Qadakh

The Satrapy of Qadakh (pronounced: kah-DAK) is a country in the continent of Katsura bordering Illumina and Mýkitas to the East and Raiyuna to the West and South, in Eldham. It lies on the subcontinent of Tetra. The country declared its independence from the Sultanate of Tetra on the 3rd August, with independence finally secured on the 30th August 2021. Once their independence was fully recognized by international community, Qadakh proceeded to join the the Northern Lights (succeeded by the now dissolved Constellation of the North). Qadakh is highly respected for its builders and architectes, sought after on all of Eldham.

The history of the Satrapy of Qadakh is highly confounded with that of the Free City of Qadakh, its capital city.

Etymology
Hypothesis for the origin of the name "Qadakh" are numerous. One is that it was borrowed via Umarinian from the Old Tetrian expression ca-barth "peninsula" (ka-baat in Umarian), referring to the land that the Free City sits on.

According to the Annals of Hesti'a, the word "Qadakh" comes from the Modern Tetrian expression tajid alqabac tahle qirayih "to dance with a stone", referring to the pebble-herding nomads who wandered in the desert. The Hestian historians argue that the expression corrupted into "Qabakh" and eventually into "Qadakh" to reflect the lack of the phonem /b/ in the early Qadakhi pidgin.

Prehistory
It is believed that the territory in which Qadakh sits on was previously a submerged landmass until at least 200,000 years ago. The subcontinent of Tetra would have to wait until the first and second ice ages for the landmass to finally emerge from the bottom of the ocean. The vast desert that covers most of the country is composed of sand coming mostly from dead crustaceans and starfish. Some prehistoric sites still stand, like the Pahad Pani temple.

Latern on, the subcontinent of Tetra was home to a province of the Qwe'tsn Empire. The lack of written sources makes it very difficult for historians to accurately represent this era. Archeological sites point to a dense presence of the Qwe'tsn on the coastlines, all while avoiding permanent settlements on the desert. The region was known most notably for its high quality cumin.

After the collapse of the Qwe-tsn Empire, the Qadakhi tribes migrated into the region. The Qadakhi people originated in the mountains of Ar-Kath as a nomadic pebble-herding people. Life was tough as sheparding stones over the great distances that pebbles require is physically exhausting and mentally draining, let alone in the mountinous terrain of the highlands. While an incredibly versatile material, pebbles are very nutrient poor.

Tetran times
Upon the establishment of the nearby city of Hesti'a, Qadakhi people came to appreciate the value in a sedentary lifestyle: its greater access to trade, more reliable resource production, and greater protection in case of invasion. The Qadakhi people remained in Hesti'a for hundreds of years. Upon the acsension of Tetra's current Sultana, emnity between the Qadakhi people grew after the prohibition of battery pebble farming within city limits. In protest, the pebble farmers released their stock into the city and the for several weeks, stones littered the streets of Hesti'a. Feral pebbles can be found across the deserts of both Tetra and Qadakh to this day.

The founding of the Free City in 14th July 2021 came about because of unrest within the city of Hesti'a. Hesti'a was undergoing a period of slow, extensive reconstruction with little end in sight. Combined with this, the new building codes and zoning laws in the Tetran Capital meant that almost all Qadakhis would be restricted from constructing their own homes. To meet this immediate need of shelter and ease the growing tensions, Flingbing petitioned the Tetran royalty to permit a settlement expedition to what is now known as the Bay of Qadakh. The location was decided upon as a suitable settlement location due to the presence of natural springs that run into the bay, the strategic placement of the bay over the ocean, and the presence of the ruins of a fort from an age long ago - which provided much needed defensibility and building materials in those early days. This fort underlies much of the core of the settlement, its outline still visible in older stone walls and the grid layout of the city's centre.

Between the 16th and 26th of July 2021, Qadakh experienced a severe famine. While the natural springs provided access to clean, fresh water, the Bay of Qadakh initially contained very little suitable arable land. Additionally, much of the wheat being grown at the time was needed for animal feed - leather especially was sorely needed at this time. Back then, much of the food production for the citizens of Qadakh consisted of sweet berries, which are not a very nutritious food source. In order to rectify the situation (the construction of large scale irrigation infeasible at the time), almost all wheat production was replaced with potatoes. As coal is a commonplace resource in Qadakh, a diet of cooked potatoes now makes up a staple of Qadakhi diet and come in innumerable varieties.

Independence crisis
The road to independence was long and difficult for Qadakh, lasting four weeks from the 3rd to the 30th of August. The Assertion of Independence document outlining the justifications for independence, the plan forward for an independent Qadakh, and the assertion that this would not threaten the independence of the Sultanate of Tetra, was signed by every citizen of the Free City and thusly, every active citizen of Tetra bar the Sultana themselves.

The attitude by the Eldham international community towards independence movements was, and remains, generally very negative. Upon Qadakh declaring independence, there was immediate and aggressive backlash, with numerous bandits sent to the Free City, a $20,000 bounty set on Flingbing's head and several threats of all out war. The Sultana of Tetra levied numerous personal connections to officials from other nations across Eldham to throw their support behind Tetra and evidence of collusion between Qadakh and insurgent movements in other nations was fabricated by the Sultana to further demonise the fledgling nation. Many diplomats from other nations in Eldham proudly admitted to not reading Qadakh's Assertion of Independence.

Desperate to avoid total destruction, Qadakh went to the Northern Lights, a defensive alliance of nations in Northwest Eldham of which the Sultanate of Tetra was a member, to plead for assitance in finding a solution to the crisis before the conflict brought global powers to the region. Talks were to begin the following day, so Flingbing and MrAdz worked tirelessly through the night, compiling a document of evidence of all the original claims in Assertion of Independence, of tyrannical behaviour by the Sultana, and most importantly clear and indisputable absolution of the claims of Qadakhi collusion abroad.

