solisios upon being discovered by a settler named UNK_MER. It was subsequently renamed to its modern name of Buchwych, which now serves as the de facto capital of Cognia.

Expansion of Buchwych and Establishing of Whitpoint
The newly migrated settlers to Buchwych started construction on the mesa's many plateaus which allowed for natural protection from invaders and banditry. This however would be a fruitless endeavor as bandits eventually started finding their way onto the top of these plateaus and started carrying out numerous bandit raids of Buchwych. The bandits were eventually fought off and the city became more developed, allowing for these attacks to be prevented all together.

With a new sense of tranquility in the city, homes and structures began popping up en masse and new residents came to the city. Eventually, one member named urmumcantswim left the city of Buchwych and founded the city of Whitpoint. The two cities were aptly connected by a bridge.

Ellysian Annexation and Liberation
After the end of the First Coalition-Ellysian War, the powerful Ellysian Empire was banished to the sparsely populated Northeastern corner of the map. While this liberated many peoples, it put Buchwych in direct harms way. After the Ellysians began to expand their newly grasped territories in an imperialistic mannerism, they annexed Buchwych without consulting them first and ignored any claims that they did not own them. This resulted in them existing in a gray area under direct unofficial control of the Ellysian Empire for an extended duration of time.

When the Second Coalition-Ellysian War broke out, the Second Coalition (now known as the Anti-Radical Syndicate) fought back the Ellysian Empire and dissolved it. After this, the former Ellysian territory was split into five administrative zones that were governed by nations that assisted in the war effort. Buchwych and Whitpoint were located within Zone Three, and after talks with the governors of the zone which hailed from the United Socialist States of Eldham, they were permitted to start anew with their nation and finally establish the Federal Republic of Cognia without opposition.

Government
Cognia's government was a direct democracy that was headed by three de facto leaders, known as Ombudsmen. Elections would take place every three months. Each month, one umbudsman would take the spot as the "main leader" of Cognia, despite technically being on the same level as the other ombudsmen, who would act as a way to balance the leadership. Cognia, after its independence was gained, only lasted two months before being merged with Gaxijos, forming the Confederation of Garxijos. This meant that only one election was ever held in its existence. Regardless, after the government overthrow months after the merger, the new COG government would adopt the principles of the original Cognian government.

Geography
Cognia is mostly located within mesas and savannahs cut by occasional rivers. It is located in the interior of a thick bay on the continent. The nation comprises of two cities being Buchwych and Whitpoint. To the West lays the nation of Garxijos Yawos and to the East lays unclaimed territory.

Religion
The religion of Cognia is known as Narism, a branch of Lux that believes in the pursuit of knowledge under the guidance of the light goddess, Lux.

Vexillology
The flag of Cognia features white in the center with two small dark red stripes to both the left and right sections of the banner. In the middle is a symbol originating from Lux to show their close connection to it.

Etymology
The name of Cognia is derived from the root word, "cognitus", which may have come from the mysterious language of the Korkhs. The word cognitus translates roughly to "to know". This word was chosen due to the branch of Lux, Narism, being based on knowledge, hence Cognia. Future players would later misinterpret the name of Cognia as referring to literal cogs. This new interpretation of the name "Cognia" would ultimately become the basis for the theme of the Confederation of Garxijos (often abbreviated as COG). This would even be embraced by Cognia's capital and founding city of Buchwych, which began to feature cogs prominently on its buildings.