Confederation of Garxijos

The Confederation of Garxijos, abbreviated to COG or The COG, is a nation located in northeast Eldham. It is the largest directly-democratic nation in Eldham according to land area and population. The COG was formed after the successful unification of the nations of Garxijos Yawos and Cognia, and it has since expanded to encompass large portions of former Grand Farencia, Helsia, Druk Yul, and other regions. The Confederation's allies include the Empire of Aristios, Urak, Simulami, Rodinnbrok, Yuvaria, the United Socialist States of Eldham, the Confederation of Anarchist Communes, and the Grand Duchy of Rhine. The COG's President is Buoyo and its Chancellor is SerfBort.

Etymology
The word "Garxijos" means people or persons in the Lo'Oi language, the native language brought to the area after the Second Coalition-Ellysian War. The name Garxijos is derived from the preceding nation, Garxijos Yawos.

Background
After the end of the Second Coalition-Ellysian War, the area that had been previously controlled by the Ellysian Empire was freed and placed under temporary governorship of Regnum Drakaes, with the zone that includes most of the modern Confederation of Garxijos being governed by the United Socialist States of Eldham. Eventually, the peoples in the zone negotiated independence and thusly declared four new nations in the zone—two of which were Garxijos Yawos and Cognia.

Over time, diplomatic relations between the two new nations steadily increased until a proposition was put forward by both nations' leaders. This proposition stipulated that the two nations would unify into a single state as equal partners, maintaining a similar degree of influence on the fledgling nation.

Establishment of the Confederation
On July 17, 2021, the process of unifying Garxijos Yawos and Cognia began, and on July 21, the merger became official. The two nations formed into the Confederation of Garxijos with Garxeto as its capital city.

Fall of Grand Farencia
On July 25, following the fall of Grand Farencia due to the Farencian War, the entirety of Farencian lands were ceded to Druk Yul. Chaos erupted in the lands as claims and jurisdictions overlapped in the region, leading to ever-changing zones of control. Wanting to restore order and stability to the region, leaders of the Confederation, under Infrastructure Minister Buoyo's command, decided to purchase the land for the Confederation.

After nearly week of negotiation between Druk Yul, former Farencians, and fellow Garxians, the purchase became official on August 1st. As a result, the Confederation's land area doubled and the population of the Confederation rose sharply as new players from former Farencia became Garxians.

The GULF Coup
After the series of debates regarding the legitimacy of the government, a group of five frustrated citizens including Buoyo (GULF leader), Unit Nereus Kanurd (Cognian leader), and Robraph (Chancellor), formed the Garxijos United Liberation Front (GULF). GULF was established as an anti-dictatorial organization dedicated to overthrowing Flak's state communism and holding free elections.

Because of the government's ineffectiveness, support for the group secretly rose amongst citizens and had been promoted by foreign nations such as Druk Yul, the Grand Duchy of Rhine, and the New Moon Company. Early in the morning of August 6th, around 15 armed members of the GULF, foreign volunteers, and mercenaries stormed the city of Garxeto and took it over, tearing down communist imagery and declaring a successful coup.

This act was immediately condemned by the United Socialist States of Eldham and the Socialist International, with the Confederation shortly thereafter kicked from the Socialist International and offers of economic aid rescinded. Later that day, the Confederation published a series of demands to Henrich Pierre which included relegating him to his fort in Garxeto, allowing provinces to do whatever they wish in regards to their economic systems, and forcing Henrich Pierre to resign from leadership.

Later on, after Pierre surrendered, elections were held and stability was restored. Buoyo was elected president in an open election, defeating BreadGirl by a fair margin. President Buoyo and his citizens wrote the Cogstitution, assembled a high council, rekindled diplomatic ties, and enacted democratic reforms.

Helming and Helsia
On August 16, the nation of Helming joined the Confederation of Garxjios as a state led by Frug. On August 22, the controversial settlement of Ratlantis was discovered by COG soldiers on a routine patrol. Its members legally integrated into the nation, settled within the country, and destroyed Ratlantis due to international outcry.

