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Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #150 on: October 18, 2019, 02:46:06 PM »




FINAL EAST MORELAND TROOPS LEAVE ACADEMICA

Following two years as peacekeepers in Academica the final East Moreland legionnaires have headed home. The withdrawal of the final 180 Legionnaires was requested by the new ruler of Academica Queen Madeline. The last few Legionnaires were members of the Royal King's Fusiliers and had been in country training the new Academican army which is largely made up of various militias that fought in the recent civil war. The final Legionnaire to leave Academica on the short flight home was Corporal James Sullivan, a 24 year old Fusilier whose father, Lt-Col Peter Sullivan was driving the first tank that crossed the border into Academica. Corporal Sullivan stated, "I've been in Academica six months and loved it. The men and women of the new military here are lovely people and we've made some great friends. They're now ready and equipped to ensure the future of their own nation and I can't wait now to return here as a tourist."

East Moreland, along with Vaguzia sent forces into Academica following an outbreak of civil war caused by a group of religious extremists. In the aftermath East Moreland along with a token force from Heyra (now the Conglomerate) sent peacekeepers. Queen Madeline under the terms of setting up a new government had to formally request the departure of East Moreland forces and that came a week ago. It is expected in the coming weeks that a formal meeting between King David and Queen Madeline will take place.





INFLATABLE SPACE STATION BEGINS MISSION

The nations Royal Aeronautical Society has today confirmed that the nations 3 months experiment utilising an "Inflatable" Space Station has begun. The station that was built by SmartWar utilises a system of using compressed gas to inflate a small package to several times its size and turning it into a usable space for experiments, living or storage. The package was put into orbit last week and two days later three astronauts joined it and inflated it. The stations equipment is specifically designed to be as small as possible and allows a completed lab component to fit into the back of a small van. The astronauts involved are Rachel Dixon, the nations most experienced astronauts, and brothers Chris and Simon Morrin. The trio will spend three months living aboard the station before collapsing it and leaving it in orbit around Mundus for future use. The station is attached to the East Moreland microlab which orbits Mundus and has been used for short stay science experiments by various nations. Speaking from the new station Simon Morrin, a engineer from SmartWar stated, "I'm amazed at just how big the thing is. I sat in mock ups of the microlab during training but now we've added on these new pods its like moving from a hotel room to a Palace. We've a few things we can tweek but give us a few years and this will be perfect for a whole host of missions."

The aim of the project is to eventually be able to build capsules or pods which could form the basis of deep space exploration. In theory Simon Morrin explains, "We can kit one of these out, shrink it down and fire it to say Nergal[1] where it can be remotely inflated meaning the amount of living space and equipment for future missions can be there already meaning it becomes easier to get manpower to the area with less risk. We believe it would be possible to get these on the surface of a planet or moon ready inflated. A dream would be to be able to combine it with maybe some form of AI or robotics, maybe both, that would allow it to set up say a food production facility and have supplies ready to go by the time our people get there. Its an exciting project with a huge lifespan and endless possibilities."

The astronauts are expected to undertake a space walk on Saturday in order to inspect the outer casing of the station. This will be the first space walk by a Morelander and it is expected that Rachel Dixon will be the one undertaking it. 
 1. Mars

Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #151 on: October 22, 2019, 09:00:14 PM »




NATION BEGINS FAST OF GRASA

The nation has today been effectively closed as the followers of the Cult of Helus begin celebrations of the God of Water, Grasa. The faithful spend the 22nd of October fasting and only drinking water in preparation for the Feast on the 23rd. A large crowd assembled in the Temple District as they patiently awaited their turn to get water from the spring that comes up in the Temple of Grasa in Northfort. First in the line was King David who filled a traditional leather flask before crossing over to the Temple of Helus where he used the sacred water to wash the feet of the statue dedicated to the God. He was joined by Princess Rhiannon who collected water to help her father and who told some worshippers she intended to give some to her pet Fennik Fox "Goldie" who has been "a good boy". Princess Freya and her husband Alex Redfern did not attend the ceremonies in Northfort instead attending the militaries commemoration at Ostlake.

Tomorrow the royals will be heading to Rockhampton for a traditional feast however Princess Rhiannon will be heading to Portworth to spend the day with her Mother, former Queen of East Moreland, Matilda Osman. The King was not joined today by his partner Baronetess Stasya Pelagiya who was however photographed arriving in Gaia in Lodja. It is expected that while there she will attend an event at the East Moreland embassy.





SNATCH LANDROVER TO RETIRE

The Ministry of Defence today have announced that the nation will begin selling of its fleet of just over 1,000 Snatch Landrovers. The vehicles entered service in 1990 as a stop gap measure to provide lightweight all terrain mobility support for troops in the Alps. Since then it has been found to be unsuited to heavier combat such as incidents in Safraen or Marseille. Sir Harry Samuelson talked about the process of removing them from service while awaiting their replacement. "The nation has several vehicles capable of undertaking a similar role however the military can not lose that amount of vehicles without a replacement. We have a few in mind and will be concluding the deals in the coming days. As for the old stock some will be put into service for JET while others will have their military equipment stripped and be sold off to private individuals. I can imagine a fair few of them bouncing around the farms of East Moreland in a short time."

It had been rumoured that the military would look at a joint project with a fellow CNN nation.

Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #152 on: October 23, 2019, 11:04:53 PM »




KING HOSTS FEAST IN ROCKHAMPTON

King David today broke the Fast of Grasa at Rockhampton Royal Retreat along with his sister Princess Freya and cousin Princess Lilian. The family also hosted in the afternoon a banquet attended by various members of the nobility and some members of the Mundus Games team. The Feast commemorates the God of Water and the King started the day by swimming in the river that flows past the family estate. One of the main guests at the feast was Medeival MMA Gold Medalist Tom Ridge who was attending his first royal function. He attended the day with his parents and spoke afterwards saying. "As a young man you read stories of the battles that took place in this region and I've always marvelled at what an awesome place this is. I loved being able to catch up with colleagues from other sports and to meet the King was a great honour. He said that his daughter has posters of me and Louis Blanche on her wall and I've offered to come and give the Princess a lesson or two when she's back in Northfort."

Another attendee of the event was rugby star Rollo MacAllister. The Northfort Royals player is currently dating Archduchess Sophie Harrison-Ironside who was unable to attend the event because of military duties. MacAllister is currently serving in the Army for his national service but has now confirmed that when his terms of service are up in six months time he will be joining the Northfort Royals full time. He spoke saying, "I love the Feasts in the Cult. They are great occasions to gather together with fellow Cultists and honour those that have given us everything we have. Its the first time I've attended a big event like the one here and it was really special. I'm just disappointed I couldn't spend it with Sophie but I know she's committed to her duties in the Air Force."

Across Mundus other Cultists celebrated with flasks of water from the spring in the Temple of Grasa. The flasks had been sent out over the last few weeks and an estimated 150litres had been dispatched. High Priestess Skye Maddix explained, "The water is special for this occasion as it is believed to be the purest possible. We have annually sent flasks to Temples wherever in the world they are required. With Cultists from East Moreland moving abroad more and more for various reasons and also with an uptake of the faith outside our borders the demand increases. I don't want it to become an industrial process but this year dispatching 150litres in small containers has been tough." One of the flasks was sent to Hygelac where a team of East Moreland scientists are based. The scientists there are undertaking a series of experiments on the shrinking ice limits. The flask was poured onto the ice while the team prayed. The lead scientist explained. "Symbolically we have joined the water of Northfort with Hygelac. We hope Grasa will intervene to help protect this wilderness."





SIMON MORRIN UNDERTAKES FIRST EAST MORELAND SPACE WALK

35 year old engineer Simon Morrin became the first astronaut from East Moreland to undertake a space walk. Morrin is part of the three astronaut team at the "Inflatable" Space Station experiment. The team are expected to remain in orbit for a further 10 weeks and will undertake a total of five space walks. The purpose of the Space Walk was to test the equipment as well as inspect the shell of the station. Simon Morrin was selected to be the first to go outside as he had been one of the engineering team that had built the prototype of the inflatable sections in the SmartWar HQ in Technology City. The walk was watched over by his elder brother Chris Morrin and the nations most experienced astronaut Rachel Dixon.

The walk confirmed that everything about the station was in good working order and that experiments could be set up in future space walks. Simon Morrin spoke to school children via video link when he returned to the interior. "The moment you step outside their is an instinct that your about to fall, then you just float out the door and see the planet beneath you, then moments later your looking up and its there again. Its very easy to get turned around out there and not even realise. Its one of the most amazing sights I've ever seen in my life. I want another go now." Of the four remaining space walks the Simon will undertake one more while his brother Chris will do two and Dixon one.

The trio celebrated the Feast of Grasa with a special dehydrated venison meal which Dixon described via radio link as being "like a really weird, really meaty ice cream" before recommending the specially formulated meal not be included on future menus.





"COMBAT SUPER LEAGUE" TO START in 2020

Lord Lucas Osman has today announced that he has secured funding to establish the Combat Super League (CSL) will be a major sporting league based on Medieval MMA. Lord Lucas Osman is the former CEO of OsmanTech and the companies founder, he has invested money in many projects through the years but most have been science or education related. Speaking at the press launch of the League the father of former Queen Matilda explained, "The sport of Medieval MMA is as Morelandish as you can get. Its gaining interest around the world. We need to ensure we stay one step ahead in a sport that is in every Morelanders heart as much as rugby. The league will feature 15 teams from across the nation who will play home and away. The match will feature three fights for men, three for women and a mens team and womens team event." The team events have traditionally only been a casual training event for Medieval MMA fighters however have always invoked interest between clubs. They will feature teams of four facing off. "Its our hope this can become a League that is picked up by TV companies across the world, we can make sure our nation has more Professionals competing week in week out and honing their skills."

World Heavyweight Champion Louis Blanche has spoken of his support for the event. "I hope this is something that will lead to the sport becoming a global phenomenum. I think we'll see people taking note of the individuals with the best win loss records over the year and them getting chances at world titles. It'll be a real proving ground." Blanche explained that he had been approached by Lord Osman about getting involved. "I think what you'll find is people at the elite level will continue to pick and choose their fights like boxers do. Those waiting to step up will be part of the CSL and this will keep their skills on point." He did not rule out making guest appearences for teams in the future though. "I'll be interested to see how my local teams do. Like fans of the sport out there I'll be picking a team to follow and if they need me then yeah perhaps I'll step in. I quiet like the idea of doing the team event as something a little different."

The teams will announce their teams in the coming weeks and some still have to confirm their final team names. The league however will feature the following teams.

1. Northfort Knights 2. Seabrooke Sheriffs 3. Tech City Chargers 4. Portworth Princes 5. Freestone Fighters 6. Highmoor Heroes 7. Ostlake Outlaws 8. Aldfield Archers 9. Aldcliffe Reds 10. Stonetone Terror 11. Keepton Knights 12. Rockhampton Royals 13. Roberton Riders 14. Winterhaven Warriors 15. The Legionnaires (team of those doing national or military service)

Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #153 on: November 02, 2019, 09:47:54 PM »




KING TO MARRY IN NEW YEAR

Northfort Palace today announced that King David is to marry Baronetess Stasya Pelagiya in the new year. Some have suggested that the King and his Lodjain fiancee will marry on or around the Feast of Helus which is on the 22nd February. The pair have been in a relationship for close to two years after meeting during one of King David's official visits to Lodja during which time his future wife was a Lady in Waiting to two Queen's of Lodja. The Baronetess currently resides in Silverhills where she serves as an envoy of the current Queen of Lodja. The Baronetess recently celebrated her 23rd birthday and it was at this time when the current three person committee granted their permission as Lodjain law and traditions dictate. Normally high ranking Lodjains need the monarchs permission to marry however with Queen Klara currently ill in hospital. King David had previously been admonished for having a relationship with a Lodjain noble without the Queen's permission however it is not known how much input Queen Klara has had over the recent approval.

Following the early morning announcement from the Palace the King visited the Temple of Helus where he meet with High Priestess Skye Maddix. One of the problems concerning the wedding is the difference of religions with the King being a leading member of the Cult of Helus while his future wife is a follower of the Goddess Sessifet, in particular in Lodjain society a Lady in Waiting is thought to be a direct servant of their Goddess. While nothing in law prevents a inter-religion marriage it would be the first in the history of East Moreland and is likely to cause controversy. She has however attended many of the recent Feast Day ceremonies in East Moreland alongside the King and has been seen at times taking part. Additionally, and rather concerning to a few, is that Baronetess Stasya has on several occasions had meetings with and spent social time with the self proclaimed High Priestess of the Sisterhood of Helus, Jinny Denman. Denman has been rather critical of the King's choice of partner in the past having stated, "Stasya Pelagiya has the noble breeding, beauty and grace required to be a Queen of East Moreland, she however lacks the faith and thus should never get near the throne."

Some people across the nation have already criticised the future wedding. One critic of the wedding is Prime Minister Thomas More who has stated in an interview today, "The monarchs of East Moreland are the protectors of and servants of the people. Its very difficult to do that when the blood in your veins is not Morelandish. The King has a duty to ensure the future of the monarchy and we have Princess Rhiannon who is showing all the grit and determination a monarch will need to be. While a larger royal family would be a blessing it is not a neccessity. Having a half Lodjain-Half Morelandish Prince or Princess is not something that should be encouraged." The Prime Ministers view was however criticised by former Youth Minister Amelia Merriman who stated. "We should be celebrating the fact we'll have a Queen again. The Queen is a support to the King and for a long time now our King has been a father to his daughter, a father to the nation and an extremely hard worker. He deserves to be happy and deserves to have someone help him. Who cares if the person is Lodjain? Its clear Baronetess Stasya respects our traditions and I think she can make a great Queen." 

While it is likely to be a case that Northfort shall be the location of the wedding some suggest that two ceremonies may take place, one in Gaia and another in Northfort. So far the King's former wife, Matilda Osman has not commented on the Kings new marriage.





ARTIFICIAL "LEAF" CREATES GAS FROM SUNLIGHT

Researchers working for SFR Technology have today unveiled what they are calling the "Leaf Generator" the company which built a hardened solar panel which could be driven on by lorries showed of their new product at a Chamwick, previously known as Technology City. The device, which is the size of a piece of A4 paper is made up of a series of small nanotubes, a light absorber and a cobolt catalyst utilises a reaction similar to photosynthesis to produce what is called "syngas". The device when placed in sunlight and water combines carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, and hydrogen which can then be collected as "Syngas". The Leaf works in all situations where a regular leaf would and is considered to be a form of renewable energy. The gas produced is only capable of producing half the amount of energy as regular gas per same volume however it does hold several uses in manufacturing and in the production of liquid fuels.

