The Imperial Fusanese Navy aircraft carrier IFN Taihō (CVN-43) will deploy to the EoF Southern Command area of operations over the next few months as part of EoF Naval Forces Southern Command/EoF 2nd Fleet's Antalin Sea 2024 deployment. Taihō, as well as Akaishi-class Strike Cruiser Tone (CSGN-6), elements of DESRON 2 including destroyers Kosuke Abe (DDG-111) and Teijirō Endo (DDG-89), and combat support ship Gassan (AOE-12) are scheduled to conduct passing exercises and operations with partner nation maritime forces as the ships travel across the region, with the deployment's goal being to test interoperability between member-states of the Association of Shaw and Dauntel Nations. The deployment comes on the heels of the recent declaration of the "Republic of Troyes" by forces belonging to the organization known as "Real Marseilles", an act supported by some members of the ADSN while others remained apprehensive, including the government of Fusan. Nonetheless, it is believed that this deployment may serve to bolster already present forces in the region in the event that the Kingdom of Seaforth, which we note illegally occupied the city in 2017, elects to push the issue any further.

Regarding the possibility that Seaforth does not back down, a source within the War Ministry suggested that they are "unconcerned, but nonetheless remaining vigilant" with regards to such a scenario. Echoing the words of Emperor Eijirō last Wednesday, they further stated that the government should prioritize diplomatic efforts to prevent such a scenario from playing out, however unlikely it may be. Taihō, as well as the rest of CSG-8, is expected to arrive in the region late evening of the 26th. YHK will continue to monitor the ongoing situation in Troyes and the Strait of Shaw, as well as other ongoing conflicts across the globe.

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Late on April 22nd, 2024, mission controllers at NASDA's Institute of Aerospace Technology in Yura, Tokai sent the last commands to ask NASDA's Nozomi rover on Nergal to call home. Nozomi has not communicated with Mundus since September 17th, 2023. One of the most successful and enduring feats of interplanetary exploration, NASDA's Nozomi rover is at an end after nearly twenty years spent exploring the surface of Nergal and helping lay the groundwork for the agency's continued exploration of the Red Planet. The Nozomi rover stopped communicating with Mundus when a Nergal-wide dust storm blanketed its location in September 2023. After more than a thousand commands to restore contact, engineers in the Space Flight Operations Facility at NASDA's Institute of Aerospace Technology (IAT) made their last attempt to revive Nozomi on Monday, to no avail. The RTG-powered rover's final communication was received on the 17th of September.

"It is thanks to trailblazing missions like Nozomi that there will soon come a day when our brave uchunauts will walk on the surface of Nergal," said NASDA Administrator Jiro Asagiri. "And when that day arrives, some portion of that first footprint will be owned by the men and women who worked with Nozomi, and a little rover that defied the odds and did so much in the name of exploration."

Designed to last for just a single Mundus year and to travel four kilometers, Nozomi vastly surpassed all expectations in its endurance, scientific value and longevity. In addition to exceeding its life expectancy by more than nineteen times, the rover traveled more than fifty-seven kilometers by the time it reached its final resting spot in Candor Chasma, the planned future site where NASDA will land a crew on the surface and a site which is perhaps most fitting for the rover, which brought much joy to the world over its many years of service. Many may fondly recall when, in July of 2023, the rover's visit to the landing site of the previous year's Nergal Sky Sailor mission, the first winged aircraft to fly in the atmosphere of Nergal. During that visit, which coincided with the one year anniversary of the mission, Nozomi famously played the song "Happy Birthday" for the now-powerless aircraft using its Sample Analysis at Nergal (SAN) instrument, a scene which became something of a joke online, with some noting the "seemingly macabre playing of a celebratory song for a fallen comrade", while others noted that it only further sold how lonely the rover's existence was on Nergal.

"For nearly two decades, Nozomi has been an icon in the field of planetary exploration, teaching us about Nergal's ancient past as a wet, potentially habitable planet, and revealing uncharted Nergalian landscapes," said Sachio Yamazaki, associate administrator for NASDA's Science Mission Directorate. "Whatever loss we feel now must be tempered with the knowledge that the legacy of Nozumi continues —both on the surface of Nergal with the Tasogare rover and Akatsuki lander—and in the clean rooms of IAT, where the next generation of Nergal rovers are taking shape."

The final transmission, sent via the 70-meter Nergal Station antenna at NASDA's Gyotaishin Deep Space Complex in Tsukishima, ended a multifaceted, six-month recovery strategy in an attempt to compel the rover to communicate. While the root cause of this failure to communicate with the rover is presently uncertain, the leading theory is that it may have been caused by an electrostatic coronal discharge caused by the global dust storm. Such a fate, while perhaps not befitting of a rover as well-loved as Nozomi, is one that engineers at NASDA have determined simply cannot be recovered. As a result, NASDA has finally put to rest its longest mission to another planet, allowing the rover to join its sister, Hinode—which was shut down after sustaining damage to three of its six wheels—in eternal slumber.