Throughout August, ties between Druk Yul and CoAC strengthened to such a degree that the Druk Yul and COG militaries merged into one cohesive unit, while CoAC and COG founded an EU-like economic union to facilitate trade and development.

On August 29, negotiations with the newly-independent nation of Helsia began with the intention to turn it into a state within the COG. On September 2, significant portions of Helsia were purchased by The COG and incorporated into the nation. On September 9, the rest of the Helsia was integrated into the COG.

On September 17, the lands of Katolis (formerly part of Druk Yul) decided to join the COG as part of the state of Helming but left in early October.

Barbossa Vassalization
In early September, talks between Aurum Solis and The Pirate State of Barbossa began with the intention to temporarily unify into a nation powerful enough to convince other nations to end their metagaming practices, return to roleplaying and worldbuilding, and bring new energy into Eldham. On September 16, the three nations united under the Barbossan flag, marking the beginning of the short-lived pirate era of the COG. On October 2, the COG formally separated from Barbossa and returned to being independent after internal pressure and a changing geopolitical climate.

Changes in the West
On September 28, the Barbossan protectorate of Loblantis in west-central Eldham joined the COG as a protectorate, under player Rock Robster. This expansion marked the first instance of overseas growth for the COG. On October 22, a deal was reached between The Pirate State of Barbossa, COG, and Loblantis to purchase a significant portion of land from Barbossa and transfer it to Loblantis for 20,000 coins.

On October 12th the states of Bogatyr, Stultum and Helming decided to unify under the Governor of Bogatyr, SerfBort_, and consolidate into the Western Commonwealth. This was a deal struck after many citizens in the western states sought to develop their nation further and saw the best way to do that was through closer cooperation.

On October 14, the Holy Kingdom of Heliosos, located far to the west of the COG mainland, decided to join the COG as a protectorate under player Rex Trunkta I.

On October 19, the Empire of Ravenguard's vassal state of Nueva Trinidad decided to join the COG with the approval of Ravenguard leadership. Led by player 8888k, Nueva Trinidad is a modern-day architecturally-focused state at the southern tip of the COG.

The Ruby Syndicate
On October 21, the leaders of Rodinnbrok, the Grand Duchy of Rhine, and the COG gathered to discuss the possibility of a new faction encompassing many nations in northeast Eldham. By the next day, the three nations agreed to come together and form the Ruby Syndicate, a tripartite coalition of allied nations with the explicit purpose of encouraging "peace, stability, and good times."

The Mushroomicania War
The first war that the Confederation of Garxijos participated in was the Mushroomicania war, acting as allies to the Grand Duchy of Rhine. However, prior to the Cognia-Garxijos Yawos merge, both precursor nations fought against the Ellysian Empire to achieve independence.

The Battle of Fort Swahnado
The Battle of Fort Swahnado was the second war the Confederation of Garxijos has fought in and is currently the latest, being fought against Anti-Rat Coalition squatters holding up in a derelict fortress once owned by CoolKunu. The first call for war was after weeks of the Anti-Rat Coalition ignoring demands to give up the fort, made from Buoyo and the COG military, so on September 29th 2021 the COG declared war on Fort Swahnado. Nearly 21 people arrived to the COG's call, but only 5 to the ARC fortress, this resulted in the fort being overtaken in a couple minutes and COG celebrating lavishly afterwards.