SFR Technology hope to eventually be able to use these devices in a way similar to solar panels are used at the moment and collect the Syngas to be used to create a new liquid fuel. The CEO of the company, Karen Duffy, explained "We are several years away from these being a feature of everyday life but the fact we can take minimal materials and utilise naturally occuring resources like water and sunlight to get a potential new fuel is exciting." The company is 5% owned by OsmanTech and has in the past had connections with SmartWar. Miss Duffy says these links could be invaluable, "We've two good relations with some of the biggest companies in East Moreland. Its hopeful we may be able to utilise some of these connections with this project."

Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #154 on: November 07, 2019, 05:18:24 PM »




KING WRITES "HISTORIC PROTECTION" DECREE

King David today has issued a decree entitled the "Decree for the Protection and Preservation of Historical artefacts and their environment" . The Decree was brought in following the news coming from Clysperis of the raiding and subsequent sale of historical artefacts by rebel forces in that nation. The decree which came into force with immediate effect makes it a crime to trade in, import or own any artefacts from "listed nation" with immediate effect. The exception to this is any artefact that can be proven to have been removed from the nation prior to the decree's publication. So far only Clysperis are "Listed nations." The decree will see anyone trading in artefacts from Clysperis liable to a fine of up to ten times the market value of the artefact as well as a maximum of five years imprisonment. Additionally the decree permits those trading in goods banned under the decree to the investigated for terrorist offences. The decree outlines that those purchasing banned artefacts and where it is discovered that a terrorist organisation was involved in any part of the process are considered to have funded terrorism, a charge that in East Moreland can carry if proven the death penalty.

The King explained the decision. "We intend to at the moment stay neutral in the conflict in Clysperis until such a time as we can be convinced as to real will of the people. What we can not condone is the destruction of a cultural heritage of a nation. As such we will put in place measures that we hope other nations will support that we believe will effectively block the sale of artefacts and dry that up as a source of income for armed groups. Clysperis has a rich and unique cultural past which like any across Mundus must be protected. I am not naive enough to think this will stop the trade however it is likely to make the casual collectors keep their hands clean while making it easier for the police to investigate any larger collections. "

The Decree explains that any artefacts that are seized will be taken into East Moreland safekeeping until such a time a request to the Cultural Exchange Treaty Organisation from the government of the nation of origin is received. Only once CETO have confirmed via a vote that the situation is safe to return the artefacts will they be returned.

Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #155 on: November 10, 2019, 08:28:10 PM »




CHIEF COUNCILLOR STEPS DOWN

In a surprise move the Chief Councillor of East Moreland, Thomas More, has stepped down however he will stay on as the Representative for Roberton North. The 47 year old announced his decision from his own residence in the city of Roberton where he said, " My duties as Chief Councillor mean I represent the people of East Moreland before the King. I have many times spoke about his impending wedding to a Lodjain who does not share our faith. I can not serve in a government of a King and Queen when I believe the Queen should not have the crown. As such I must stand down but I shall continue to represent the people of my constiuency and hope to ensure we do not as a nation come under the influence of foreign powers." The decision to stand down as Chief Councillor also means he has stood down as the leader of the Traditonalist Party and will be replaced in a party election in the coming weeks.

Royal Press Secretary Malcolm Tucker spoke about the announcement saying. "Mr.More is permitted to do what he feels he has to. To state that he believes Baronetess Stasya will somehow be a bad influence on our nation is ridicoulous. She has been a great support for the King these last six months or so since moving to East Moreland." Many people had been concerned that the future Queen does not share the Cultist faith however there are rumours that she may to some extent have embraced the faith having been seen attending services with King David while also at times visiting controversial Priestess Jinny Denman. The 23 year old future Queen has however been seen looking at wedding dresses in the Morelander tradition however the wedding ceremony may be adapted as the Baronetess will not posses a traditional Cultist birthing blanket which is used during the ceremony. There has however been one concession to Lodjain traditions announced already in the fact that the new Queen will appoint a pair of Ladies in Waiting. This is a tradition in her native Lodja where she served as one herself. The Ladies in Waiting are expected to serve as personal assistants and companions to the Queen and undertake a number of roles to support her in the daily tasks she undertakes. The Palace also confirmed that at least one of these would be a Morelander. Royal Press Secretary stated, "Baronetess Stasya believes the system of Ladies in Waiting helps support the charitable and pastoral work of a Queen and as she intends to be a positive contributor to every aspect of her new homelands society."

The exact date of the wedding is yet to be announced but speculation suggests that the pair may wait until the Feast of Helus which is on the 22nd February. The news of the wedding though has created some issues between King David and his former wife with rumours stating that Matilda Osman believes that Baronetess Stasya could be a bad influence. There is suggestions from the Osman camp that the former Queen is seeking to reach an agreement with the King in order to minimise the influence her successor will have on Princess Rhiannon. The rumour however has had doubt cast upon it when a reporter at Princess Rhiannons school shouted questions to the youngster who was recorded as saying. "Stasya is my friend and helps me pick pretty dresses" before the reporter was ushered away. It is well known that King David is very protective of his daughter around the media.



« Last Edit: November 10, 2019, 09:51:06 PM by DaveIronside »

Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #156 on: November 11, 2019, 10:45:49 PM »




AIRCRAFT GROUNDED FOLLOWING TYTOR ATTACKS

With news coming that a series of apparently co-ordinated attacks had happened across Tytor, including attacks utilising aircraft the King of East Moreland began a process of locking down its airspace. The move is part of a rehearsed plan following major terror attacks involving aircraft and sees all passenger aircraft landed with immediate effect and fighter aircraft sent en-mass to orbit the air space of major cities and strategic points. The various aircraft were inspected and manifests checked before continuing on their way. It was estimated that on average travellers will have experienced around a 4 hour delay to their journey. Minister of Defence Sir Harry Samuelson explained. "It is better safe than sorry. We have seen terror attacks carried out by co-ordinated organisation between groups before and we can not rule this out until we run checks. People may well complain about the delay to their travel but what is important is that people get their safely."

The King was visiting a religious college for the Priesthood at Ostlake when news of the attacks came. The King appeared on the steps of the Temple of Helus in Ostlake and said. "We send our thoughts and prayers to the people of Tytor who today have had their lives wrenched apart. We ourselves have experienced first hand horrific loss of life due to those who wish to live outside the law and understand that no words by Heads of State can sooth the hurt that has been done. We are as of yet to be informed of who has carried out these attacks, or the motive behind them but I would like the government of Tytor to know if there is anything we can do to help during this difficult time we stand ready to do so." As of yet no group has claimed responsibility and as a result the threat level in East Moreland has been raised to Black Alpha once again. This means civilians should expect extra military checkpoints in and around sensitive areas as well as a more visible military presence on the street. The King has also authorised the Military Pre-positioning ship based in the Sea of Kyne to move towards Tytor. "We have a vessel that sails consistently across the Kyne region with useful supplies should our military have to deploy to the region on short notice. It has onboard medical supplies, including some frozen blood supplies that could be utilised. We also have some specialist search and rescue equipment which should Tytor need it we shall make avaliable."

High Priestess Skye Maddix spoke of any Cultist living or visiting Tytor could find shelter and support in any Temple as well as urging Cultists in Tytor to donate blood. The Foreign Ministry raised the threat level for visitors to Tytor to Black Alpha and urged against anything but necessary travel.




FUTURE QUEEN APPOINTS FIRST STAFF MEMBER

Baronetess Stasya has today announced that she has appointed her personal secretary, known as The Head of Queen's Household. The job has been given to 36 year old Alexandrea Samuel a former officer in the Royal East Moreland Air Force who has since leaving the Air Force has established a small women's fashion company and set up an organisation to help injured female Legionnaires overcome body image issues. The appointment was announced by the Palace by Press Secretary Malcolm Tucker who said, "The consort of the monarch has always held a special position in East Moreland society. They are a reflection of the monarch's softer side. They have the freedom to take on causes and events that often the monarch supports morally but struggles to do so physically. As such the lot of the Queen shall be a busy one and just as Matilda Osman did when she established the Wild Mundus Organisation, Baronetess Stasya is keen to make a contribution to the legacy of the royal family. Over the next few weeks the future Queen will announce a series of appointments ranging from people such as Miss Samuel who will essentially mirror the role held by Quinn Germaine for the King to new positions such as Ladies in Waiting.

Miss Samuel, whose father is Sir Jack Samuel a former East Moreland ambassador to what was the Union of Nordic People and then to Rokkenjima, spoke of her appointment saying. "I've been lucky enough to see the Baronetess at some fashion events and we've got along well. I am thankful to have this trust put in me and hope to be able to support her as she grows into the position of Queen and works to help our nation."

Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #157 on: November 16, 2019, 06:59:12 PM »




FUTURE QUEEN TO "FOLLOW HELUS"

Today it has been announced by the self proclaimed High Priestess of the Sisterhood of Helus, Jinny Denman, that the future Queen of East Moreland has "embraced the true faith and will follow Helus." Speaking not long after Baronetess Stasya was seen leaving an office complex which houses a education centre run by the Sisterhood of Helus in Northfort the leader of the Sisterhood spoke on national radio saying. "Over the last few weeks I've been able to meet many times with Baronetess Stasya and she has shown a remarkable thirst for knowledge. We have sat for many hours discussing Helus and I believe she is as well educated in the ways of the Cult as any Priestess they boast within their ranks. She has now pledged that she is set to follow Helus however as of yet I am still uncertain whether that means she plans to become a Cultist or whether she has seen the truth and light that is the Sisterhood. I have many other planned meetings with her in the next week or so. Some of them are simply social visits in Silverhills, others she will be attending some of our upcoming functions in a capacity as Envoy from Lodja. I hope this will give me a chance to help her make this assimilation and further see the deeper truth to following Helus that only those of the Sisterhood have seen."

The announcement from the Sisterhood caused the Palace to be inundated with requests for information however Royal Press Secretary Malcolm Tucker stated, " King David has always been adament that his marriage to Baronetess Stasya was not dependent on her faith. Naturally he, and the rest of East Moreland, would be delighted to see her become a follower of the Cult of Helus but no pressure has been exerted by the King, his family or staff. Should the rumours be true it changes nothing."

There are currently just over 1.5 million people in East Moreland who officially claim to be members of the Sisterhood of Helus, one of those is Naval officer  George Stewart who commands the aircraft carrier REMNS Ostlake. He spoke of the news stating, "I have always been overjoyed to command a ship dedicated to defending the Code of Canley. To hopefully now have a Queen who understands exactly what this entails makes it even better. While 1.5million of us claim to follow the real Helus I suspect there are many more. Should this news be true then I hope and pray many more will come out of the woodwork spurred on by the future Queen's example." Weight was added to the rumour later in the day when famed swordsmith Gavin Young attended the Baronetess' residence and was seen carrying in various samples leading some to believe that perhaps Baroentess Stasya is intending to undertake a sword ceremony prior to her marriage.




2nd EAST MORELAND SPACE WALK A SUCCESS

East Moreland astronaut Rachel Dixon further extended her space based accolades by becoming the first Morelander to walk on the moon and undertake a space walk. Dixon left the prototype "Inflatable Space Station" to inspect the outer shell as well as undertake an experiment which saw her change a part on a section of the space station. The experiment was set up to replicate a vital part of the station but was not connected to the workings of the space station rather instead simply being bolted onto the skin. The space walk went without a hitch and the engineering work was deemed to be perfectly done. Dixon used a shoulder mounted camera to give school students watching in classrooms across East Moreland, and possibly further afield a tour of the exterior of the station as well as amazing views of Mundus.

The inflatable space station has so far been an incredible success and one of its designers is astronaut Simon Morrin who earlier in the mission undertook his own space walk making him the first Morelander to undertake one. The trio of astronauts have a further 10 days onboard the space station before removing all the air from within it while they leave for Mundus onboard their re-entry vehicle. The deflated station will remain in orbit and is to be used for another, shorter experiment at some part mid way through 2020. The Royal Aeronautical Society who oversee East Moreland's space programme have not ruled out hiring the facility to other nations who complete a training programme on its operation.





FLOODS IN THE WEST

Following almost a week of non-stop rain in the Western Alpine region the city of Seabrooke has experienced heavy flooding along with many areas in the countryside. The flooding has made around 27,000 families seek refuge while an estimated 7 people have been killed in various flood related accidents. In accordance with long standing emergency plans the military have moved to the area to offer assistance with military helicopters now being a regular site ferrying supplies into the region and those in need of help out. The flooding has also brought about major cancellations to this weekends sporting fixtures as games have been cancelled throughout the Western part of the nation.

Seabrooke saw all schools closed on Friday with many expected to remain closed for around a week as people wait for the rain to lessen and the waters to recede. Seabrooke has experienced many floods over the years, some of this put down to more recent extensions to the city built upon the flood plain. In addition the works done further upstream have been blamed for causing extra run off into the river which is no longer able to make its way swiftly through the city. The local mayor has called for dredging of the river once the flooding has abated thus increasing the size of the river channel and hopefully reducing the risk of flooding in future. The King is due to visit the area tomorrow and the REMNS King Robert is returning from patrols in the Mhorish to help with aid operations as Seabrooke.


Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #158 on: November 20, 2019, 08:15:42 PM »




NAVY TO CONSIDER RETIRING REMNS PORTWORTH

Sir Harry Samuelson has today announced that in the new year a review will take place of the future of the aircraft carrier REMNS Portworth. The ship is due for a major refit however this may now be cancelled and the funds invested in new assets for the Navy instead. Sir Harry explained the decision. "While the aircraft carriers have been a very useful asset over the years we now must see whether it is worth the investment going forward. The ship was built in the mid 1970's and is over 40 years old. It was built at a time when the nation was experiencing isolation and the need to perhaps have to utilise a carrier in the Illumic and Mhorish could have been an option. Today the world is a very different place. Carriers cost several hundred million a year to just keep afloat. That's before you even crew it, move it anywhere, provision it, stock it with weapons and begin flying aircraft off it at several thousand dollars an hour. Take the cost of just running the Portworth for a year and we could probably introduce a new Frigate. The nature of naval warfare has changed massively over the last decade and aircraft no longer pose the threat they once did from a carrier. We now have extremely long range missiles capable of undertaking the missions of the carrier based planes without putting a pilot in harms way or risking the aircraft being picked up on RADAR. Add to that the fact that a carrier needs to be accompanied by a large fleet as it needs to protect itself. We've seen the development of ultra long range, ultra high speed anti-ship missiles, examplified by the Zircon from Kaitaine. Without a huge accompanying fleet these Zircon missiles could easily take out a carrier, meanwhile a single or pair of destroyers would find it easy to protect themselves from a Zircon threat while being able to carrying out an almost identical mission profile as a carrier. Each carrier today would cost around $12billion. This is a figure that a single Zircon or similar missile could write off in a single blow, and also importantly cost thousands of lives of the crew onboard. For that money we could buy 6 new drone carriers and they can carry out a very similar mission to the carriers while also carrying a variety of long range strike missiles. We have yet to determine the future of the aircraft carriers but with a huge outlay coming in order to ensure the current ones continue to be of use we must ensure tax payers money is utilised in the best way."