Stage 5 results

1 - Hans Richter (SV Meergesellen) 6:23:52
2 - Graham Donnelly (Tolsenn-Lark) + 00:00
3 - Galbeyte Egal (MKTkom) + 00:00
4 - Naozumi Iga (Hachinobu Seisei) + 00:00
5 - Andrew Mason (Phoenix Cycling) + 00:28
6 - Hermann Takkala (AABL-Ujredi) + 00:54
7 - Abrus McGlathery (Tolsenn-Lark) + 01:12
8 - Daniel Longbridge (Phoenix Cycling) + 01:13
9 - Imeda Kupatadze (AABL-Ujredi) + 01:48
10 - Friedrich Wagner (SV Meergesellen) + 02:13
11 - Germund Strand (AABL-Ujredi) + 02:18
12 - Otto Schulz (SV Meergesellen) + 02:19
13 - Eddie Chevere (Tolsenn-Lark) + 02:26
14 - Kazushi Eto (Hachinobu Seisei) + 02:26
15 - Kimmo Peltonen (AABL-Ujredi)  + 02:26
...
DNF - Stephen Ular (Tolsenn-Lark)
DNF - Kalevi Tammivaara (MKTkom)

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General classification

1 - Galbeyte Egal (MKTkom) 25:58:48
2 - Andrew Mason (Phoenix Cycling) + 01:05
3 - Hans Richter (SV Meergesellen) + 01:15
4 - Abrus McGlathery (Tolsenn-Lark) + 01:59
5 - Friedrich Wagner (SV Meergesellen) + 02:51
6 - Daisaku Fujimoto (Hachinobu Seisei) + 03:23
7 - Heinrich Müller (SV Meergesellen) + 03:51
8 - Kazushi Eto (Hachinobu Seisei) + 04:14
9 - Levan Chabradze (MKTkom) + 09:12
10 - Naozumi Iga (Hachinobu Seisei) + 10:42

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Points classification

1 - Hermenegild Suuma (AABL-Ujredi) - 60 points
2 - Hans Richter (SV Meergesellen) - 60 points
3 - Eddie Chevere (Tolsenn-Lark) - 50 points
4 - Naozumi Iga (Hachinobu Seisei) - 45 points
5 - Kazushi Eto (Hachinobu Seisei) - 36 points

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Mountain classification

1 - Daniel Longbridge (Phoenix Cycling) - 11 points
2 - Kozo Egashira (Hachinobu Seisei) - 8 points
3 - Naozumi Iga (Hachinobu Seisei) - 6 points
4 - Asketyll Omdahl (MKTkom) - 6 points
5 - Tariel Kipiani (MTKkom) - 5 points

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Youth classification

1 - Galbeyte Egal (MKTkom) 25:58:48
2 - Hans Richter (SV Meergesellen) + 01:15
3 - Friedrich Wagner (SV Meergesellen) + 02:51
4 - Heinrich Müller (SV Meergesellen) + 03:51
5 -  Karl Sturmwald (SV Meergesellen) + 16:18

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Team classification

1 - SV Meergesellen  84:01:53
2 - Hachinobu Seisei + 01:12
3 - Tolsenn-Lark + 06:34
4 - Phoenix Cycling + 06:48
5 - MKTkom + 12:26

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Irtref for all thanks

Irtref had been a formation of several small Kingdoms, tribes and city states until the time of the 7th Century AD when the wars between the Barren and Ironside family began to create the Kingdom of East Moreland. During that time a group of warriors who wished to remain neutral in what was basically a civil war made the decision to head north through the Alps to avoid the retribution they feared from however won the war. These warriors followed a different faith to the Cult of Helus and saw this as a chance to escape the dogma of the faith that they had been controlled by. Lead by Gwilym Ulreaden the followers of the Medik Faith first crossed the Alps and settled in a highland pasture. At first they had tried to live alongside the various tribes of the region but following a particular bad harvest in 651AD the group came under attack by the natives of the region. While the ragged hill tribes outnumbered them the superior discipline and skill of Gwilym and his men saw the group survive. Gwilym then began a campaign against those who had attacked them and soon the group had several other settlements swearing loyalty to Gwilym. Over the next thirty years the group saw off various incursions and upon the death of Gwilym his son, Owain took control of the group. At his fathers funeral there was an attack by a King who feared the settlers and after being seen off Owain launched a counter attack. This saw more and more groups flock to there side and within five generations the descendents of Owain had taken control of much of the North of Alba Karinya.

The nations name translate literally as "homestead of Iron" and is believed to have been picked by the original settlers for one of two reasons. The first is that, having been resident of a land dominated by the Cult of Helus, the group had an affinity for swords and their martial practice. As such the first settlers likely carried swords all the time, unlike many of the locals. The second is that near the first settlement a significant iron vein exists however it is unclear whether the first settlers would have been aware of this when the name was adopted.

