Fourth Sand War

The Fourth Sand War, or the Great Mango War was a conflict fought between Mangiferia and its allies, against Die Volksrepublik Merkonis. The war officially started when Mangiferia and Kryvonea declared war on Merkonis.

Previous Sand Wars
Merkonis had gained many enemies over the previous three sand wars, setting up a coalition of enemies against them. After the fall of The Pale, Magniferia took its place, with a desire to retake the city of Oblitus, a historically important claim.

Merkonian Expansionism
In the previous two months since the Third Sand War, Merkonis had nearly tripled in size, annexing Eidenburg, Oblitus, and Zarprovince Kronetsk. This nearly tripled the nation's size, but may have contributed to it's defeat in the end. Attached is a map of Merkonis on September 11, 2022. By the end of October, they lost Oblitus and most of Kronetsk to rebels.

End of The Invicta-Merkonis Squatter War
Merkonis ended a long conflict with Invicta, an island north of Kronetsk, in August of 2022. The state was back by various mercenaries, due to its leader's multiple connections. It is due to this conflict, that Invicta joined the war against Merkonis.

Magniferia-Kryvonea Relations
The threat of Merkonis becoming a problem to Kryvonea continued to escalate. The Kryvoneans had spent time to prepare for a possible conflict with the Merkonians, beginning a conscription campaign, and producing stockpiles of equipment. This led to TheWorkingGamer, Minister of Foreign Affairs for Kryvonea, reaching out to Baeked Perron (leader of Mangiferia) for a possible alliance, seeing that the two nations had similar ambitions (reclaiming territory). ur_baked declined at first, but after short negotiations, agreed to an alliance. And so, the two states began making plans for an invasion of Merkonis. ur_baked's connections with various mercenaries, and TheWorkingGamer's contribution of around 2 million from his own pockets would both prove to be major contributing factors in Merkonis's defeat.

Declaration of War
On September 11th, Magnifiera and Kryvonea officially declared war on Merkonis, with the casus belli being that Merkonis had supported multiple rebellions within Kryvonean territory, as well as Kryvonea's desire to reclaim Kronetsk, and Magnifiera wishing to reclaim former territories of The Pale, as Magnifiera is seen as the main successor of the former state.

War Preparations
Both sides immediately began massive efforts to mobilize. Both sides had large monetary reserves, (According to their leaders, as this would prove untrue for Merkonis) and sought out mercenary aid. This was especially in the case of Merkonis, as their available native manpower was dwarfed by the combined armies of its enemies.

Merkonis, had been preparing on the diplomatic front for a while. Samora, a bordering nation of both Merkonis and Kryvonea, always had bad relations with the Kryvonean state. This is due to multiple incidents of both nations trying to get an upper-hand over the other, be it through supporting rebellious groups, or disputing territories. An often overlooked part supporter of Merkonis was The Union, as they helped with building defences, sending volunteers, and helping with armor and weapon support.

Skirmishes Throughout The War
Throughout the war, there would be no declared battles in the Kronetsk Zarprovince of Merkonis, which made up roughly half the nation's land and population. Instead, the Kryvoneans and Merkonians engaged in large skirmishes frequently, sometimes drawing over forty combatants. Kronetsk became unsafe outside of Kirvograd, as on the other side of its walls, Kryvoneans roamed around searching for any way to disrupt Merkonian war efforts. This ended when the center of Kronetsk revolted against Merkonis, which eventually lost all control, outside of Kirvograd city center.

There were multiple skirmishes in Das Versprochenn, the Merkonian heartlands, during sieges, when forces would attack heavy industry centers and weapons cashes. This proved to be a devastating tactic, depriving Merkonis of equipment in the final stages of the war.

Third Battle of Oblitus
The Third Battle of Oblitus was the first battle of the war, and saw Merkonis defeated by Magnifiera, due to Magniferia's large stockpiles of equipment and potions, as well as their concurrent raids on Neumerstadt preventing resupply for the Merkonians. The outcome of the battle led Merkonis to increase efforts to obtain mercenary support.