The news of potentially new ships being added to the navy shares in Portworth Shipwrights and Smartwar, the two companies who both contributed to the latest destroyers, increased. Meanwhile Admiral James Thompson the commander of the Royal East Moreland Naval Service stated, "The navy constantly review what equipment we need and how best to utilise our funding. If we can provide better offensive power for our military at a reduced cost then that is something we should consider. East Moreland may not be a huge navy or one famed for its naval actions however we do have a history of leading the field in terms of developing innovative solutions. We were the first nation to bring in the Drone Carrier concept into service, and we are the only nation utilising the use of Ground Effect Vehicles on front line service. There is no reason why this situation couldn't result in us actually pushing the envelope further."





"FLYING TIN OPENERS" TO HEAD TO WEST ALPS

Following reports in the Vaguzian media of clashes along their eastern border with the WMRA the King has ordered the nations famed "Flying Tin Openers" to the region. 6 Squadron earned the nickname the Flying Tin Openers while equipped with the Dragonbane aircraft and flying close air support sorties against Borlander vehicles in the Northern Alps. Two years they switched over to the newer Dragonbane II and have been able to tally a large number of confirmed kills on Borlander targets in the Northern Alps and even when deployed to Academica. The Squadron will fly sorties aimed at disrupting the ability of the WMRA to cross the border and will, if permitted or required, strike at targets on the Vaguzian side of the border. Air Commodore John Sterland who commands the Royal East Moreland Air Force supported the decision saying. "No.6 squadron have a superb track record and I hope they can disrupt the supply lines of the the WMRA. Should the Vaguzian require it the Flying Can Openers will be happy to utilise their skills in Vaguzian skies."

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #159 on: November 22, 2019, 10:53:33 PM »




SFR TO SET UP IN THE CONGLOMERATE

The East Moreland green energy company SFR have today announced that they have concluded a deal with the government of The Conglomerate in order to acquire what the company are calling a "mass test site for technological development." The announcement confirmed that SFR have acquired permission to lease a 100km2 area of land for at least the next 50 years. No money will change hands as part of the agreement however SFR will as part of the agreement undertake operations to help restore the area to a level of safety as currently it is still baring the scars from the Great War. The development will centre around the area known as Bellefaye which was once a thriving city however during the war was abandoned and later received heavy damage. The area around the harbour will be SFR's first site for development before they begin to utilise the surronding area for testing prototype wind turbines, solar panels and various tidal energy platforms. The company will recoup the money spent restoring the area by selling the electricity generated to either the Conglomerate or East Moreland. The company will recruit over the next few weeks a team of former military engineers who will undertake the work of making the area safe. It is also expected that local historians and archaeologists will be permitted to operate in the area in order to see if it is possible to recover or preserve parts of Heyran history.

The SFR company have developed a kite based wind turbine system and a hardened solar panel which can be driven on by trucks. It is expected that the company will also utilise the area as a way of testing some new tidal energy solutions and further wind turbine systems. The company have opened small stretches of road in East Moreland built out of the hardened solar panels but this is set to be their biggest experiment so far.





FUTURE QUEEN TO HAVE SISTERHOOD SWORD CEREMONY

Baronetess Stasya Pelagiya has today confirmed through her new Chief of Household that she will be having a Sword Ceremony carried out by the Sisterhood of Helus. The 22 year old Lodjain has seemingly converted to the Sisterhood of Helus, an offshoot of the traditional Cult of Helus lead by self proclaimed High Priestess Jinny Denman. The exact nature of the sword ceremony differs from that of the Cult by not requiring blood to be shed by witnesses and some of the prayers said during the ceremony. The Baronetess, whose family follow the Lodjain Goddess Sessifet, will require four witnesses to her good character and it is understood that the Sisterhood's High Priestess Jinny Denman will act as one while King David will act as another. The other two witnesses are Alexandra Samuel the future Queen's Chief of Household and Sir James Fitzroy the ambassador to Lodja. The ceremony will take place in Silverhills over the weekend and is expected to be followed by a huge party. Miss Samuel, the new Chief of Queen's Household made the announcement saying. "The Baronetess is determined to do all she can to embrace the culture and traditions of East Moreland. It is a nation she has grown to love as much as her homeland and as much as her future husband. We realise some eyebrows will be raised by her decision to have the ceremony under the auspices of the Sisterhood but she hopes the people of East Moreland will follow their King in respecting her right to her own faith. While Stasya may be becoming a Morelander in many ways the Lodjain traditions of grand celebrations will always remain and the ceremony presents an opportunity to share her happy occasion with her family who have accepted her conversion as well as her future subjects."

News of the future Queen's announcement saw mixed reactions on social media with some applauding her for adopting Morelander traditions while others were critical. Those critical questioned how a woman with no military service was entitled to a sword ceremony while others were annoyed about her adopting the Sisterhood. Miss Samuel addressed these concerns saying. " The condition of being given a sword is to undertake some kind of duty to your nation or monarch. Remember Stasya served as a loyal Lady in Waiting for two years to two Lodjain Queen's. She dedicated every waking hour to supporting and aiding her Queen at the expense of her own freedom. This clearly is an act of great devotion and service in keeping with the Code of Canley. While the Cult is the traditional faith of the Morelanders it is her right to adopt the faith in her own way should she feel a moral duty. The Sisterhood is not to disimilar in what it promotes and expects of its faithful and so I foresee no issues in the long term."

The renowned swordsmith Gavin Young has provided a blade for the ceremony and while not releasing images of it has said, "It is a blade well suited to its owner, slim, elegant, perfectly formed and stunningly beautiful. I have been privledged to make the blades of Princess Freya, the late Princess and High Priestess Joanna Ironside and even a blade for Queen Helene (King David's mother). To see yet another Queen of East Moreland carry one of my creations is the biggest prize a swordsmith can have other than to make the King's blade." King David does own swords made by Mr.Young however his own personnel blade was made by his father and Maxwell Powers the Royal Swordsmith.

It has also been announced that despite the grandeur of the occasion Princess Rhiannon will not be attending. Royal Press Secretary Malcolm Tucker confirmed this saying. "This ceremony is rather short notice and this weekend is the scheduled time for the Princess to have visitation with her mother. Miss Osman is welcome to attend however I understand the Osman family have pre-existing plans of their own and can not change these. The Princess and Baronetess have grown close over the last few months but the King is determined that his daughter's routine is not changed unless absolutely necessary."


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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #160 on: November 26, 2019, 08:14:49 PM »




PELAGIYA SWORD CEREMONY IN SILVERHILLS

Baronetess Stasya Pelagiya, the future Queen of East Moreland yesterday underwent the traditional sword ceremony associated with those that follow the teachings of Helus. While the vast majority of Morelanders follow the Cult of Helus the Lodjain noble elected to undergo the ceremony under the traditions of the less traditional Sisterhood of Helus. The decision therefore saw the Baronetesses fiancee King David attend a function under the auspices of the Sisterhood of Helus for the first time. The ceremony did not take place inside the cities Temple of Jekar as the cult requires but rather in a temporary shelter errected outside the Temple on its practice field. The ceremony was well attended by various East Moreland nobles as well as the Pelagiya family whom are well connected with Lodjain society. While the rest of the Queen to be's family still follow and support the Lodjain faith of Sessifet they did dress in traditional tunics, all be it white to signify they had not undergone a sword ceremony themselves. The whole ceremony was conducted by the controversial Jinny Denman who spoke after the ceremony to say, "Today was a beautiful occasion. We welcomed officially to our fold Stasya who has fully embraced life in East Moreland. I know at times I have been critical of her in the past but now we look to the future where East Moreland will soon have a Queen that is blessed by the truth of Helus, supportive of our traditions, noble in birth and will with Helus' blessings bring about a new generation of East Moreland's royal family."

The ceremony saw King David act as witness to his future wife's good character and the fact that she has fulfilled all the criteria required to be permitted to carry a sword. The other witnesses were Jinny Denman herself along with  Alexandra Samuel the future Queen's Chief of Household and Sir James Fitzroy the ambassador to Lodja. Each of the four used the new blade presented to Baronetess Stasya to prick their thumbs to coat the blade with blood while they declared an oath as to the good character of the initiate. Following the ceremony the event was celebrated with a large party organised by the Pelagiya family on the estate purchased by Stasya upon her arrival in East Moreland. While the ceremony itself was rather traditional and low key the celebration was essentially almost like a mini music festival with around 600 guests and live music performances in a circus big top until the early mornings. Several members of Lodjain nobility had flown in for the event including Anna Immich and Jasmina Danielov both of whom served as Ladies in Waiting with Stasya Pelagiya when she herself served as a Lady in Waiting for Queen Viktoria and Klara. During the celebrations it was announced that King David also conferred upon his future wife the title Duchess of Seabrooke, a title that has been vacant for around a year following the death of Duke John Maynard who died with no heir. When the King marries in February he will become the Duke of Seabrooke as well as a Baronet in Lodjain nobility.






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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #161 on: December 01, 2019, 10:26:05 PM »




HIGH PRIESTESS TO PRESIDE OVER ROYAL WEDDING

Following the sword ceremony of Duchess Stasya[1]  of Seabrooke it was confirmed today that her wedding ceremony to the King will take place under the traditions of the Cult of Helus. Duchess Stasya had undertaken a sword ceremony is the Sisterhood of Helus but today the High Priestess of the Cult, Skye Maddix, explained that she will be the one to marry the couple. Speaking during a conference on theocratic issues the 42 year old leader of the Cult of Helus said, "I am once again responsible for our monarchs marriage. This is a task I look forward to undertaking and hope that it is a day our whole nation can enjoy. Naturally I would have preferred to have also been in charge of Duchess Stasya's sword ceremony but my feelings about the Sisterhood must be placed aside." There is one issue that must be overcome during the ceremony, "Stasya has no birth blanket to use for the binding part of the ceremony, meanwhile as we all know King David's was used for his first marriage. The Cult has no set way of dealing with 2nd marriages and it is largely for each couple to determine. King David has determined that he will be use a mixture of threads from his deceased son's blanket and some returned to him from his first wife. Meanwhile the Duchess will use part of her tunic from the sword ceremony as it represents something of a rebirth into the love of Helus." The ceremony is scheduled to take place on the 22nd February, the same day as the Feast of Helus. "The King at first planned to have the ceremony on the 21st or 23rd however I couldn't think of a more auspicious occasion than having it during the Feast of Helus, a time when our God is as close to us as possible."

The High Priestess was also quizzed about the recent events with King David's cousin James having given a statement on the status of the Celtic Protectorate in Royal Seleucid. "I am not one to try and combine religion and politics. I believe that when King Robert the Unifier placed a High Priestess in charge of religious guidance instead of the King he made a wise decision. He saw the High Priestess as someone needed to represent Helus across the world, not in a nation. Naturally any leader of the Cult will need to have close ties with the Holy Land and I am honoured that King David often confides in me before announcing policy, but I can not order  a mission to the Protectorate as part of the Cult. Should some individual given status by the Cult undertake such a task that is there determination. James however is a lackblade, a man who has lost his honour and with whom the Cult has lost trust. While no lackblade is forever lost to the Cult I believe that James would need to live a thousand lifetimes to make good. It is of course possible to regain the trust of the Cult but actions and not words are important."

The High Priestess also announced that funding was being granted to help restore or rebuild eight temples in Royal Seleucid. "Since the genocide these temples have been neglected somewhat and we must change that. As such we will be working with the Priesthood there to identify eight Temples, one for each diety, that is spread around the Cultist inhabited areas. I look forward to seeing them restored to their full glory and allow the Cultists of Royal Seleucid to enjoy their worship once more." The High Priestess has also spoken of launching another round of fund raising for the Mundus Goodwill Bank. "The disaster in Tytor, the humanitarian crisis that will come with the war in Clysperis will require support. The Mundus Goodwill Bank was set up to ensure nations could rebuild following such crisis without fear of having to repay interest or pay huge fees. It is my hope that in the coming weeks we can pump some more money into this ready for action when the extent of the issues are known once the area becomes safe."

The High Priestess is due to lead worship for the Festival of Frossaj on the 3rd December at the Temple in Keepton.




DUCHESS APPOINTS NEW STAFF

In preparation for her Wedding Day Duchess Stasya has been busy appointing new staff. She has already appointed a Chief of her Household in the guise of 36 year old former Air Force officer Alexandrea Samuel. She has today appointed two Ladies in Waiting, an ancient position not held in East Moreland on a regular basis since the 18th Century. The position is a highly valued one in Duchess Stasya's native Lodja where the Ladies in Waiting are expected to handle organisation and preparation of the Queen's attire, accompany her on functions and help organise and provide hospitality for honoured guests. It was while serving as a Lady in Waiting that the Duchess and King began their relationship. The tradition in Lodja is that daughters of well connected nobles serve however it appears that the two new appointees are from less noble backgrounds however are well connected. The first appointment is 22 year old Jessica Spence-Cole, the daughter of Science and Technology Minister Olivia Cole. It is understood that Miss Spence-Cole, who has just finished her military service as a member of the Logistics Core, meet the Duchess during the Ostlake Games and has been a frequent attendee to social events at the Duchesses home.

The second appointee is 20 year old Emma Maybury, the daughter of Sir Alan Maybury the CEO of EMAC. Miss Maybury was a student at Silverhills University where she was studying Media and Fashion, a course that brought her into contact with Duchess Stasya who runs her own fashion line. The pair will begin their duties now and are expected to be a prominent part of the Palace's staff when it comes to organising functions for visiting dignitaries. Duchess Stasya has confirmed that she will appoint a further Lady in Waiting, to be entitled as Chief Lady in Waiting, but has confirmed this shall be a Lodjain as according to the future Queen, "She will be fully aware of the role and importance of a Lady in Waiting."