Today Irtref shares very little in common with their nation of origin. While East Moreland shut itself off from the world Irtref ventured out. The lands on the northern Alba Karinya coast were inhabited by fine sailors and as a result the new nation sent traders around the world. This saw them become realitively wealthy and arcaehological records have discovered goods from across Mundus in the Kingdom. There is however a darker side, the Medik faith permitted its followers to act as both mercenaries and to own slaves. As such many from Irtref ventured across Mundus seeking wars and would return with prisoners of war as slaves. This means Irtref today is much more diverse than its southern neighbour. While the practice of slave trading was banned in 1803 it was not until 1844 that all slaves were given their freedom.

Irtref today is a multi-cultural nation that is considered rather liberal but has maintained several key links to its foundation as a Kingdom dedicated to the worship of the Medik Faith.

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Population - 42,769,813 (Census 2022)
Capital City:- Brynhaearn (1.5million) - means "Iron-Mountain"
Currency:- Glofaur (the name literally translates as "Coal-gold" and would symbolise the historic practice of miners being given tokens to trade for agricultural goods, the first currency in the region.
Demonym: Irtreffer
Languages: Irtreffer (similar to Morelandish in a way that Spanish and Portugese is)
Religion 80% Medikism 5% Cult of Helus, 5% Christian, 10% Others (Rights Protected Under Law)
GDP per Capita $36,111

Government Structure Monarchy with supporting Democracy
Government Body - 301 member legislative assembly called the Guild Council
Head of Government - Guildmaster Siôr Baines
Head of State - Queen Eirwen IV

Stage 4 results

1 - Eddie Chevere (Tolsenn-Lark) 6:23:53
2 - Kazushi Eto (Hachinobu Seisei) + 00:00
3 - Hans Richter (SV Meergesellen) + 00:00
4 - Timothy Coulter (Phoenix Cycling) + 00:00
5 - Karl Sturmwald (SV Meergesellen) + 00:00
6 - Kalevi Tammivaara (MKTkom) + 00:00
7 - Daisaku Fujimoto (Hachinobu Seisei) + 00:00
8 - Friedrich Wagner (SV Meergesellen) + 00:00
9 - Heinrich Müller (SV Meergesellen) + 00:00
10 - Levan Chabradze (MKTkom) + 00:00
11 - Kozo Egashira (Hachinobu Seisei) + 00:00
12 - Andrew Mason (Phoenix Cycling) + 00:00
13 - Graham Donnelly (Tolsenn-Lark) + 00:00
14 - Paul Newcombe (Phoenix Cycling) + 00:00
15 - Lars Aaltonen (AABL-Ujredi) + 00:00
...
DNF - Paul Johnstone (Tolsenn-Lark)
DNF - Hakaru Akiyama (Hachinobu Seisei)

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General classification

1 - Galbeyte Egal (MKTkom) 19:35:00
2 - Karl Sturmwald (SV Meergesellen) + 00:19
3 - Andrew Mason (Phoenix Cycling) + 00:33
4 - Friedrich Wagner (SV Meergesellen) + 00:34
5 - Abrus McGlathery (Tolsenn-Lark) + 00:43
6 - Daisaku Fujimoto (Hachinobu Seisei) + 00:53
7 - Hans Richter (SV Meergesellen) + 01:21
8 -  Heinrich Müller (SV Meergesellen) + 01:21
9 - Stephen Ular (Tolsenn-Lark) + 01:28
10 - Kazushi Eto (Hachinobu Seisei) + 01:44

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Points classification

1 - Hermenegild Suuma (AABL-Ujredi) - 60 points
2 - Eddie Chevere (Tolsenn-Lark) - 50 points
3 - Kazushi Eto (Hachinobu Seisei) - 36 points
4 - Naozumi Iga (Hachinobu Seisei) - 33 points
5 - Hans Richter (SV Meergesellen) - 30 points

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Mountain classification

1 - Daniel Longbridge (Phoenix Cycling) - 11 points
2 - Kozo Egashira (Hachinobu Seisei) - 8 points
3 - Asketyll Omdahl (MKTkom) - 6 points
4 - Naozumi Iga (Hachinobu Seisei) - 6 points
5 - Tariel Kipiani (MTKkom) - 5 points

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Youth classification

1 -  Galbeyte Egal (MKTkom) 19:35:00
2 - Karl Sturmwald (SV Meergesellen) + 00:19
3 - Friedrich Wagner (SV Meergesellen) + 00:34
4 - Hans Richter (SV Meergesellen) + 01:21
5 -  Heinrich Müller (SV Meergesellen) + 01:21

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Team classification

1 - SV Meergesellen 64:45:32
2 - Hachinobu Seisei + 00:52
3 - Phoenix Cycling + 07:13
4 - Tolsenn-Lark + 07:28
5 - MKTkom + 12:44

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