Seeing this new evidence come to light, the opinion of the Northern Lights quickly shifted to sympathise with the Qadakhi cause. Watching the opinion of the room swing against them, the Sultana began to lash out and refuse to answer any questions posed to them. Old fueds between the Sultana and Northern Lights diplomats were brought up and the Sultanate of Tetra was dismissed from the alliance for toxic behaviour.

Despite the sympathy from the Northern Lights for the Qadakhi cause, they decided not to intervene on Qadakh's behalf. What followed were several weeks of tension in Qadakh. Soldiers and Citizens manned the walls of the city and looked out over the desert, but Tetran forces never came. After a while, greater and greater normalcy returned to the Free City, with the threats of destruction waning in the past and having no wish to march on Hesti'a, Qadakh kept its head down internationally. But with no international recognition for the nation, Qadakh's future at this point was uncertain. Qadakh appeared on no maps as a sovereign entity, due to the Sultana's connections to members of the Eldham Cartography Guild.

Three weeks into the crisis on the 23rd August, Qadakhi citizens woke up to the news that the Sultanate of Tetra has sold the land that Qadakh lies upon to Nova Regna. On the 28th August, the High King of Varn Torum came into posession of almost half of Nova Regna's territory, the means of this acquisition are unknown. As Nova Regna and Varn Torum had good relations, the sale of this land back to Nova Regna was agreed, but Nova Regna did not possess the funds at the time. To raise funds, Qadakh was offered its freedom in exchange for $200,000, which it immediately accepted.

Although not all of Qadakh's territorial claims are recognised by the international community and the border between Qadakh and Tetra lies just outside the Free City's main gate, Qadakh now became a fully independent and sovereign nation, its status as such indisputable.

Aegerian invasion of Kaer Hrafin
On the 11th August 2021, a large group of new players announced their intentions to settle the lands of Kaer Hrafin (now Rattican) and Titan's Rest, and negotiations began with the new settlers making excessive demands of the two nations. Kaer Hrafin, requested assistance from the Northern Lights, and several nations quickly sent small contingents of forces to the nation, including from Qadakh.

Northern Lights forces gathered outside the settlement of Aegeria, to assess the numbers and strengths of enemy forces. Being a new settlement, the Aegerian's were very lightly armed, though numbers were nearly matched between the two sides. The rain was heavy at the time and utilising this, Bandit and State General of Nova Regna, WiriestComet629, using her riptide trident, fell from the sky and began to systematically turn the invaders inside out. Other Northern Lights forces looked on with horror, as bodies littered the floor and blood congealed with mud on the paths of the settlement.

New information rolled in stating that this was one of three such settlements in the area and so Northern Lights forces quickly dispersed to locate the remaining two. Qadakh soldiers present, Flingbing and Penobscott, quickly became distracted by a small abandonded tavern whose basement contained numerous barrels of Triple Distilled Vodka and Strong Absyinthe, while the other two settlements were found. The two soldiers drank and sang; a toast made to the absurdity of the situation that was unfolding. The screams of horror and sounds of battle rang out in the distance as the remaining invaders were torn to shreds.

Qadakh's first military action since declaring its independence is widely regarded as a monumental and overwhelming success and would form the basis for Qadakhi military doctrine. The event gained cultural significance in the nation too, with the phrase 'you must be having a Hraf mate' coming to mean that one is functionally obselete in the current situation and by redefining one's own conditions of success in relation to the volume and strength of alcohol consumed, total victory can be achieved.

Geography
Qadakh, whose territory covers most of the Tetran subcontinent, is located in northern Katsura. It shares a terrestrial border with Illumina, roughly being delimited by the Jazeel River and indirect water borders with Raiyuna and Mykitas through the Sparkling Sea.

Most of the territory of Qadakh is covered in the Desert of Qadakh, in the continuity with the red desert of Alebira on the source of the Jazeel River. The northwestern part of the nation is mountainous. The rapid expansion of the Free City has led to remarkable land reclamation earthworks, transforming otherwise unused sea into dry land for urban growth.

Besides the capital city, Qadakh is home to the cities of Ar-Kath, Hyluse, Hesti'a and the Rethykan Islands.

Politics
The country official government system is that of an anarcho-communist-monarchical-democratic-meritocratic dictatorship. Its general political and societal structure may best be described by an excerpt from the book "The Unique System of the Qadakhi Satrapy" by MrHuhu:

"We thus find that Qadakh's political system resembles a palace. The foundation of this palace is the culture of the country, on which all other characteristics and systems are built, and which fundamentally condition them. In it are found many cultural mechanisms, such as the curbing of aggression and political ambition, which sustain the political system. The roof that protects the palace is the foreign policy and economic policies: Neutrality, Pacifism, Independence. They are expressed in mercantilist-like autarky combined with internal economic cooperation, [...] and sprang largely from the experience of Hestia's oppression. The doors leading into the palace itself, and through which actions and responses find their way out, are consensus democracy and meritocracy. The citizens, like the government, make decisions based on broad, approximate consensus. Those in leadership positions do not necessarily have to be part of the government, but are characterised by commitment. At the core of the palace, however, are the citizens themselves on the one hand, and Qadakh's most important values, on the other: freedom, dignity and, of course, creativity in building, which is the city's central activity."

Being unique in its high populational concentration on the capital city, Qadakh's political system is often mixed up with that of the Free City.

Military
The fleet of Qadakh is made by Qadakhi shipwrights. Official documentation started in