The Palace has also begun to undertake several other Lodjain traditions as it is understood that in addition to a Royal Artist in Residence, a position currently held by Jocelin Hopkins, the new year will see a poet, author, musician and dancer in residence be appointed.
 1. Title now supersedes Baronetess

Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #162 on: December 04, 2019, 08:51:51 PM »




FEAST OF FROSSAJ SEE'S NATION REFLECT

The Feast of Frossaj took place yesterday with commemorations across the country. The Feast is one of the more subdued celebrations in the calender of the Cult Of Helus as it honours the God of Justice who according to Cultist tradition presided over judgement of humans who had survived the Overlords onslaught. Those deemed to have tried to stay true to the Code of Canley were spared and granted rewards while those deemed to of dishonoured the Code were destroyed. The festival saw pilgrims from across the nation visit key Temples in Northfort and Mortonside to confess their deeds for the year and recieve a blessing for the year ahead from a Priestess. As tradition dictates King David was first to meet with High Priestess Skye Maddix at the alter of the Temple in Northfort.  While the content of the King's conversation with Skye Maddix was confidential the King did make an offering on the alter on behalf of the nation. He placed a ceremonial dagger and shield on before standing aside as his daughter Princess Rhiannon made her first official Feast of Frossaj confessional. While the King, as usual, refused to comment on his conversation as he left the Temple Princess Rhiannon was overheard saying she hoped Frossaj forgives her "for taking the big piece of cake at school." It is not yet confirmed whether Frossaj will have forgiven this but the High Priestess did offer her blessings. The Princess was collected by her mother, Matilda Osman, after she had made her own confession. The future Queen, Duchess Stasya was absent from the Cult's Temple instead having attended a ceremony at the nearby headquarters of the Sisterhood of Helus, a group which as of yet does not posses an extensive network of physical temples. Differing from the Cultist tradition the members of the Sisterhood undertake a ritualistic wash before receiving a blessing after making an offering to the God, whom they believe is female. It is understood the Duchess placed a specially made gold ring as an offering before being blessed by the Sisterhood's leader Jinny Denman. The King and Duchess then joined members of the nation's judiciary for lunch at the Palace before attending a moonlight performance in Mortonside were locals re-enacted the story of Frossaj judging the soul of Raimond Unasson and his followers after the final battle with the Underlords. This traditional performance has taken place for over 500 years and upon its conclusion King David presented the actor who played Frossaj with a ceremonial dagger as custom dictates the guest of honour do so. Following the performance the King said. "The Cult is known for having a significant number of festivals, the Feast of Frossaj is very different to the others. While the others are a chance for celebration and enjoyment the Feast of Frossaj is more about looking at ourselves and preparing for a fresh start. As the dark nights draw in and the land becomes darker it is a reminder of the fact that evil can surround us at any moment and only by following the guiding light of the Code of Canley can we reach the light again. Many of us Cultists will have set for ourselves things we want to change, challenges we wish to face and vices we wish to remove. I wish everyone the best of luck in achieving these things and I too will be striving to better myself in the year ahead as I once again become a husband."

The Feast was as always celebrated across the nation with former Chief Councillor Tim Carpenter attending the rededication of an ancient Temple of Frossaj in Royal Seleucid. Mr.Carpenter is currently serving as an ambassador in the nation and presented the Priestess of the Temple there with a ceremonial sword forged at the Temple of Jekar in Ostlake. "It is tradition that every Cultist temple has a sword on or around the alter. Every Cultist knows that Jekar taught mankind the skills and ability of swordsmanship and that its practice and lessons help us become honourable and disciplined. The sword in a Temple is a reminder of the struggle of mankind to defeat evil and I am proud to bring a sword from the home of Jekar to this ancient Temple that is having a rebirth."

In Nya Aland a group of Red Legionnaires celebrated the Feast onboard the REMNS King Robert which is in the region on a training exercise. They were seen conducting their own reinactment of the trial of Unasson's followers on the ships flight deck. One of their officers stated, "We had considered doing it on base however with the Alanders stance on public displays of faith being a potential issue it was just easier to come onboard the King Robert and join our naval comrades. Tomorrow we'll be practicing naval landings with the Alanders Mjolnir special forces so today isn't just a day off, we need to be prepared for that just like it was a real mission." It is expected the King Robert will dock in Claith on its way home before visiting Edwinstowe in Bakkermaya.

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #163 on: December 15, 2019, 10:28:07 PM »




KING RESTORES "SACKED" STAFF

Following news reports that Duchess Stasya had removed certain members of Royal Staff while the King was away from the Palace on business Royal Press Secretary Malcolm Tucker has confirmed today that those dismissals have been reversed. "His Majesty is confident in the abilities of his staff to do the jobs assigned to them. The King is delighted with the scholarly work of Professor Howard, the artistic genius of Miss Hopkins and the way Miss Mason has looked after the royal stables. As such His Majesty see's no reason for change. Duchess Stasya has been informed that she is perfectly entitled to appoint her own household staff within the budget laid out for the Queen to manage her affairs and she is free to appoint whom so ever she see's fit."

The future Queen has already appointed a chief of staff and two Ladies in Waiting a staff already larger than that of the former Queen Matilda Osman whom only had a single Lady in Waiting in the guise of her sister Erin Osman. Duchess Stasya has grown up in a nation where there is a significant difference between royal staff levels as the Palace of Gaia is host to a whole group of artists, poets, musicians and various ancillary members of staff. Meanwhile in East Moreland custom has always been to keep staff numbers down.




ASTRONAUTS RETURN TO MUNDUS

The three East Moreland astronauts who have just spent several weeks in the new prototype inflatable space station have returned to Mundus. The astronauts touched down just outside Ostlake where they were greeted by members of the Royal East Moreland Air Force and the Royal Aeronautical Society. The mission was lead by Rachel Dixon who has now completed her third mission in space, she was joined by brothers Simon and Joe Morrin. The mission was declared a success and has left the space station, in a deflated state, orbiting Mundus. The aim is for the station to be revisited in six months time and used again following inspection.

The system was developed by SmartWar who have declared themselves delighted with the results. "The idea is to develop a system that can be sent ahead of any long range exploration at a compartively cheap and lightweight manner. It is our hope that we can utilise this system as a functional way to keep a manned scientific prescence in orbit and this is the first success in that." The company have also not ruled out renting out the space to other nations. "We know several nations are keen to get experience of space and the station could be an ideal oppurtuntity. We have a range of missions scheduled for the Royal Aeronautical Society but there are month long gaps when no one will be utilising the station. As such we are interested in helping other nations gain experience and space for their own experiments. It is understood the Cenneg space agency are already considering using the station for a series of experiments.


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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #164 on: December 18, 2019, 10:45:33 PM »




"QUIET-DRAGON" DUE TO TAKE FIRST FLIGHT BY END OF NEXT YEAR

For the last two years EMAC have been researching eliminating the sonic boom from aircraft breaking the sound barrier and believe that within 12 months their scale model will be upscaled and take its first full flight. The aircraft has been in development for two years and a 1/4 size remote controlled scale model has been flying over the ocean out of EMAC's test facility at Technology City with some success. It is hoped that the aircraft will make air travel quieter for those living under the flight paths or civil air traffic and potentially eliminate the effects of sonic booms all together. The aircraft utilises several parts of existing EMAC aircraft keeping the costs down and allowing rapid development. One issue however the design is likely to have is that the long nose cone limits forward view and as such the pilots forward vision will be provided largely by a series of cameras relaying visuals to the cockpit. It is expected that the aircraft will reach a top speed of Mach 1.5 and if successful over sea will be permitted to attempt test flights over land.

Sir Alan Maybury of EMAC announced the move saying, "The scale model has shown itself to work well and a manned full size prototype is the next stage of its evolution. The aircraft itself is merely a test bed, it won't be converted into a fighter as its not large enough in terms of its body or wings to carry ordenance. Additionally it can't be upscaled to become a passenger plane. As such the value in this project is in the technology that can be developed and the knowledge gained that will allow us to make great inroads into making high speed travel quieter and more economical." The development comes in the wake of New Derusima beginning a supersonic airline service to Tytor, a move that has already seen some nations ban the aircraft from overflight. "This new design could solve the objections nations have against allowing Supersonic overflight, additionally the fact that this will be able to break the sound barrier over land will protect homeowners and will also significantly open up new routes."





LUSK ATTEMPTS TO OFFER REFUGEE SUPPORT

Melissa Lusk who is currently the Chair of The International Refugee Support Agency has reached an agreement with King David to accomodate 10,000 refugees displaced by the Clysperis Civil War. The former CTO Refugee Council leader has been responsible for organising some of the major refugee operations in recent memory having first undertaken a plan to evacuate refugees from Mavrosia before twice going to Uppsala to deal with crisis there and in more recent times deployed in the North West of Lakhzovia to oversee refugee evacuations. She has now used the newly formed NGO to get the support of her nations monarch in order to bring those requiring specialist medical care or children being alone to safety. Miss Lusk explained, "We have seen first hand that even when nations in a region are willing to support refugees the camps soon reach a crisis point and more has to be done. The only way to release that pressure is to somehow move them away from camps, be that centres in neighbouring countries or by further afield. We are happy to begin work with any of those currently accepting refugees to alliveiate the pressure."

It has since been announced by the Pharoah of Clysperis that the offer made by the IRSA has been declined saying it is a situation "the native nations of Midaranye, have well in hand" However nations such as Safraen, Vanora and Abuiqya have yet to respond and may accept the offer. Miss Lusk responded saying, "Situations involving refugees change minute by minute. While the Pharoah may be happy to decline the offer at the moment in a day or two she may find herself changing her mind and if that is the case we are prepared to swing into action. The offer is not time limited and will be reviewed as the situation develops." Lusk also has talked about beginning to get IRSA to start working on supplying the camps as well as offering the services of the Refugee University. "We have no idea if this civil war will be over in a week or in years. As such we must examine the possibility of putting resources in place so children don't miss out on those crucial times of education. The project worked brilliantly in Krokom and so perhaps it may also work in Clysperis. I'll be looking at how we can handle the situation in coming days." 

Some have been critical of East Moreland offering more refugees a home believing that while the civil war in Lakhzovia is over around 50,000 refugees remain in the country as Lakhzovia seem reluctant to take them back. Some worry about an influx of more refugees and already some facilities in the nation are struggling to cope. Lusk explained that people should not be so worried saying, "Our Code of Canley says we must protect those who can not defend themselves. The best way of doing this is to remove people from danger. East Moreland is a nation that can provide these people stability and protection until they believe it is safe to return home. We have therefore a duty to offer our protection and I hope the Pharoah will change her mind."


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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #165 on: December 22, 2019, 10:29:32 PM »




#GETWELLAUGUSTIN TRENDS ON TWITTER

Following reports that Prince Augustin of Neu Urburzis had been hospitalised the hashtag "Get Well Augustin" has been trending on Twitter along with people wearing white rabbit pins. The young Prince is thought to have become good friends with East Moreland's own Princess Rhiannon following the pair meeting when the Princess visited Neu Urburzis as part of a Wild Mundus Organisation visit with her mother Matilda Osman. During that visit Princess Rhainnon was involved in an incident where she was throwing stones at crocodiles after Augustin had climbed in their enclosure. This saw the phrase "I Princess fights Crocodiles" trend. When the Princess was ill with luekhemia the Prince orchestrated a huge effort to encourage bone marrow donation, including his pet rabbit Schnuffelchen. The manner of the Prince's injuries is not known however speculation is that it was sustained in an attack on Schnuffelchen.

Royal Press Secretary Malcolm Tucker was left to field questions on the issue when he gave him daily briefing and said. "Prince Augustin is someone held in high regard by Morelanders. For someone so young to take a stand for something so important is commendable and as such the people of East Moreland will stand by the youngster as he stood by Princess Rhiannon. We send our best wishes to the Prince and if there is anything East Moreland can do we shall." The King himself was photographed with a white rabbit pin on his jacket as he attended events in Keepton, meanwhile Princess Rhiannon wore a white bunny sweater while visiting the cinema with her Mother to watch Frozen 2.




LUSK "DISAPPOINTED" WITH REFUGEE RESPONSE

Head of the International Refugee Support Agency, Melissa Lusk, last night appeared on a chat show on EMTV to discuss the recent rejection of her proposal to support refugees in Midaranye impacted by the civil war in Clysperis. The former head of the CTO's Refugee agency spoke at length about the situation saying, "We have on our hands a tricky situation. Midaranye is in many ways not one but two regions. We have the corridor of Royal Seleucid, Tamora, Abuqiya and Clysperis, nations that while having different cultures in many ways are seemingly close in many. One need only look at how Tamora is acting as a kind of pivot in the region tying their royal family to that of Royal Seleucid and Clysperis. But then the 2nd part of Midaranye is Vanora, Safraen and to some extent Slava Lavosk. These are nations which are culturally very different to their neighbours and seem to have little to align themselves with the others. We have seen our offer rejected by Clysperis and I suspect this will mean in short order, Abuqiya will also reject it. This is disappointing and I hope the Pharoah's anti-Cult of Helus rhetoric played no role in their decision. The IRSA works to support people not impose itself. We worked tirelessly to remove refugee's from Lakhzovia with no pre-conditions, they simply granted the planes permission and we did the rest. That is how I would see the situation going in Clysperis. On the other hand I am still hopeful that Vanora and Safraen will allow help."

When asked why she believed it was important other nations lend help she said. "Have you ever been in a refugee camp? I've been in several and I can tell you that even in the ones that are well set up and well prepared there are problems. The smell for those who have never been in one is the first thing you notice. Its the smell of hundreds if not thousands of unwashed bodies mixed with the toilets of a music festival. People, even when there is no need to be are fearful of being victims of crime and assault. They fear the worse and are experiencing a future of uncertainty and need to protect what they have. The camps are never real homes, canvas at worse, temporary buildings at best. People coming and going and never enough of things like sewage systems, clean water and electricity. Its like the worst camping experience of your life, and that's if the weather isn't making it worse. In any refugee camp there will be deaths, either through crime, through disease or a lack of resources. The more frail, the old, the young and the injured, are the ones who are most likely to go first and with my realist hat on they are also the ones who end up consuming the most resources in care and necessities. What we are offering is not a total solution, that can't be until other nations step up alongside East Moreland and those physically in the region. What we are offering I'd compare more to a pressure release valve. We can find these people a safe haven where they know soldiers or militias aren't going to show up and act aggressively towards them, we can offer them a place where there are not huge lines to access basic medical care and we can ensure they can be hygeniec. That leaves more resources for the stronger refugees left in the region."

