Show Posts

This section allows you to view all posts made by this member. Note that you can only see posts made in areas you currently have access to.


Topics - Mersch

Pages: [1]
1
Diplomacy and Events / The Slippery Slope (Crisis in Mersch)
« on: July 25, 2023, 12:02:12 PM »
Chieftan Sylvia of Silverdale had been merely a teenager when the civil war in Academica had begun and she had been largely used as a puppet to try and create a cross Alba Karinyan Empire, it was a fools quest. She however had survived and had been smuggled out the tiny nation into Mersch. There she had grown into a woman who eagerly wanted to reclaim her homeland. The people of Silverdale had come so close to having a land of their own and now with many of the political refugees here in Mersch she saw no reason why the situation of that nations own civil war between the Monarchists and the Republicans ending couldn't be exploited. The so called Kingdom of Mersch still lacked a monarch and as such was relying on the Prime Minister, an inexperienced Hanna Dahl, to keep control. It had been a task that was not succeeding and in the last few months the Republicans and the refugees from Silverdale had switched from fighting an all out war to terrorist acts and today would be a key moment.

Should Mersch ever return to the point of having a stable royal family then the chances of achieving a new homeland for the people of Silverdale would be gone and so Sylvia had today planned something special.

Outside Holsbrukken a car waited in a side street. Duke Kristian Volk had been targeted before but here in Holsbrukken he felt safe. It was a small village where everyone knew everyone and he was well liked. As one of the outsiders in contention for the throne he was probably leat likely to be targeted which is why here and now was the perfect moment. The Duke had just a single security guard with him and as he walked to his favourite cafe for brunch, like he did every Tuesday the car turned onto the main street. Just as the Duke walked in and greeted the young girl behind the counter the car burst through the front window and with an ear shattering boom exploded killing both the Duke and the twelve people enjoying a quiet mid morning coffee.

Even before the news of the Duke's demise had been heard Duke Abraham Kristoffer, who had a slightly stronger but still weak claim on the throne, was attending a meeting with some investors. He'd planned to increase the size of his race horse enterprise and over the last year he'd formed a close bond with some investor from East Moreland. His team had conducted various background checks and it was clear Richard Marlon was someone in the know. He had twelve horses that had won well this past season and rumour had it he'd even trained a horse for Princess Freya. He was backed by millions from some lumber business and now the duo would team up. Marlon arrived with his team of staff and after a lovely early morning inspection of the Duke's facilities Richard was impressed. "I think I would be very happy to team up with His Lordship" Richard declared as the two men shook hands on a partnership. Richard turned to a young man, Stephen, who had been acting as his PA for the last few months. "Stephen can you grab my cheque book" Stephen placed the briefcase on the table between Richard and the Duke and took a rather odd deep breath.

"FOR SILVERDALE!" He yelled and flicked the case open. There was a large flash and boom as the briefcase, not containing paperwork but instead a block of C4 and several packets of nails. While those on the edges of what had been a cheerful moment now writhed on the ground a mass on blood, twisted bone and flesh. Stephen, the Duke and Richard had died almost instantly but by the time the situation had been dealt with by the emergency services there were two more dead and three people would require huge amounts of surgery to try and save their lives.

The final act of this bloody day came at Duchess Heidi Felds penthouse in Wahlstadt. She had perhaps the strongest claim on the throne but that mattered for little. The delivery intended for the floor below her penthouse was not the fridge that the packaging advertised, it was in fact a huge bomb. Placed in the lift and set to go to the floor below it had enough explosive force that it took out the top four floors of the building leaving a twist mess of metal and sending glass flying across the street injuring scores of people in the neighbouring office block.

By the end of the day three leading candidates for the throne were dead and along with them close to 80 Merschians.