Fourth Battle of Oblitus/Second Battle of Perria
At the Fourth Battle of Oblitus, and concurrent Second Battle of Perria, Merkonis won a stunning victory against the Magnifieran army. Ur_Baked was unprepared for the battle, as it was only after Magnifiera had begun the attack that he realized that Merkonis had hired dozens of Mercenaries, allowing them to route their enemy to Perria. It was a massive morale boost for the Merkonians and set them up for the rest of the war.

The Possibility of Early Peace
The defeat during the Fourth Battle of Oblitus/Second Battle of Perria, led some Kryvoneans, as well as Mangiferians, to have doubts about their ability to decisively defeat the Merkonians. ur_baked approached TheWorkingGamer about a possible peace deal with Merkonis, in which Kryvonea would see minor territorial gains in Kronetsk, Mangiferia gaining Oblitus and Eidenburg, and minimal war reparations. TheWorkingGamer would reject the terms, stating that Kryvonea would not agree to peace, unless the entire region of Kronetsk is given to them. ur_baked would agree to continue the war, and made sure that Kryvonea would gain Kronetsk in any peace offer Merkonis would bring up.

Fifth Battle of Oblitus
The Fifth Battle of Oblitus was the penultimate battle of the war. Merkonis, at this point, was economically strained by raiding and bombings. Alongside this, they were weakened by revolts in the Kronetsk, were struggling to pay its mercenaries, and even barely managing to equip most of its army. By the time the Magnifierans arrived to attack again, Merkonian government officials feared they could only finance one more battle, due to the enemy forces continually bombing non-war resupply depots.

As the battle raged, a sudden shift happened in the attitude of hired the mercenaries, holding large portions of the wall. Rebuking Merkonian orders, they charged over the wall to attack the besiegers, confronting them in the ganks and killing fields. This act left the small Merkonian garrison vulnerable to attack, and Cromore Fortress was captured. Caught between their fortress and the besieging army, the mercenary force was quickly annihilated, and Oblitus fell to Magnifiera.

After the battle, mercenaries refused to continue fighting for Merkonis, citing that not even half of their payment had been received. This also revealed that the Merkonian government was broke, and led to government officials demanding an end to the war.

Battle of Eisenreich
The Battle of Eisenreich was the final siege in the war. On the back foot, and with little remaining forces or equipment (rebellion in Kronetsk had de facto deposed the Zar and sides with Kryvonea, stripping Merkonis of valuable resources), the Kanzler of Merkonis, Astapf, demanded a valiant defence and for all citizens to turn up for battle, with the sole purpose of preventing enemy forces from occupying the city. However, of the forces that assembled, many deserted, preferring to flee or chronical the battle.

The siege began when a Magnifieran-Kryvon joint army, led by TheWorkingGamer and Kyrveric, landed on the shores near Eisenreich. Storming the city, running battles occurred through the streets. With the Merkonian military utterly outnumbered, those who were left fled into caverns, underground tunnels, and houses. Stubborn resistance ensued, with Magnifieran-Kryvon soldiers systematically destroying as many holdouts as they could find, and chasing off and hunting down any arriving or fleeing Merkonian personnel.

Meanwhile, The Magnifierans struck north at Neumerkstadt, cutting off any relief forces for Merkonis. The few Merkonians present in the military depots fled, and the remaining war stocks were burned.

By the end of the battle, all Merkonian forces had either deserted or been run down, with no remaining war stocks and no standing military, the Merkonian war effort quickly collapsed, as factory workers began to protest the government.

Wartime Failures
Astapf, seeing the danger of losing the war to Magnifiera, attempted to join the Eldham Union to prevent an attack, but was denied. As a result, he attempted to massively increase the industrial capabilities in Merkonis. Besides the existing Neumerkstadt foundry, two military plants were opened in Kronetsk, along with the recommissioning of the Eidenburg factory. However, the government could not effectively staff these facilities, keeping only light production outside of Neumerkstadt. In addition, all war stocks of the nation were kept at a singular location in that city, leaving supplies open to attack during battles.