Finally Lusk spoke about what her next steps would be if the other nations in the region rejected the IRSA offer. "We can't force people to be helped, we can only offer the support and see what happens. We have aircraft ready to fly and the plan had been to fly in resources such as fresh water, medical supplies, tents etc as we removed the refugees identified as being most at risk. It was a two part plan however if one part fails then the second can still go ahead. One issue we have is that a huge no fly zone has been established so even if we are granted permission to bring in supplies we will need to co-operate with a huge blanket of aircraft policing this zone from I believe four, maybe five different nations. Nothing will be able to get in unless we have approval from all these nations and that is difficult to organise."

Lusk has also begun recruiting academics who speak languages from Midaranye as she attempts to revive the Refugee University initiative. "People in camps need discractions with their daily life. Education is something worthwhile and for many will have been a huge part of their lives. For some this war may mean they have to put their lives on hold for months while it goes on, maybe even years. As such there are likely to be many unable to complete their studies, some may have to postpone them for years and never return from them. It is my hope we can somehow get tuition into the camps in someway and help people continue their studies. One source of academics may be the Cultist community of Royal Seleucid, we've some contacts there from when the genocide happened and as I mentioned earlier they have links with Tamora and through them perhaps Clysperis. Hopefully we can find academics willing to offer online lessons in a whole host of subjects. Its early days but we shall see where it goes."

The interview finished with her being questioned about her future political ambitions with some believing she could make a run for Representative Council again, maybe even pushing to become leader of the National Traditionalist party following the resignation of Thomas More. "I have no desire to return to East Moreland politics. I was the nations youngest councillor for a while and was proud to be its Youth Minister. I however want to be able to see work being done to help the world, the days of our isolation are over. I believe through my work with the IRSA I can better fulfil the Code of Canley than sitting in the Representative Council discussing work on potholes and school curriculums, not that they aren't important matters. Through my deeds working with the IRSA I can better fulfil the Code than with the words I would have spoken in Council."

Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #166 on: December 28, 2019, 10:28:14 PM »




DR.HENRY HEADS NEW YEARS HONOURS LIST

The traditional East Moreland New Year Honours list has been released today and the royal families doctor is among those given some of the nations highest awards. The list features people from various fields who have been deemed to have contributed greatly to the life of the Kingdom or given exceptional service to the royal family. In total around 500 awards have been given out and those receiving the awards will be visiting the palace over the coming month to be presented their award by the King or in some cases Princess Fryea.

One of the first to be announced as being honoured is Dr.Felicia Henry who is awarded the Queen's Medal for Services to the monarchy. Dr.Henry became the official physician to the Royal Family in 2014 and was responsible for overseeing the care of Prince Caspian as he struggled with Hunter's syndrome and oversaw the care of Princess Rhiannon in her fight against lukhemia. In addition the former Royal Army Medical Corps field surgeon has also operated on King David after he had been shot by terrorists in 2017. Speaking following the announcement Dr.Henry stated. "I'm happy to be nominated for essentially doing my job. I'm privledged to be able to focus my time on ensuring the health of just one family and I'm able to see my challenges and successes on a daily basis. I understand my role as a royal doctor is vastly different to my colleagues who face the chaos of front line medical care and any one of those could easily have taken my place. I will continue to serve as best I can and I thank the King for this medal." The nomination was also well received by the former Queen of East Moreland, Matilda Osman, who tweeted. "A single medal doesn't give enough thanks for all you've done for my children." As well as serving as the royal families physician Dr.Henry also still teaches battlefield medicine with the Royal Army Medical Corps where she holds the reserve rank of Captain.

In the world of sports World Heavyweight Medieval MMA Champion and former Mundus Games Gold Medalist Louis Blanche has been awarded The Moreland Cross for services to sport. The 28 year old has held the world title for nearly two years and has become one of the leading stars in a sport that is slowly expanding across Mundus. He is scheduled to fight his rival, fellow Morelander, Tom Ridge in the coming months and it was Ridge who was among the first to comment on the announcement saying. "I'm pleased Louis has been awarded for his hard work as an ambassador for our sport. I hope one day to follow in his footsteps. Maybe I can persuade him to make our upcoming match for his Moreland Cross as well as his world title." Blanche ruled out such a clause in their match saying. "At some point I'm no longer going to be a world champion, I'm going to retire one day after all. When that time comes I'll always have this medal to look back on." Blanche is not the only sports person to be given an award. One of the "unsung heroes" to be awarded is grassroots rugby coach Lee Botham the 45 year old coach of Seabrooke Pirates RUFC. Mr.Botham is also awarded the Moreland Cross after coaching at the club for the last 25 years following the end of his own blossoming rugby career. In addition he has raised thousands to help upgrade club facilities across the South of the country and has helped three of the World Cup winning Honeybadgers learn the game. One of Mr.Botham's former players is current Honeybadger Jon May who said, "I remember being a seven year old and turning up at the Pirates for the first time. From day 1 Lee made everyone feel at home and part of a family. I wouldn't have stuck with the game for as long if it hadn't been for him making me fall in love with it." The coach was found running a Saturday morning Under 12's game when the media arrived to talk to him about the award and said, "To be able to stand alongside people like Louis Blanche, Daisy Greechan, Archduchess Sophie, all legends in sport who have the same medal makes it clear that here at grassroots the things we do are just as important. I'm honoured to be amongst the ranks of these legends."

Sir Jacob Longe, one of the nations most significant diplomats in recent memory is honoured for his lengthy service by being made a member of the Order of Royal Squires, a noble order limited to 30 members who have been deemed to have given meritorious service to the nation over many years. Sir Jacob entered service of the nation in 1958 when he joined the Royal Alpine Cadre as a young officer. Since then he has served in various capacities including Head of Royal Household, Director of Intelligence Services, Minister of Defence, Prime Minister and then various ambassadorial roles. He also co-sponsored the annual Sto-Longe Shield the much anticipated annual rugby game between East Moreland and Dijel. Currently he is without a portfolio but still acts as a roving envoy for the King. Sir Jacob stated, "I'll be honest I have very little knowledge of what work the Squires do on a day to day basis but it is an honour to be considered worthy. In the coming days I'll make sure I get up to speed on the duties and responsibilities and make His Majesty proud." The Squires are a purely ceremonial order who take part in coronations and other significant rituals across the nation. They are permitted to graze their sheep upon royal pastures and also hunt swans, ancients rights once commonly enforced but no longer.

One of the major honours however went to a group and not individuals. The King has granted a new Royal Colours to his former army regiment the Alpine Cadre, this one replaces the former one which was presented in 1807 by King Richard I. The new colours are identical to the old ones except the units goat head totem at the top of the colours is replaced by one of a goat wearing a crown, thus meaning the Regiment now enjoy "Royal favour" and will henceforth be referred to as the Royal Alpine Cadre. The Regiment is a specialist mountain warfare unit and has an illustrous history that has seen Sir Jacob Longe, King David, Alex Redfern and Sir Charles Townsend (Head of the Court of Canley) serve within its ranks. It's current commanding officer is Colonel Robert Winfield who will collect the new colours in the coming days. "The Alpine Cadre played a major role in the Regency Crisis and the Marseille conflict. To be given royal favour is the highest honour a regiment can earn and it is a great reward for the men and women who serve in some of the toughest conditions possible."




Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #167 on: January 01, 2020, 10:24:29 PM »




FOREIGN MINISTER CAUTIOUS OVER "HEYRA"

Following news from what neighbouring territory that was formerly known as The Conglomerate it appears a change in government has taken place. In a news story from FMN it was revealed a vote followed very little debate, at least none in the public eye. As such Foreign Minister Edward Tamana has urged caution while speaking at a event at the Representative Council Building. "Our neighbours seem to be going through a period of uphevel. We have seen some protests on the streets but nothing to suggest huge constitutional change. When we have seen constitutions change, or in our case be introduced, it has been accompanied by lengthy, deep and public debate and in the case of The Conglomerate this has not happened. We all practically went to sleep and woke up with The Conglomerate gone and Heyra back. The fact we've seen some changes such as change of national flag, animal etc, the window dressing of a nation if you will happen so quickly it gives the impression that this was something planned for a while. As such something sits a little uneasy but news is still patchy. For the time being we will be asking our ambassador there to keep us informed of the feeling on the ground. It is our hope we can find evidence of this truly being what the people of our neighbours want."

The Foreign Minister did state that he is concerned that only the speech by leading political figure Mrs.Therez was heard. "When what was effectively a referendum was held without voices of opposition being heard I feel a little nervous. When East Moreland had our referendums on leaving the CIS and then joining the CNN we had weeks of debate with people on all sides of the debate giving their point of view, this has not happened here. It leads to some questions of whether this was actually something the people wanted. We have seen people protesting on the streets in the last few days in Heyra and now I suspect if this is not the will of the people then protests will continue. One of the key markers will be whether people are permitted to assemble and how robust the security forces of Heyra are on street order in the coming days. Should we be able to determine that this is indeed a measure supported by the Heyran people then our neighbours will find us willing, as ever, to work alongside them in a spirit of friendship."




SAMUELSON PROPOSES SCRAPPING CARRIERS

Following a month long review of the East Moreland Navy the Minister of Defence, Sir Harry Samuelson, has proposed to scrap the aging East Moreland carriers. The proposal will be added to in the coming days to suggest how best to replace them and then King David will pass judgement. The main focus on the report was a combination of value for money and mission profiles.

Quote from: Key findings from Samuelson's Proposal

The aircraft carrier was designed with a simple mission profile, to deliver air power to a region of the globe where normally a nation could not deploy air power. That deployment came in two ways, first to defend a fleet from air attack and second to strike targets in enemy territory. Back in the era immediately following the World War the aircraft was king, it was the best way to deliver strikes utilising bombs, even nuclear weapons, to an enemy. Air Defence systems such as radar were not sophisticated and by a clever combination of low flying, ground shielding and good timing an aircraft could penetrate a nations air defence umbrella and caused havoc. Today however things have changed to an extent that the aircraft carriers value has changed. First we must look at what an aircraft can deliver. A precision strike can be carried out utilising cruise missiles fired from around 600km away or from much closer using air to ground missiles with a range of around 150km maximum. An aircraft is also limited to around 10 weapons, however often to gain the range needed to allow them to penetrate airspace, hit the target and return to the fleet they will be forced to give up some of these 10 spots to drop tanks to extend their range. Now if we compare this to a modern Frigate such as those in service with the Royal East Moreland Naval Service, they can fire a precision missile able to be just as accurate as those from fighters and easily more capable of penetrating modern sophisticated air defences. Some of these missiles have a range of 1,500km allowing them to be able to be launched from much further afield than a fighter. Add to this a Frigate is capable of putting up around 50 missiles at one time it has much more firepower than an aircraft carrier.

We then must look at threats to aircraft carriers. They will no doubt be operating in a situation where hostile air forces can hit them, and in larger numbers of aircraft than the carrier can put into the air. As such what we will see is a carriers air wing being whittled down little by little until it is no longer a viable defence or threat. A carrier also requires a significant escort to protect it as it lacks the ability to do so itself. One need only look at the Rokkenjiman Excaliber Class Aircraft Carrier which is capable of only firing 4 anti-aircraft missiles and having shoot down capable of only engaging three incoming targets. As such when in enemy waters you could expect an enemy to spam the carrier with missiles thus rendering it vulnerable unless guarded by a large fleet. With the invention of Kaitaine's Zircon we are entering an age where hypersonic, stealthy, highly agile missiles are the norm, making it even harder to defend a carrier. As such an investment of around $10-15billion could be wiped out with a missile costing less than $500,000.

Cost must also be taken into account when considering the future of an aircraft carrier. It costs around $160million a year to simply stop the ship rusting, keep the engines and systems working. However when parts need replacing that cost escaltes rapidly. We also need to factor in the cost of running its air wing, maintaining that, paying close to 3,500 crew members and then any weapons fired. It is estimated by many that $2.5billion a year is the cost of running each aircraft carrier, compare this to an estimated $280million per destroyer. It would be possible to carry 10 more Destroyers on roster for every aircraft carrier. These destroyers could operate more independently than a carrier while also being able to deliver a comparable amount of firepower between a pair of destroyers.

With the REMNS Portworth and REMNS Ostlake now being aging vessels approaching 40 years of service they are reaching the end of their careers. It is my view that they should now be allowed to retire gracefully with the $5billion saved annually being placed back into the budget of the Navy allowing them to equip themselves for the next 40 years to meet the needs of national defence.


Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #168 on: January 06, 2020, 10:22:09 PM »




PRINCESS AND STEP MUM TO BE VISIT BALLET

Princess Rhiannon and her soon to be step mother, Duchess Stasya, were seen last night attending a performance by the Royal Nyx Ballet Company as they started their world tour. The performance took place as part of a series of performances throughout the city of Ostlake during the Ostlake Festival of Dance. The pair were seen arriving just before the performance began at the Ostlake University Auditorium, one of around 50 venues across the city where events are taking place ranging from high profile performances to inter-school dance competitions. It is the first time the pair have been seen in public together without the King being present suggesting that perhaps the issues former Queen, Matilda Osman, had with the Duchess being involved with Princess Rhiannon. The two are reported to have meet the cast after the show. Princess Rhiannon was permitted to speak briefly to the media as she left the venue and said, "It was very twirly and the dresses were pretty." The six year old went on to say, "The music wasn't as good a Frozen though but better than Moana." While the Princesses review is unlikely to make any of the hundreds of posts online by reviewers she did say, "It was fun and I got to stay up past my bed time." seemingly giving the show her seal of approval.

Duchess Stasya, who is more accustomed to attending events such as this, and who was once Lady in Waiting to Queen Klara of Lodja who was a member of the Lodjain Royal Ballet prior to becoming Queen said, "Events like this are amazing regardless of which nation is providing the dancers. The skill and dedication required to pull these things off is mind blowing. I remember the stories of Queen Klara's time from her teenage years with the ballet and some of the exercises made my muscles ache. The show was beautiful." The Duchess is set to marry King David on the Feast of Helus and added, "Nyx is a nation we've had minimal contact with and I'm delighted they saw fit to bless this Dance festival with their presence. I hope its the first of many trips by citizens of Nyx, and maybe even government officials, to East Moreland."