2
International News Networks / Mersch Morning Star
« on: April 11, 2023, 09:18:15 PM »
NEW PRIME MINISTER NAMED

Following the end of the civil war and acceptance by the general public of the new constitution the first Prime Minister of the post-civil war era has been selected. Hanna Dahl, the leader of the Reunion Party, was named as Prime Minister for the next 12 months. Under the arrangement to bring the constitution into force the Prime Minister's first term will be just a year during which their primary duty will be to ensure the full restoration of the monarchy. Under the interim arrangements put into effect the nation has, until now, been governed by the Klein Witan lead by Duke Guntram Wruck with the task of overseeing the establishment of the elected body known as the Gross Witan. With the final batches of seats having been determined over the weekend it saw the Reunion Party gain 158 of the 301 seats giving them a majority. As a result they have confirmed that the parties leader Hanna Dahl will be taking the reigns as the Prime Minister. The Prime Minister was given the task of appointing a monarch rather than the Klein Witan as many of the nobles who make up that smaller assembly have connections to the various branches of the royal family that survive the war. The process as laid down by the new constitution requests that the Prime Minister put a minimum of three candidates before the Klein Witan and then at least two of these must be put to a nationwide vote. There is no schedule or process outlined except a deadline of 31st December 2023. If this deadline is missed and no monarch is appointed by that time then  the monarch of East Moreland and the Grand Duke of Bakkermaya would take over control of the process.

Currently there are two leading contenders to the throne Duchess Heidi Feld and Jasmin Volk. The two are descended from bloodlines that can be traced back to King Soren who was coronated in 1931. His direct descendants have all either died or were executed by Republicans during the civil war. The issue that the current situation however presents is that currently there is no third candidate and so the new Prime Minister has issued instructions for a six month commission of historians to explore the families history to recommend at least one more candidate. Currently Duchess Heidi Feld is 41 years of age and is the CEO of a field sports company. Meanwhile Jasmin Volk is 22 years of age and has just graduated from the Royal Merriman University with a degree in Economics. The two are distant cousins.

While the succession issue is clearly at the forefront of the new Prime Ministers agenda Prime Minister Dahl has also promised that there will be changes to the nations taxation system with the intention of making it fairer. The Reunion party have also stated they will be looking at establishing a series of freeports, rebuild the armed forces, increase public health provision and place protections on the natural environment. While some of these matters will eventually fall under the remit of the monarch for now the Prime Minister has authority over these matters.

3
Character Guides / Merschians
« on: April 02, 2023, 09:09:16 PM »

Duchess Heidi Feld
RL-Megan Boone

b.1982
WIP

4
Factbooks and Maps / The Kingdom of Mersch
« on: April 01, 2023, 10:04:21 PM »

The Kingdom of Mersch was formed by a group of tribesman who can trace their origins back to the area around Ostlake in East Moreland. As followers of the Cult of Helus they were kicked out of their own tribe as heretics because they believed that there was not a pantheon of Gods but rather just a single God known as the Great Creator. They believed that the war between the Cultist Gods and the Underlords did take place but that it began in the spirit world spilling into the human one through a lake which acts as a portal between the two worlds. As a result they had settled around Ostlake believing this was the "Portal Lake" however when their heresy was discovered they were chased North until they disappeared into the Alps. They eventually discovered Lake Meran which their leader believed was the actual "Portal Lake" as a result the tribe settled in the region by establishing themselves first as a mercenary army for hire. By the 10th Century under legendary war-lord leader Mortiz König, the North of Alba Karinya began to fall under their rule until by the 14th Century the modern borders of the Kingdom of Mersch had been formed.

Between 1370 and 1700 the Keil dynasty did their best to make Mersch a welcoming home to those of any faith. This changed though in 1700 when the Keil family dynasty ended and Krüger's took over. The Krüger's were devout followers of the Great Creator and put great pressure on the unbelievers to convert. This saw blashpermy laws and other harsh punishments put in place against those who insulted the faith. This lasted until the early 1900's. At this point the Kingdom became more tolerant again.