Government Structure
The government of the Confederation of Garxijos is a non-party directly-democratic confederation. All citizens given the right to vote in national matters with the result immediately entering effect. Additionally, the government distributes a significant amount of resources to the nation's citizens through a system of aggregate donations. In terms of leadership, the President represents the nation internationally and has power to manage his cabinet of ministers. The Chancellor is the internal leader who oversees day-to-day governance and manages the minister of the interior. For legislative affairs, the High Council (composed of elected ministers and councilmen) operates as a bureaucratic functioning body for an array of important sectors. More details can be found in the Cogstitution here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1a6f0e1s16nTAXjlJ2uS1-FIKik3Rj-R-acr4-IYJvm8/edit?usp=sharing

Citizen Application
Prospective citizens may apply to become a resident by filling out a form on the COG discord server. https://discord.gg/bPR9Q5XYdE

Government locations
On July 23, the national Capitol building was completed in the city of Garxeto. It is made up of the High Council's chamber, a grand hall, a series of offices, discussion chambers, and a courtyard. The Capitol building is where most executive and legislative affairs in the nation are managed. Voting offices, a courthouse, the national bank, foreign embassies, and other government properties are located throughout the city. Further, the individual states have town halls or assembly chambers from which state government is directed.

Politics
As political parties do not exist, all politics are done on an individual basis, allowing for greater freedom and diversity of opinions. The politics of the COG can be best described as vote-driven, humanistic decision-making, with the nation preferring to have dialogue and compromise instead of fights. In COG history, the first President, Buoyo, stepped down on September 1 after only one term in order to promote democracy, show that the system could work, and give other citizens a chance to run for office. This dedication to democracy and inclusion has been the basis of our political climate and is what has allowed the COG to thrive.

Religion
There is no official religion of the COG, as per the religious freedom article of the Cogstitution. However, the most commonly practiced religions in the COG are Lux, Temporalism, and Oxintoism.

Population
As per the most recent tally, the nation has a population of 165 citizens. The official Eldham census ranked COG as the 7th most populous nation in the world as of October, 2021. Following the dissolution of The Pirate State of Barbossa the COG is the 6th most populous nation.

Natural Geography
The nation is located in the far Northeast of Eldham in the region of Valresh. The central section of the nation is generally more humid with open plains and forests. The Southernmost island of this region, Troppika, is notable for its protected jungles. The northwest section of the nation is much colder with tundra, dense forests, and taigas making up most of the area. In the Eastern region of the nation, it is hot and dry with deserts and mesa terrain, though the easternmost extremes tend to be more temperate. Lastly, the southern regions consist of hot climate regions, including deserts, swamps, jungles, and savannahs.

The nation has many rivers that run both horizontally and vertically through the country. These rivers provide faster travel and easy access to many parts of the nation and convenient locations for city construction. Notable rivers include Garxeto River, Pancioni River, Garxijos River, and Whitpoint River.

In the far Northeast of the nation near the border with the Confederation of Anarchist Communes, there is a series of naturally generated floating islands, a terrain abnormality not found anywhere else on Eldham. Around half of the islands lay on the nation's side of the border while the other half of the islands are within the CoAC's land. The joint COG-CoAC town of Brethil is built on these islands.

Human Geography
The Confederation is currently made up of nine states. Each state is led by a governor that has the autonomy to direct economic, legal, and administrative policy within their respective land. Currently, the states are Cognia, Garxijos, Gearavia, Gyeoul, Helsia, Moruial, Nueva Trinidad, Pancioni, and Western Commonwealth. (Loblantis and Heliosos are protectorates).

There are dozens of recorded towns within the COG, the largest of which are, Garxeto, Buchwych, Farencia, Helanthia, Nueva Trinidad, and Pancioni. Other important cities include Alarid, Cassanova, Cogland, Ebonhold, Gearavia, Markarth, Moruial, Orbiztan, Rising, Siwa, and Temox. *Note, the former towns of Linlith, Tamoxo, and Yoxen are part of the growing Garxeto Metropolitan Area.

Flag
The flag of the Confederation of Garxijos consists of three vertical equally-sized stripes of orange, white, and red, with the national emblem in the center. The orange represents the former nation of Garxijos Yawos to the west, the white and resembles the peace of the nation and it's tranquility, and the red represents the former nation of Cognia to the east. The emblem in the center combines symbols from both Cognia and Garxijos Yawos in order to represent the two nation's unity, the people living upon the land, and their shared values.