Militarily, the government failed to maintain the loyalty of mercenary factions, and could not access the majority of its coffers due to an ongoing ban. Despite this, the ability of the government to last as long as it did is admirable, showing the rigid resistance of the Merkonian spirit in the face of certain defeat.

Government Dissent
The true cause of the collapse of Merkonis was due to the inability of the Kanzler to maintain control over the government. If the government had not collapsed, Merkonis may have been able to continue its war effort for longer, and likely gain a favorable peace, maintaining its system of governance. However, due to the military defeat at Oblitus, many government officials demanded peace, citing a change to government as well, (The list of grievances is complex but boils down to Astapf not sharing information).

After the battle of Eisenreich, Prime Minister DmitryKarzuski was revealed to be planning a pro-Kryvon coup, leading to his removal (being captured and summarily executed by firing squad, according to some sources). All that can be confirmed is that the Prime Minister disappeared. N_derbunny replaced him. After this, Bungdestag Members Rona1d and JokiesShop (A member of the Executive Council) were removed and fled the country, labelled as anti-government. Before their removal, they had helped imjared120 replace TheOneTheory as Second Kanzler, which was of great importance later. JokiesShop, Rona1d, imJared120, and the former Prime Ministers son joined together in an anti-Astapf conspiracy, eventually turning most of the government, including the new Prime Minister, against the First Kanzler.

10/30 Uprising
After establishing separate forms of communication, a coup occurred on the 30th of October, ousting Astapf and seizing the center of the country in just one day. Shortly after they would have a referendum (Excluding Loyalists) which dissolved the Volksrepublic, Established a provisional Directory, it called for immediate cessation of hostilities. It passed by 100%. Reportedly, xPxtatoes and Astapf were dragged from their mansions by mobs, and stabbed in the streets, however their fates cannot be confirmed.

The Merconian Directorate
On the 31st of October, BlitzElect, along with the other coup leaders, would announce the establishment of The Merconian Directorate, in the Das Versprochenn region.

Dissolution
The formal dissolution of the Volksrepublik occurred on November 24th, after the ratification of the new constitution. After the ratification, a massive wave of de-socialization and de-Germanification was declared by the government. Merkonis was renamed Merconis. All cities were renamed from their German roots, Eisenreich was renamed Kirvnos, Neumerkstadt was abolished, and Eisenreich was stripped down to the foundations.

Raids On Merkonis
During the war, many Kryvoneans raided in Kronetsk multiple times a week, disrupting war efforts and violated the rules of war.

Mid-Battle Attacks
More serious attacks occurred during the battles, where weapons cashes of Merkonis were destroyed. This seriously hampered the war effort of Astapf. This would directly lead into the coup as there was anger over the handling of material distribution. During the battle of Eisenreich, the damage to the city was borderline criminal.

Victory of Magnifieran Coalition
The new Merconian state engaged in peace negotiations immediately after taking control of Merkonis. In the peace terms, Oblitus and Eidenburg were taken by Magnifiera, and Kronetsk by Kryvonea. Merconis relinquished any claims to territory outside of Das Versprochenn, and soon merged with Falkreath to form Orisfell. It should also be known that on October 28th, Mangiferia formed Great Polikos, with the same government in charge.

Effects
The defeat of Merkonis led to the end of one of the oldest governments and socialist states in Eldham. Throughout its history, Merkonis aggressively expanded, attempting to take over as many lands as possible, which led to it gaining many foes. Ultimately, this was equivalent to Merkonis cutting off its legs, having no allies to turn to and surrounded by enemies, Merkonis set itself up for defeat in the Fourth Sand War. The interim government lasted less than a month before merging with Falkreath, ending the Merkonian state forever.