The next major landmark in the nations history came in 2016 when the tiny nation of Academica saw a multi-sided civil war. Mersch attempted to support operations there carried out by other Alba Karinya nations however as the followers of the Chieftan of Silverdale were being overrun in Academica many of them fled North into Mersch. Chieftan Sylvia of Silverdale went into exile in Mersch and having failed to take control in Academica began attacks against Mersch government forces. With there being several Silverdale factions in the south of Mersch there began a conflict in the border region. This gave Republican factions within the government the confidence to attempt a coup and following a series of attacks many of the royal family were killed and others went into exile. This civil war in Mersch continued until 2022 when with help from East Moreland the Royalist forces were victorious however there was no significant member of royalty left. In November 2022 the nation approved a return to their constitution however it has yet to fully come into force as no monarch has yet been appointed.



Population - 42,769,813 (Census 2022)
Capital City:- Wahlstadt (1.5million)
Currency:- Schilling
Demonym: Merschian
Languages: Merschian (similar to Morelandish in a way that Spanish and Portugese is)
Religion 80% Cult of the Creators 9% Cult of Helus, 5% Christian, 6% Others (Rights Protected Under Law)
GDP per Capita $36,111

Government Structure Monarchy with supporting Democracy
Government Body - 301 member legislative assembly called the Witan
Head of Government - Prime Minister Hanna Dahl
Head of State - TBD

5
Diplomacy and Events / A Meeting within a Festival
« on: August 13, 2022, 12:15:25 AM »

To:-
His Majesty King David of East Moreland
Her Majesty Queen Queen Friðuswiþ of Heimney
His Highness Prince Regent Vincenzo of Vaguzia
The Honourable Chairwoman Francine M. A. Therz of Heyra
(OOC- Hopefully got these right)

Roughly a decade ago my father was murdered by still unknown assailants. This plunged my mother into an over protective regency that saw both myself, my sister and more importantly my nation get hidden away from the world. During this time the continent plunged into the collapse of Academica and East Moreland, Vaguzia and Heyra all stepped in to ensure the safety of the people there. Meanwhile the Armed Forces of Mersch sat dormant guarding half empty Palaces to give the impression I might have been there. We have watched since as the continent has worked well together. I would like to get to know all of my neighbours and I apologise to King David but I intend to slightly hijack his festival of sail. I would like to invite each of you, and if you wish a guest, to come and dine onboard our Royal Yacht Skipjack. I would like to begin the process of making friends prior to major formal diplomacy.

I hope that you will take me up on this invitation. If you wish to please arrive at Dock 7b at the Portworth Marina at 6pm. Once everyone is onboard we shall venture a short way down the coast and dinner and cocktails shall be served. It would be our intention to be back at the Marina for 10pm.


With Deep Respect

High Queen Philippina



Philippina had ordered her Head of Security Matthias to ensure that the Dowager Queen was not in attendance. He had ensured that she was prevented from travelling at all thus giving the High Queen a chance to act as a monarch for once. She had brought with her the King of Attert, one of the four Kingdoms that made up Mersch. He was 27 years old and all the time during her over-protection had sent her books and articles about the wider world, on geopolitics and other matters. He would send her postcards of places he visited and newspaper clippings from his travels of interesting things he'd learned. It could be said that King Kaspar Martens was her window to the world. She had pinned the postcards and clippings around the map of Mundus that hung ready to have its copper coating scribbled off to reveal the colours of the nations flag below. She hoped soon the dull brown map would become a multi-coloured mosaic. Her computer had been her other portal into Mundus, with social media seeping into her psyche. This was one of the reasons she was rather nervous. She had grown to love the idea of fancy dresses and make up. To wear really girly outfits and grace ballrooms with high ceilings. Queen Stasya of East Moreland was a kind of social media idol of Philippinas even down to the idea she was wearing a long black dress from the Queen's fashion label. David had been a kind of pin up for her along with the now dishonoured Lodjain King Hamsik.