Princess Rhiannon will be performing at the dance festival as part of her schools folk dance group in the Under 8's School Championship. She will be joined in that event by her friend and step-cousin Evie Redfern the adopted daughter of Alex Redfern and Princess Freya Ironside. The King will be seeing a performance by the Royal Nyx Ballet Company on the 12th of January when the Royal Gala Performance takes place which showcases the best performances of the festival.





DR.MERRIMAN FINALLY RETIRES

Respected Historian, Archaelogist and Professor, Marcus Merriman, has today announced that he is set to retire. The scholar and Chancellor of Royal Merriman University turns 82 year of age this year and says he plans to "spend my retirement finally doing something useful." Announcing his decision to students as they returned following the New Year break he said, "I've been an academic for close to 50 years and in that time have lost track of the number of students that I have taught. I have enjoyed every minute but I think enough is enough. I'm spending more and more time doing admin and less and less time teaching. I'm planning on finishing my history of Northfort, watching lots of rugby and adding to my whisky collection." Students gave the Chancellor a standing ovation as he was presented with a glass sword on behalf of the students.

Following his retirement announcement one of the first to send their best wishes was King David who was one of Dr.Merriman's students when he studied at Royal Northfort University. The King also helped Dr.Merriman establish his own specialist Humanities University and granted it a royal charter before enrolling to study his Master's degree with the Professor. " The lessons I learnt from Dr.Merriman didn't end at the classroom door. He was a man who always had time for his students and words of advice on everything you could imagine. There is a whole host of people across East Moreland with a passion for History thanks to this man. He was a cornerstone of my decision to set up CETO and he will be impossible to replace." The King has yet to name a replacement for Dr.Merriman as the CETO representative but many suspect it will be one of Dr.Merriman's protegees and Head of Ancient History at Royal Merriman University, Professor Maddie Howard.

Another of Dr.Merriman's protegees was Tim Carpenter. "I was never an academic but found myself working for the Prof when I did my national service. Not being much of a soldier I ended up doing Cultural Service and was assigned as one of his aides. He saw I had an interest in History but lacked the academic skill. That didn't matter and he made time to push me to be better than I thought I was. Later when my life reached its lowest the Prof was the one there for me, time and time again. I look forward to sampling his whiskey collection with him soon."

The final tributes to the Professor's career came from his Grand-daughter and former Minister for Youth, Amelia Merriman. "Many people will talk about their time in his lectures and the way he developed them as a scholar. I hated History and preferred rocks, but grand-dad always dragged you back to history somehow. In his mind everything is history. Before you knew it you ended up loving it, he's sneaky like that. I'm glad he's retiring though. He's dedicated a life to scholarship and deserves to put his feet up. I suspect though it won't last long." Professor Merriman then began his retirement by heading off to Marseilles where he explained he was "going to check out some interesting inscriptions."




Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #169 on: January 12, 2020, 09:29:07 PM »




"50/50 REPLACEMENT" ON CARRIERS SAYS KING

King David has today confirmed that the nations two aircraft carriers will not be renewed. With both the REMNS Ostlake and REMNS Portworth reaching a point where they needed a large scale modernisation the Minister of Defence Sir Harry Samuelson recommended replacing both vessels and also indicated a move away from traditional "super-carriers" was needed. Today the King however has announced that replacements will be sought. Speaking as he visited the REMNS Portworth he said. "We will be following a 50/50 programme, 50% acting upon the recommedations of Sir Harry and 50% maintaining our current capabilities. Starting as soon as feasible we will be taking the Portworth Royal Dockyard design for the CATOBAR version of their Sven Class aircraft carrier concept. Meanwhile we shall also be commissioning a third Flagship Class amphibious warfare ship, however this one shall be equipped with 12 VSTOL aircraft  along with 10 helicopters to form a kind of spearhead attack ship. In terms of annual running costs this will reduce the cost down to that of one of the current carriers. Going forward this will see the Navy having capacity in its budget to run a further two Noble Class Destroyers."

The commander of the Navy, Admiral James Thompson said, "We believe the arrangement the King has announced is a good one. It allows us to maintain the flexibility afforded by a carrier while also giving us an extra amount of firepower. Its a compromise driven by costs in some ways but it is a sensible one. The Portworth and Ostlake have served us well but have reached a crossroads in their career." It is understood that the Portworth, which was part of the task force that captured a Traansvaal aircraft carrier, will become a museum ship while the REMNS Ostlake is likely to be scrapped.




MERRIMAN "OFF FOR A HOLIDAY"

Dr.Merriman has today headed out of East Moreland heading to Marseille. The former Chancellor of the Royal Merriman University announced that he was stepping down several days ago and retiring from lecturing. At the age of 82 the Professor has announced via social media that he is "off for a holiday. Somewhere sunny, somewhere interesting and somewhere quiet." He later posted that he is going to spend some time touring around Albion before heading to Bakkermaya, fuelling speculation that his grand-daughter, Amelia Merriman, is soon to take over as Governor of Wellow having recently been invited for a kind of interview by the Duchess of Wellow.

The Professor has also stated that once he has had what he has described as "my first real break from teaching in almost 50 years." that he will be working as a part-time consultant on EMTV as they put together a new docu-drama TV show based on the Kings and Queen's of East Moreland. "I can't imagine just sitting at home with my feet up" Dr.Merriman said, "This way I still get to be a history geek and get paid while being under less pressure. I watch a lot of the things like Game of Thrones and East Moreland's history can be every bit as interesting, just with less dragons."




"FLYING CAN OPENER" TO SING AT WEDDING AND BE SWORD BEARER

The Royal Palace today announced that the King has named his sword bearer for his upcoming wedding. The position of sword bearer is a highly symbolic one and the individual responsible wields the groom's sword while within the Temple during the ceremony. The King has announced that Flying Officer Hope Meadows will be given this responsibility and will also sing during the ceremony. The 23 year old flies as part of No.6 Squadron, affectionatly known as the Flying Can Openers as their primary role is hunting down and destroying enemy armour. She has been in the squadron for just over 12 months and in that time has taken part in several operations against the Borlanders and the WMRA. The announcement was made by Royal Press Secretary Malcolm Tucker who said. "The King wanted a young officer to undertake the role and having meet Flying Officer Meadows at Archduchess Sophie's passing out parade he was impressed by her commitment to the military. She has overcome many hardships to succeed in life and is a credit to her uniform." As far as we are aware this will be the first time a woman has been a sword bearer for the Royal family.

Flying Officer Meadows also had prior to joining the Air Force a YouTube channel of her singing cover versions of popular songs, it is understood that Duchess Stasya heard this and insisted on the dual role during the ceremony. The 23 year old officer spoke briefly to the media outside her parents home saying, " I grew up two doors down from Alex Redfern's family. I saw how if you worked hard you could be very successful in the military and with my parents support I was able to make my dream of flying a reality. I am excited to take part in the biggest parade of my life and to be trusted with the King's sword makes me both proud and very nervous." Despite the position in the ceremony Flying Officer Meadows is back on duty with No.6 Squadron preparing to head off to The Commonwealth of the Iwi for a training exercise.



KING THANKS ROYAL NYX BALLET FOLLOWING GALA

As the curtain fell on the annual Ostlake Dance Festival the King attended the traditional final night gala. The gala is made up of several performances from the winners of various dance competitions as well as performances by professional dancers and singers. Among those performing was the Royal Nyx Ballet Company who opened the show and gave the penultimate performance. The King thanked them for attending saying, "The Ostlake Dance Festival has not been as inclusive of our foreign friends as many other of East Moreland's cultural highlights like the Ozzies or the Festival of Sail. I am delighted therefore the Royal Nyx Ballet Company saw fit to begin their world tour here and I hope they will not be strangers to the Festival." The company played several venues across the city during the festival and in their week long stay an estimated 150,000 people got to see them perform.

The final performance of the show saw the National School Champions perform and receive their award from the King and Duchess Stasya. Students from the Keepton High School for Girls had won the national honour having taken 1st place in three of the five categories that make up the School's Championships. King David's daughter competed for her school as part of their folk dance team in the  Under 8's School Championship, however the school finished 10th and so the Princess was denied the oppurtunity to perform for her father. The King said afterwards. "Rhiannon will be tucked up in bed but just like so many children across the nation she has worked hard over the last few months to prepare for this week. Its a great week of activity here and I'm only sad I can't get to see everyone involved. It is things like this that help keep our traditions alive."

Ostlake now begins to prepare to welcome the film industry of the world when the nominations for the Ostlake Movie Awards, affectionately known as the Ozzies open in a weeks time before the final winners are announced on the 10th of February.

Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #170 on: January 21, 2020, 10:28:34 PM »




KING VACATIONING IN ALUCARD

With the royal wedding just a month away King David has announced that he is currently taking a week off and is cruising the Alucard on the Pelagiya family yacht. The announcement came when the King was due to give his weekly address to members of the Representative Council but was instead replaced by Prime Minister Henrietta Quinn who informed the Council. "His Majesty is being kept fully briefed on the business of the Kingdom and is in a position to be able to respond to anything requiring his immediate attention. The King is aware that in the days following the marriage and subsequent coronation he will be exceptionally busy with the changes in the affairs of state. As such he has determined now is a good time for rest and reflection and has selected the Alucard as a perfect destination." It was also announced that during his cruise he will visit one of the Lodjain islands as well as Paracambi however these will not be official state visits.

While the King is in the Alucard his bride to be, Duchess Stasya, has remained in East Moreland and is undergoing a series of sessions to prepare the future Queen for her new duties. The Duchess will be attending various meetings with High Priestess Skye Maddix who will officiate the wedding and coronation to ensure she is prepared for the ceremony. Additionally she will meet with members of the nations elite Red Legion who will be part of the ceremonial guard during the ceremonies, she will also work with Red Legion as part of a series of exercises to familiarise herself with the units work of providing security to the Royals. A former Red Legionnaire explained, "The Legion have provided close protection for most of the royals in terms of supplementing the Royal Protection Force. When she joins the royal family Stasya will probably find a team of five or six security agents with her most of the time and this will be supplemented with Red Legionnaires as a kind of rapid response unit. It is important anyone working with such a team understand the way it works and the situations they may be involved in. When Matilda Osman became Queen she spent several sessions with the Legion in Aldfield as a kind of dummy hostage in close quarters combat scenarios. Its one of those things no one wants but people need to be aware of." Finally it is understood that she will meet with scholars to discuss the formation of her own coat of arms as Queen.

It was also revealed that following the wedding and coronation the newlyweds will hold their first official meetings with foreign nations with  Kinkhnland, Achkaerin and Neu Uburzis among the nations requesting meetings already.





ARCHDUCHESS DETERMINES MILITARY FUTURE

With three months of her national service remaining Archduchess Sophie Harrison-Ironside has determined where her future lies. The niece of King David has announced that following the completion of her duties she will be maintaining a commission in the Royal East Moreland Air Force however shall be joining their Adventure Training Cadre. Currently the Archduchess is serving as a Force Protection Dog Handler and has stated a desire to remain in the military long term however has said that she is "split between the draw of competing in elite level sport and the day to day adventure of a useful career in the military. Many people expect me to assume some kind of royal duty however the Ironside family have a long tradition of military service and I wish to honour that as best I can." The Archduchess will spend her time split between her current duties and teaching skills such as rock climbing, kayaking and skiing. The Adventure Training Cadres of the Army, Navy and Air Force also oversee organised sport in the military and as such permit its members to participate more frequently in professional sporting events. It is expected therefore that the Archduchess will perhaps return to competition in either speed skating at the Winter Games or cross country in the Summer Games, additionally the new posting may offer her the opportunity to undertake more charity endurance events such as her Hrothgar trek or rowing the Mhorish.

Wing Commander Travis Bates who commands the REMAF's Adventure Training Cadre stated, "To have Flying Officer Harrison-Ironside in our ranks is somewhat of a coup. She is one of the most decorated athletes on Mundus and in my view the greatest as unlike others she has amassed medals across a range of unrelated disciplines. She has a true spirit of adventure within her as shown by the Hrothgar trek and I think she will be a great example to her fellow airmen." The Archduchess will also feature in the upcoming royal wedding where she will be part of the escort to Duchess Staysa.

Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #171 on: February 02, 2020, 12:57:58 PM »




KING MAKES FINAL COUNCIL APPEARANCE BEFORE MARRIAGE

The King today made this final appearance before the Representative Council before his wedding on the 22nd February. The King was asked a variety of questions by the Council ranging from his comments on local matters about the proposed Seabrook bypass road to matters of international significance such as the recent addition of members to TUNA.

The King was asked about the growth of TUNA, an organisation East Moreland has a collective trade deal with. The King stated, "How these regional organisations choose to do their business is up to them. We are in a position where should an organisation we have connections with changes we can change our relationship too. We have a good relationship with the founding members of TUNA and now they have added the Alanders and the Cenneg we have no reason to change that. Both these nations are ones that we work well with and have long standing connections. The addition of these two does nothing to change our dealings with them as we already had trading agreements with them."

Naturally a lot of the focus on the monthly questioning was on the recent assault on SeaTowers which ended almost five years of Borlander occupation. First the King was asked about the neccesity of the assault. " We had no intelligence of impending threats coming from SeaTowers, however it was wildly believed that the Borlanders had a capability to release oil into the Alucard, something we are still analysing. Therefore you could argue that SeaTowers was a ticking timebomb that needed to be defused." The King was then asked about the communication that happened with Dartfordia prior to the attack. "While the only assets engaged in the operation were from East Moreland we had kept our friends in Dartfordia notified, in fact it would be difficult to have carried out the operation without the Dartfordians granting permission to utilise their facilities. For that I would like to thank the King of Dartfordia and Prime Minister Cleaver." Finally the King was asked about what will happen to the platform now. "SeaTowers sits closest to Dartfordia. I have agreed that after operations concluded to make the Platform safe that it will be handed over to the Dartfordians. The long term future of the platform is for them to determine. We have a few ideas such as leaving it for a fishing protection area, we've seen how such platforms can attract new fish stocks. However that is for the government of Dartfordia to sort out." The King also confirmed that there were no Borland survivors of the assault and that no Moreland loss of life took place. "It was a model assault, carried out with skill and dedication that utilised the cutting edge technology our military can field. I could not be prouder of what Red Legion have accomplished."