She had brought with her Gerhard, a chef from the Palace. He had done his best to introduce the High Queen to the tastes of Mundus but most of his experience had been through books and observing restaurant chefs. He had been hired more for his security status than his cooking knowledge but he did make tasty milkshakes. Phillipina could have murdered one now but thought it wouldn't look very regal. She sat on the rear deck with Kaspar as she waited for the first guests to arrive.

6
Vignettes / High Queen of Mersch
« on: August 06, 2022, 10:35:19 PM »
"BLLLLURRRGGHHH!!!!!"

Princess Magdalena let out a chuckle as the sound came from behind the closed door.

"Oh God! BLLLURRGHHH!!!!" the sound of someone in distress came through the thick wood. While most people would have felt sympathy for them Magdalena couldn't help but giggle. The sound of the bathroom taps running covered up the sound of the toilet flushing. The sound of the metal lock twisting open followed soon after a rather dishevelled High Queen Philippina re-entered her bedroom holding a metal bin tucked under her arm. She dropped on the bed heavily and let out a sigh placing the bin carefully next to her.

"How you feeling now?" Liselotte Van Amelsvoort, the Royal Secretary asked from the bathroom doorway having checked that the porcelin white interior wasn't a mess. The High Queen had spent most of the morning throwing up. While Liselotte was concerned for the monarchs health the younger Princess had more pressing matters and dived onto the bed nearly knocking her older sister off.

"So Pippa what was it like?" Magdalena propped herself up on an elbow next to her sister.

"I wish I'd not gone" there was a pause, "Actually no" the High Queen began to correct herself. "I wish I'd stopped drinking way before I did" she closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths.

"Next time listen to Matthias" Liselotte suggested that the High Queen perhaps take the advice of her chief security agent in future. Last night had been the High Queen's 18th birthday celebration and after a nice private dinner at the elite Juniper Restaurant she had insisted that Matthias allow her to go to a nightclub after all she'd read thats what all 18 year olds did for their birthday and she'd never even been to what would be described as a real party. Matthias has done his best to put her off but she wouldn't be convinced. The best he could do was delay her so he made some phone calls, pulled a few strings and drafted in some extra bodies. It meant that at 11:30pm the High Queen entered a nightclub for the first time. The Baalsaal had hung up on Matthias the first time he had rung. Then when he'd sent someone round they had moved heaven and earth to accomodate the High Queen and six of her friends along with the associated entourage. They had a VIP booth and seeing the High Queen other punters wanted a selfie but Matthias kept them away. The Queen had tried cocktails of various bright vibrant colours, she'd laughed at some of the names, she couldn't believe there was actually a cocktail called "Sex on the Beach." she discovered though that Vodka and Cranberry was her favourite even though half of them she had contained no vodka. But with her friends buying lots of shots the Queen was soon rather tipsy. They'd seen some celebrities too and to the High Queen it was strange that when she saw a famous musician that musician was seemingly more excited than her. The seven youngsters soon found the numbers expanding as they bumped into other nobles out for their usual Friday night out. Then Pippa began inviting some of the celebs to join them and before long Matthias was able to persuade the High Queen to take up the offer of the club shutting one of their smaller side bars to the public. By 4am the High Queen had enough but physically and alcoholically and Matthias had almost had to carry her to the vehicles outside.

Now at 10am the High Queen was considering abdication if it stopped the hangover. She finished telling her sister all about it and answered her endless questions, which focused mainly on which of her celebrity crushes they'd seen and whether any "snogging" had taken place, it hadn't. It had been the first real taste though of freedom for either of the Jespersen girls since they could remember. Everything about their lives had been micro-managed and had all been about keeping them "secure". For the elder sister that was now over, the hangover the clearest signal that she was now running her own life. For the 16 year old Magdalena there was the hope her sister could change things for her.