One of the more surprising questions followed news from Neu Urburzis of their young Emperor calling for his nation to become more active globally. The King stated, "Our nation has very little actual day to day co-operation with Neu Urburzis however I do consider the nation friends. I've been fortunate enough to meet their leadership several times and always had positive interactions. Emperor Orion is a young man keen to make a mark and while he is yet to officially assume day to day leadership it is good to see him beginning to map out his own policies. East Moreland would naturally support Neu Urburzis coming on board with many of the projects we've been involved in such as JET. It is my hope that soon we can begin building directly between our two nations based on the foundation built by our younger royals during the time of Princess Rhiannon's illness." The King was asked about the fact the Youth Senate seemed to have permitted a young noble to be lashed for breaking the rules of the Senate. "Every organisation has rules and these must be followed. The people speaking in their Youth Senate know the rules and the consequences. While personally I do not believe lashing someone for their words is appropriate the youngsters are of an age when they know what the consequences will be."

Finally the King fielded questions about the statement from Rokkenjima about their foreign policy. The King was asked about the fact that one Rokkenjiman elected official talked about an Illumic "rabble" and the King was asked about the gulf between the two nations. "Just as those of you sat here today do not carry my voice I'm sure this individual doesn't. Many years ago I signed a treaty with Rokkenjima called the Tri-partite. East Moreland never broke that and have solidly stood beside our word, as we always do. The fact this man describes us as an Illumic rabble shows he clearly doesn't understand the region well. The Illumic had, until his own nation reappeared, one of the most co-ordinated and organised regions on Mundus. While the Ardians are busy sending carrier fleets to each other's backyards over in the Mhorish and Illumic we're co-ordinating naval patrols. He calls us a rabble but forgets the history of East Moreland, it was a rabble of peasants that swung the tide at the Battle of Greenflowers, that rabble became the first Red Legion and helped East Moreland become the nation it is today. Rabble's in the Illumic therefore achieve greatness."

The King is marrying Duchess Stasya Pelagiya on the 22nd February, on the same day of the Cult of Helus.

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #172 on: February 09, 2020, 09:23:58 PM »




FOREIGN MINISTER RESIGNS

Following the uncovering of a scandal involving Foreign Minister Edward Tamana the 42 year old has handed in his resignation which has been accepted by King David. It was announced last night via social media that the Minister may not have fully completed his national service. A media source had planned to release their evidence this morning but instead Mr.Tamana released his own statement. "As a young man I completed my time in the military but was considered unsuitable for a long term placement there. I managed to manouver my way into working in a hospital and from there began employment with OsmanTech having falsified my records to convince them that I had already completed my term. I was a young man desperate to work for what I believed to be the greatest scientific company on Mundus and was convinced if I didn't take a chance there and then they would take on someone else. It meant for six months I was pulling shifts in an evening at the hospital in their lab and then during the day at OsmanTech. I'd sleep while I waited for lab results to come in. I realise what I did was wrong and as such I can no longer serve in His Majesties cabinet." Like all Morelanders  Mr.Tamana was expected to serve two years in the military, the first 15 weeks of which is dedicated to military training. After that point those considered unsuitable for a long term placement in the military undertake service in a variety of fields as their qualifications or skills dictate.

The King released a statement later that evening about the situation saying, "Edward Tamana has served as my Foreign Minister and done a great job. It is however the only right course of action that he now leave the post this dishonesty having been uncovered. Mr.Tamana will leave my service with immediate effect and an investigation into how he was able to fool the system will be undertaken. He has given his indication that he will co-operate fully with the investigation. It is my hope that Edward will put in place actions that will redeem himself and I wish him well in doing so." It was also confirmed that Tamana had returned his sword as to gain a sword ceremony in East Moreland an individual needs to have completed their national service and been honourably discharged.  Formal criminal charges have not been ruled out however with the crime having taken place around 20 years ago it will be difficult for investigators to gather evidence.

Front runners to replace Tamana have been thought to include Tim Carpenter, who is currently serving as a special ambassador in the Celtic Protectorate, Princess Freya who is unlikely to want to give up her military career, Sir James Fitzroy who is the current ambassador to Lodja and a close friend of King David or current CNN Ambassador Sir Jacob Longe





NEW CARRIER TO BE NAMED

The beginning of the construction of the new East Moreland  aircraft carrier has been confirmed. The new ship will eventually replace the REMNS Portworth and will also inherit the ships name. The new aircraft carrier is set to be smaller in size than the current pair in service however is able to carrier a sizeable air arm thanks to utilising a VSTOL aircraft. The Ministry of Defence have also confirmed that they are investigating the switch of some of the aircraft between the Navy and the Air Force. Sir Harry Samuelson explained, "The old carriers were able to launch using catapults and recover using arrester hooks, the new ones will lack the recovery aspect and so will utilise a VSTOL system, this means some of the Dragonskin's we currently operate will need to be replaced, the planes are still world class and so we may simply swap them with Dragonbreath fighters from the Air Force which will be carrier capable. We've plenty of time to work that out though."

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #173 on: February 15, 2020, 06:14:46 PM »




KING APPOINTS COUSIN AS FOREIGN MINISTER

The King has today announced that his cousin Duchess Orlaith Kade will be the new Foreign Minister. The 49 year old is related to the King through his mother's family and in 1992 married influential Business Lawyer Duke William Osmett, the pair have a 27 year old son called Theodore who is currently serving in the Royal Marines. The move was rather unexpected as Duchess Orlaith has little direct experience with politics and has spent the majority of the last 15 years working as part of the National Intelligence Agency as a Regional Director for Albion. For the last 18 months she has been working as ambassador for Paracambi. The announcement came via the Royal Press Secretary Malcolm Tucker who said, " The King has always tried to surround himself with people that he can trust. The Kade family while not being directly royal themselves have all dedicated themselves in their own way to supporting the Kingdom and so Duchess Orlaith is someone that can be a steady hand. She has a wealthy of experience from a career in the Intelligence Community so while not being at the forefront of international politics she is someone who has been behind the curtain helping guide the decisions of this nation. The King looks forward to working with his cousin closely and is confident that the nation has someone dependable in the position."

The new Foreign Minister arrived at the Palace to officially take the position and spoke briefly to the media. "To outside eyes I know this will look like nepotism however it is my intention over the next few months to demonstrate how my appointment was one made to benefit the nation. I also hope to utilise the skills I've developed in my career to help our nation either develop or advance relationships with an array of nations across Mundus. I look forward to my cousin's wedding and I know that several meetings with other nations will be taking place, it'll be an interesting introduction to the position." The Duchess has also commented on introducing a Junior Minister, "Beyond a handful of individuals we have few people with real experience of diplomatic experience in other nations. We must began training more people to have experience of global politics. As such I will be asking the King to allow me, and other Ministers to begin appointing Junior Ministers so we can have ready made replacements when the need arises."




MINISTER OF DEFENCE OFFERS SICR MINE CLEARANCE TOOL

Minister of Defence Sir Harry Samuelson has today responded to reports in the Dragonaii Broadcasting Service that the SICR are looking to clear up some of the legacy of their war-time past. A recent report indicated that the nation has a large amount of ordenance missing or its whereabouts lost including several areas of minefields. The East Moreland military have for the last three years operated a remote controlled device made up of several heavily weighted bamboo poles. The Foreign Minister stated, " This device was developed several years ago and has been utilised by East Moreland across Albion to help clear IED's in Krokom, in Ardia during the Mavorosian crisis, in Aranye after the Eugenics war and even in Alba Karinya to support the clean up operation in Heyra. It is in our view the safest and most effective way to clear landmines and our operatives are leading the way in this type of operation. We have seen the way that IED's and landmines can inflict terrible suffering and so if we have a device and expertise that can stop another nation going through hardships seen by those threatres the device has been deployed in then we will do what we can."

The Minister confirmed that a team of 50 Royal Engineers and 10 of the devices could leave East Moreland within three hours of the SICR accepting the offer. "We have teams ready to deploy at short notice for a variety of operations. All we need to do is tell them where to go and thankfully these devices fold down very small so can be transported if need be on civilian airlines in cargo holds. While we have very little formal contact with the SICR we believe that this clean up is something that needs international support if parts of it are to be achieved. I firmly believe East Moreland's Royal Engineers to be the best in the world at cleaning up landmines and therefore hope the Dragonaii accept the help."



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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #174 on: February 17, 2020, 07:05:33 PM »




RED LEGION CARRY OUT EXERCISE IN PEOPLE'S PARK

As early morning joggers and dog walkers arrived at People's Park which borders the King's Place in Northfort they found the gates locked and a police checkpoint in place. The underground station at the edge of the park was also closed and trains that normally stopped simply passed through instead stopping at the nearby stop on Embassy Row. For most of the day sounds of explosions and gunfire could be heard coming from the station and park as well as several helicopter landings. It was announced just after 7am that a Red Legion rapid reaction exercise was taking place. A spokesman for the Ministry of Defence stated, "These exercises go on all the time around the nation and with our international partners. This one has been scheduled to take place just before the Royal Wedding in order to ensure that those supplying security for the event are well honed and ready to respond should anyone attempt to disrupt the wedding and coronation. It is a annoyance to the citizens of Northfort, and for that we apologise, however they are supportive of this kind of exercise as they understand the security situation the capital is under."

The park was reopened just after sunset and those visiting the park found that the various cafes and food stalls dotted around the park were giving away goods for free with compliments of the King. Press Secretary Malcolm Tucker explained, "The King apologises for taking over a park that is essentially the property of the people. It was something that was neccessary and the King hopes the gesture of providing people with free refreshment while enjoying the park that is rightfully theirs goes a small way towards making up for the inconvenience we caused today." The park is also being set up as a venue for one of the many large screens that will show the royal wedding. A total of four large screens will be set up allowing several thousand people to come together and view the festivities together.




FOREIGN MINISTER TALKS ON ROKKENJIMA SITUATION

Following a busy news day involving Rokkenjima the new Foreign Minister, Duchess Orlaith Kade, has made her first statement in her new role. "First I wish to extend the nations best wishes to Empress Beatrice. East Moreland have witnessed the damage degenerative conditions like Parkinsons' can cause when the former holder of this role, Robert Kennedy came down with Motor Neurone Disease and of course my own families brush with Hunter Syndrome. These conditions are horrible blights upon our world and I pray the hard work of people such as MPS and OsmanTech can lead to a cure. As for the Kirby report it is a document that pokes at conspiracy and I have no idea why we have even featured among it. When theories are so off the mark they become laughable and as such there is no need to even mention them. I mean could you imagine giving time in a report to someone who denied the fact that the Ardian Genocide never happened? The fact we were even ever suspected shows just how far these conspiracy theorists can push their twisted agenda. It is clear though now that the Anausa is a compromised agency and as such all its members and staff present in East Moreland are being instructed to leave, those failing to do so within 48 hours will be arrested on charges of espionage and dealt with according to the law. Should the Rokkenjiman's at that point wish to push for extradition they may do so once East Moreland courts have dealt with them."

"Moving forward we wish the now Empress Evanthe well in her governorship of Rokkenjima. We understand this is a difficult time for her emotionally with our friend Joshua Rhodes being missing. Should East Moreland be able to aid in that search we shall do so as Seaforth are considered among our greatest friends and Joshua Rhodes a loyal friend of the Ironside family. It is our hope that he will return to his home soon." The Foreign Minister will soon be undertaking her first official meetings with foreign dignitaries alongside her cousin as several nations have utilised the tradition of audiences with the King the day after his marriage.




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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #175 on: February 22, 2020, 11:09:14 PM »




HANIFNEJAD MAKES IT TWO IN A ROW AT OZZIES

The Tamoran made film "A Time of Darkness" has won the coveted award for Best International Film at the Ostlake Movie Awards making it two in a row for it's Director Samira Hanifnejad who won last year with her film "Silence". The award was presented by East Moreland actor Tom Kruis who had earlier in the night won the award for Best Actor for his role in the film "Rolling Loud" which charted the story of the SSC Honeybadger speed record attempt. The East Moreland Film and Music Academy present the awards for a range of domestic and international categories and their statement said, "While it is true to say that a Time of Darkness didn't threaten to break any records at the box office in East Moreland it is not the business of the Academy to pass out awards on ticket sales. We look for quality story-telling, innovative methods, the beauty of the sound of vision we see on screen and while as a piece of history there is much debate about the films content you can't argue with the fact that Ms.Hanifnejad has produced a moving and beautiful film." The film had courted controversey in some parts of Mundus because of its interpretation of the conflict between the USR and Clysperis, this had seen the Academy formally requested to withdraw the nomination for A Time for Darkness from the government of Rodinha and Kaitaine. The Academy's spokesman stated, "We do not allow politics to influence our decisions. It is up to each cinema goer to determine for themselves what to take from the films they watch."

Meanwhile the film "Wings" from Tytor scooped the award for Best International Short Film. The Academy had the award presented by Royal Artist in Residence Jocelyn Hopkins who explained the Academies decision later saying, "In a day and age when the art of story telling can be lost in an effort of making special effect action packed extravaganza's there is something beautifully sweet and simple about this. The fact it could have been done with amazing CGI yet is done so beautifully by hand makes it something new and different yet looking retro." The film was largely shown in East Moreland cinema as a pre-feature to many childrens films throughout the year and is likely to be more familiar to cinema goers than the film which scooped Best International Film.

It was however the nation of Achkaerin which did best in terms of total number of awards won. First up Cassidy Raven won the award for Best International Song Featured in a Motion Picture for her song from Star Trek: Rogue. The Award was presented by Luka from  2Cellos, a band that won the award for Best Score in a Motion Picture for their work on Sci-Fi film Adastra. This was the first of the awards given to Achkaerin with the 2nd coming courtesy of "What Next for Space Exploration" which won Best International Documentary, this was presented to EMTV's Shelly Coe. Rachel Dixon, East Moreland's most experience astronaut later said, "The documentary is simple for the uninformed to follow but creates interesting discussion points for those of us within the business so to speak. It's the kind of documentary that in 10 years time we'll be pulling out to see which bits came true." The final award won by Achkaerin was for Best International Animated Short which was won by Piper which tells the story of a baby bird overcoming its fear of water to become a provider for its flock. The award was again presented by Jocelyn Hopkins who said, "The film is a great lesson for life, face your fears and great things can happen."

The star of the awards though has to be Samira Hanifnejad who has become the first Director to win back to back Ozzies and has firmly placed Tamoran cinema on the global stage.