7
International News Networks / Mersch - National Gazette
« on: August 06, 2022, 01:26:42 AM »




HIGH QUEENS "CHILDHOOD OVER"
Happy Birthday Your Majesty

Today marks High Queen Philippina's 18th birthday and therefore her unrestricted reign begins. The High Queen inherited the throne of Mersch at the age of 8 following the death of her Father. High King Eduard died in 2012 following a short illness brought about by a suspected poison. With two daughters the family saw the crown pass to Philippina with her uncle Dietmar acting as effective monarch until she reached certain landmarks. At the age of 16 the High Queen was permitted to appoint nobles and make presentation of various honours. She also was permitted to undertake various significant ceremonial roles. At the Age of 17 she was permitted to act as commander in chief to the military and now as she reaches her 18th birthday she has full control of the Kingdoms. Celebrations took place across the nation to mark the beginning of a new era. One of the leading figures in the young High Queen's life has been Anneliese Hahn, one of a team of tutors who has helped guide both the High Queen and her younger sister Magdalena. While having had some powers the Queen has largely been closely managed by her family and the civil service. The day started off with the High Queen sharing a photo of her and her sister before posting on instagram a message hinting that she intends to start travelling the world. Anneliese Hahn explained that the High Queen has always had an interest in the world. "In her bedroom it was sometimes quiet sad. She brought a huge map from online that had the outline of every nation on Mundus. It was one of those that you can use a coin to scratch off where you've visited and it just sat there on the wall untouched. Meanwhile she'd get bombarded on social media from people around Mundus. While our generation would have had pen pals she did, thanks to the Intelligence Services, have some online pen pals that she valued. The map had postcards and photos they'd send her surrounding it. Now she'd going to get to see all those places."

The day to day business of the High Queen is managed by a Royal Secretary, the current one is Liselotte Van Amelsvoort. Miss Van Amelsvoort confirmed that the High Queen has already begun plans for the first nation to be scratched off the map. "Today we have RSVP'd to an event in Lijiang. Its a country we know little about but the High Queen has already ordered lots of books be delivered from the National Library." We asked Miss Van Amelsvoort about other plans and were told. "This world has numerous exciting and diverse countries. She plans to visit as many as possible. Remember that although we could say today means childhood over she is still a young woman and the interests that go with it."

The leader of the Kingdom of Attert, Fürst Kaspar Martens, was among the first to send his best wishes, along with a stallion and mare. In an official statement he said, "Our system of government has in many ways held us back. We've now the energy of a hyperactive 18 year old to drive us forward. I look forward to the ride." The 27 year old has long called for the High Queen to be given an education on "the world" but Intelligence Services have been in his mind overprotective. "The High Queen has been denied a normal childhood, she's been surrounded with hand picked people her age to be friends, not necessarily people she'd naturally be friends with. My concern is that she now not overdose on freedom. She's a real difficult task ahead of her and I will do what I can to help."

The High Queen spent the day with family and some friends before going to the highly rated Juniper Restaurant in the capital city. This evening she will welcome all the Fürst's of the Kingdoms to the Royal Palace and host a formal ball. It is thought each Fürst will also publically retake an oath of loyalty now the High Queen is technically an adult.


8
Factbooks and Maps / The United Kingdoms of Mersch
« on: August 05, 2022, 11:56:39 PM »

THE UNITED KINGDOMS OF MERSCH

Four old Kingdoms sit around the lake of Mersch. In the 15th Century King Manfred Krückel managed to get the four Kingdoms to swear on oath of loyalty to him and was named High King. Since then there has been a formation of a new political system where each of the four Kingdoms has a dynastic family, the head of which is called the   Fürst.

The leader of the nation is the eldest child of the previous High King (Before 1950 the law stated it had to be a male however since then the law simply says eldest child). Should they have no child the title passes to one of the other Fürst as determined by a vote of the people from the Kingdom the deceased High King is from. This means that a new dynasty begins.



Population:- 27.8million
Capital City - Wahlstadt
Current Monarch - High Queen Philippina (Pippa) Jespersen

Pages: [1]