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #176 on: March 05, 2020, 09:54:13 PM »




REDFERN TO HEAD TO ROKKENJIMA

Red Legion's Major Alex Redfern, husband of Princess Freya, has been named by the Rokkenjiman government as the leader of a team of observers to oversee an upcoming referedum on the future of the nation. The move comes following the abdication of Beatrice Anselmo as Empress of Rokkenjima and Evanthe Anselmo once again assuming the reigns of power. Many believe the decision to hold a referendum comes as a reaction to recent criticism of Rokkenjima by Neuva Ardian President Tero Melos who has been the target of scrutiny over the recent referendum in Neuva Ardia. Major Redfern, despite being a solider, has experience of overseeing referendums in multiple locations after serving as King David's Chief of Royal Household. Redfern has overseen referendums in Nya Aland, Mavrosia and Academica among others and is possibly the most experienced foreign observer of referendums on Mundus. Speaking as he arrived at Northfort Palace to begin assembling his team he spoke briefly with the media saying, "It's interesting we're the go to for this. Rokkenjima broke off their formal co-operation with us and it is well documented our nations do not see eye to eye on many issues. By having East Moreland taking the lead on this then it is clear that we'll be having an unbiased eye on the situation. Over the next week or so I'll be utilising my contacts across Mundus to put together a multi-national team that will ensure this is a result beyond reproach."

Redfern was asked whether he believed it was a mistake having a soldier and not a diplomat leading the observation team. "Not at all" the Major explained, "To observe a referendum you undertake many of the same tasks as you do with an operation. You ensure you plan for your teams to be at a set place at a set time with all the equipment they need to get the job done. You utilise the element of surprise and take advantage of any mistakes to find out where best to strike. If there are issues with the process we will find them." Redfern has yet to announce anyone who will be part of the team however it is expected that it will make significant use of the nations links with several different nations.




EMAC TO GO "OLD SCHOOL" ON SPEED RECORD

Sir Alan Maybury of EMAC has today announced that they are focusing on completing an attempt at yet another speed record. It is hoped that the EMAC BangBadger will break the speed record for a piston engined vehicle, a record that currently stands at 448.757mph. Speaking at EMAC HQ in Technology City Sir Alan explained the reasoning behind the project. "We've been playing about with trying to design new ways of making piston engines more effective, as such we have a number of new little tweeks that will help in the future but for them to prove their worth we need to do something special and when we think special EMAC think speed. It's our hope that by breaking this record we can once again show that EMAC are capable of being able to compete with any technological company in the world. We set targets, we meet them, thats what we do by doing these project, plus they've been extremley fun."

The location for the test run has yet to be determined however it is likely that somewhere such as Royal Seleucid or Kaitaine which has large open deserts will be preferred. "At the moment we're focusing on producing the vehicle and the engine, once that is done we'll know exactly what we're dealing with and only then will we begin looking for somewhere to let this thing loose." Sir Alan was also questioned on the environmental impact of such tests. "At EMAC we've been at the forefront of producing more efficent, greener engines. We've pioneered electric aviation projects and we've utilised airships to try and ensure the carbon footprint of these is almost nothing. We will also take part in projects that off-set the emissions we do make. East Moreland has a huge ongoing project to replant huge areas of forest, we'll make sure we spearhead a lot of this to help improve our environment." The campus on which EMAC's HQ is located will in the coming weeks see some 5,000 trees planted as well as the utilisation of more green energy projects. "It is our aim that our administrative and educational facilities are carbon neutral by the end of 2022." Sir Alan added.

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #177 on: March 23, 2020, 12:05:32 AM »




"NO TIME FOR PASSENGERS" SAYS NEW CHIEF COUNCILLOR

Grant Nightingale was today named as the nations new Chief Councillor following his victory in the leadership election for the Traditionalist Party. The 54 year old represents the constituency of Silverhills Central and is a former member of the Royal East Moreland Naval Service before entering politics following the Regency Crisis when he was one of the six founders of the Traditionalist Party. Since the formation of the party he has been credited with being one of the campaign managers during the two elections and is considered by many to have been the power behind the thrones of Hugo McGregor and Thomas More's stints as Chief Councillor. His victory, with a comfortable 60% of the parties membership, see's him gain his first formal office position however within any political setting. Speaking following the announcement of his victory and his swearing in as Chief Councillor he stated, "For too long I've been content in letting Hugo and Thomas carry the can of the leadership of the party. I have been a passenger along for the ride enjoying a comfortable ride in the back seat while others did the heavy lifting. That has to stop if the party are to remain the true representatives of the people of East Moreland. There is no time for passengers anymore within our party and we must act as the guardians for East Moreland. We are seeing the creeping influence of outsiders in East Moreland, and while I am delighted we have a new Queen I am a little concerned about the influences she has surrounded herself with. We must ensure the nation remains true to the work of the Cult of Helus as we are after all the Holy Land. At the same time however we must not sway too far the other way and be intolerant of others like our friends Nya Aland can be at times. It will be my aim in the coming days to table several measures of advice calling on actions from the King to protect our heritage, our culture, our language and our place as the home of Helus."

Nightingale later announced that he had appointed Alex Morris as his Deputy Party Leader saying, "Previously we've looked at the idea of appointing youthful and committed members to the higher eschalons of the party in order to make ourselves prepared for the future, giving youngsters experience to learn the nature of politics. That's a crazy thing to do in many ways. As a nation we have only had a Representative Council for just over five years, we're all pretty inexperienced and so age doesn't really matter. Alex is a solid hand on the rudder and someone I trust to give me sound and frank words of advice when needed." The two men meet during their National Service however while Nightingale committed to a military Naval career his friend Morris instead opted to become a civilian martime engineer and has spent the last 20 years or so running a business constructing engines for a variety of naval craft.

The new Chief Councillor is expected to meet the King and Queen tomorrow at Northfort Palace. Nightingale will be the nations forth Chief Councillor in just over five years with Tim Carpenter being the first until he resigned in order to become the CTO's first Secretary General. He was replaced by Hugo McGregor who was murdered during a terror attack on the Royal Palace in Northfort. The most recent holder of the post was Thomas More who resigned following the announcement that Queen Stasya had turned to the Sisterhood of Helus, his resignation being a protest against the marriage to someone following what he called "a heretical faith."




"UNJUST WORLD CUP" SPARKS ROOT AND BRANCH REFORM

For many nations reaching a World Cup Third Place Play-off would be seen as a success however for East Moreland's national rugby team, known affectionatly as the Honey-Badgers this is cause for a major inquest. The defeat to the Commonwealth of the Unified Iwi has seen calls for a change in the way the tournament is run. These were lead largely by Sir Clyde Winwood, former world cup winning coach and now coach of Lodja whom he steered to the Quarter Finals. The veteran coach said, "This is an unjust world cup. They've tried a new format and it just doesn't make sense. We had a league were everyone played everyone and East Moreland defeated everyone, they scored bonus points in 13 of their 19 games. It was as dominant a league campaign as anyone could expect. To go on a 20 match unbeaten run and lose the trophy to a team that failed to beat two of their opponents just seems insane. Add to that the fact the tournament will see the winners have played 22 games its going to impact the domestic seasons hugely."

Even before returning home the East Moreland Rugby Football Union (EMRFU) has already announced changes to improve the game. Lord James Cargill is the Game Development Officer and responsible for directing the future of rugby in East Moreland. "We're bringing in what we believe to be a few radical changes. First up we are going to have 50 players on central contracts. These players will be employed by the EMRFU and will have every aspect of their coaching over looked by ourselves. They will be "loaned" to domestic clubs who will pay their wages back to the EMRFU on a game by game basis. This won't see players like Rollo MacAllister, who I assume will be offered a contract, having to leave the Northfort Royals, but will mean if we want him rested we have the right to do so, if we want him to join a training squad we can. This will build an ability to form a healthy, well drilled squad. The second major change we're bringing in is that we are doing away with age categories in rugby up to 16 years of age, until that point players will play in bands set by weight and not age. We believe this will make junior rugby more competative as we've all seen teams at Under 14 level for example turn up with the one freakishly big player no one can stop. This now won't happen and will help focus on the fundamentals. The third thing we will do is build a national centre of excellence for rugby in Silverhills, this will be almost like a boarding school where students will be given a world class education and be able to be groomed for sporting excellence. Finally we will be entering this schools first team in the domestic league's third tier to ensure they gain regular playing experience."

Cargill also announced that extra-funding would be made available for clubs to develop training facilities, recruit more players and develop women's rugby. Sir Clyde was supportive of the measures, "We've a good squad, a 20 game winning run proves that, what these changes mean is that we will have a assembly line for future greatness. Not winning this world cup is a failure. To beat every team in the world and have nothing to show for it is awful and can not happen again." It is expected King David will be present for the 3rd Place playoff which will see the Honeybadgers take on neighbours Vaguzia in Ui Cenneslaig.


Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #178 on: March 24, 2020, 10:22:06 PM »




BUSY DAY FOR KING DAVID

Despite recently marrying the King has had little time for a Honeymoon. This morning the King had his first meeting with the new Chief Councillor Grant Nightingale before having to deal with news from Vaguzia. The King spoke on the death of Private Miguel Alarcon at the hands of the West Moreland Revolutionary Army. "Private Miguel Alarcon has today been murdered by a group of people who despite calling themselves Cultist and Morelanders are as far from it as we are from the moon. A Morelander is someone who holds dear to their heart the words of the Lord of the Gods, Helus. He told us "Loyalty to an unjust cause is a perversion of honour." , being loyal to a group that believe it is just to murder a man serving his people, a man who has stood shoulder to shoulder with the forces of East Moreland to defend the defenceless is a group that have no honour and as such I have today called upon the High Priestess of the Cult of Helus to brand any member of the WMRA a Lack-Blade. They are a group of people who when their death comes must stand in front of the God Rolaf and all their ancestors and explain how they have left their family name in a better place, and thus being Lack-Blade they will be cast down into the darkness forever more. Had the WMRA called for a life as an independent nation of West Moreland and followed a path to it peacefully they would have found us willing to listen, to perhaps even support, to offer them the hand of friendship as we have Bakkermaya. However now it is clear that the WMRA and the people who follow them can never be friends of ours and as such are now enemies of the people of East Moreland. With immediate effect I am sending Duke Legion to the border zone with instructions that should any member of the WMRA attempt to cross the border in either direction they are to be engaged and if possible detained, if not destroyed. Vaguzia are a nation we are proud to call friends and we stand beside them now in their time of mourning one of their soldiers."

The deployment was supported by the new Chief Councillor, Grant Nightingale, who had also been officially sworn in by the King today. Following his meeting the new post holder said "Vaguzia are a nation that has stood beside our military many times. Now it is only correct that we stand before them. Things between East Moreland and this province of West Moreland could have easily been great, we could have worked together to spread the Cult of Helus through good deeds and positivity, not through violence. The WMRA are now in the eyes of the East Moreland military invaders as they have numerous times crossed our border. You invade the Holy Land then you feel the wrath of Jekar."

The King later spoke of the appointment of Mr.Nightingale saying, "I believe East Moreland has a shrewd Chief Councillor. He is a man who has in many ways served our nation well and having now meet him and sworn him in as Chief Councillor I am excited in working with him." It is believed that the Chief Councillor presented the King with a number of proposed pieces of legislation and is likely to present the first of them to the Representative Council next Monday. The King said, "It would be unfair of me to present these ideas before Mr.Nightingale has an opportunity. I am excited by some while cautious of others and I look look forward to assessing the views of the people of East Moreland."





PAUL GUSTARN NAMED NEW HONEYBADGERS COACH

With the World Cup over and East Moreland finishing third it was today announced that the contract of Head Coach Eddie John was not to be renewed. In the wake of an undefeated league run which saw the Honeybadgers defeat every nation in the World Cup the team lost to the Unified Iwi in the semi-final prompting a series of reforms to the national game. In a move that shows it was highly likely John's was to step aside regardless of the result the new Head Coach was named just 12 hours after the team arrived back. Gustarn had served as a video analyst under the reign of Sir Clyde Winwood before taking over as Forwards Coach under Johns before joining Winwood again as Deputy Head Coach of the Lodjain team. Lord James Cargill, the Game Development Officer of the EMRFU, stated, "Paul is someone who at club level helped shape the dominance of the Northfort Royals as both a player and a coach. While his international career never saw the kind of success the Honeybadgers have enjoyed that was more down to the fact less international tournaments existed rather than a lack of talent. He is a player that many in the squad will have a looked up to as youngsters beginning in the sport, and his tracked record as a coach at various levels is impressive. His management and the methods we have put in place to support the continued growth of the game will ensure that the Honeybadgers remain a force to be reckoned with in the years to come."

It was also confirmed that the East Moreland Womens Rugby Football Union (EMWRFU) have been formally approached by the EMRFU about merging the two organisations. This was  a move Lord James Cargill said, "Is something we need to ensure the long term strength of the game. We want stadiums to be full of people of all ages enjoying the game and that means the support of women at all levels of the sport and in all roles is something we want to support. We are in a fortunate position to be able to make a profit most years from TV revenue, commercial deals and various other revenue streams, sadly we understand the EMWRFU at times struggle to make the investments they wish. It is my belief pooling our resources we can get more bang for our buck and improve the game for everyone." Lord Cargill's counter-part at the EMWRFU is Helen Caines who said, "We will hear what Lord Cargill has to offer, then we shall do what is best for the women's game. At the moment I am not sure how I will go in terms of decision making but it shall come down to a vote of the board and I shall be happy to go along with the majority of the members."

Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #179 on: March 26, 2020, 09:51:57 PM »




MILITARY HEAD TO BORDER IN LARGE NUMBERS

Residents in the western parts of East Moreland today woke to find large convoys of armoured vehicles and military trucks heading towards the border with Vaguzia. The King yesterday mobilised Duke Legion to help patrol the border with Vaguzia following the murder of a Vaguzian soldier by the group known as the WMRA. The King was highly critical of the group which considers itself Morelanders and Cultists and has in the past called for independence from Vaguzia. Around 18,000 men in total have moved towards the border and there was an increased presence in helicopter activity. General Michael Bull is in command of the Legion and was one of those moving towards the border. "We've a huge border with Vaguzia and a lot of it features mountainous terreian. Its important in the coming weeks we ensure that no illegal movement across the frontier takes place and that we meet any threat with a reasonable response as swiftly as possible."

The Legion will also be supported by regular air patrols from the Air Force who have been given the task of providing close air support. General Bull explained, "The landscape often means closing with an enemy can be difficult. We therefore will be calling on the Air Force to neutralise targets we are not able to close with in a timely manner." The Royal East Moreland Naval Service will also be stepping up patrols in the area to ensure that the Mhorish is not used as a way of smuggling things between the two nations.
« Last Edit: March 26, 2020, 10:28:32 PM by DaveIronside »