Chō

Pronunciation: CHOH

Adjective: Chō

Capital: Iroa

Major Islands:

Chō Island: 8,721 sq mi (22,587 sq km) [New Jersey]

Population: ~5 million, roughly 2.3 of which have come from Miln and Afrene. 

Government: Absolute Monarchy

Economy: Chō is far and away the largest concentration of industy in Litanaea; if it is metal, it is most likely mined and manufactured in Cho. This includes machinery for Miln and Afrene's factories, most of the guns, swords, and knives on the islands, and rail engines. This is not to say that the other nations are incapable of manufacturing their own machines, simply that Chō possesses a share of that industry all out of proportion with its size.

Politics: Messy. The very short version is that Chō is finding the transition from a small, largely rural nation ruled directly by an absolute monarch, to being the largest industrial center in Litanaea to be more than a little painful. The direct involvement of the King that used to promise a certain degree of meritocracy now more often means that things are dealt with in a haphazard 'when I get to them' manner, and a lot more slips through the cracks than folks would like. There has been work on getting proper delegation set up, but it is an awful lot of work and not made any easier by the lack of any prior examples to base new laws upon.

Aside: By 'certain degree of meritocracy', we mean that you rarely saw noble families holding onto their titles for more than three generations, generally losing them to common up-and-comers who distinguished themselves in some manner.

Religion: While they have accepted the Children of Iomei, the Chō have always tended to do their own thing in terms of religion. Some follow Milanese customs, or ancient Chō beliefs, while still others take pride in making up their very own belief system.

Culture: Chō is, by Litanaean standards, disturbingly progressive on the gender equality front, quite possibly even more so than Thevia. Unfortunately, this comes at the cost of being downright insular bastards, and this has clashed rather badly with their recent mass importation of foreigners (mostly Afrennen, although the odd Milnese, Suminth, and Sarantican also show up) to man their factories and mines. Few would go so far as to openly scorn the immigrants, and social services are readily available to any contributing member of society, but permanent resident status is damn hard to come by, and citizenship practically requires the King's Word.

As a people, the Chō are not the type to advance something simply for advancement's sake. That is to say, Chō does not truly possess any scientists who are pondering the secrets of the universe and attempting to explain the cosmos and the world around them. Instead, rather, they eagerly soak up the new discoveries trickling out of Thevia and promptly strive to uncover every possible use for that technology. The occasional accidental discovery is made, but unless it can be put to immediate use without any theoretical work, such discoveries will undoubtedly be left by the wayside (or passed on to Thevan researchers to 'make sense of').

Two interesting quirks of Chō's military are its complete gender equality (a holdover from the days of needing every pair of hands that could hold a weapon) and the proportionally large number of common-born officers filling its ranks. Chō's military academy will accept any who show the proper potential, and the addition of the king's patronage for 'services to the crown' has put many a boy who played in the gutters in command of men who grew up on sweet cakes. 

Social Systems: Chō allows and encourages both opposite- and same-gender relationships. The difference between them lies in the degree of melding of the participants' resources. An opposite-gender relationship is deemed primarily for the raising of children, not the supporting of the spouse, so individual finances and properties are kept strictly separate and, barring jumping through a few legal hoops, the surviving spouse will not inherit anything from a deceased spouse. Same-sex pairings, meanwhile, have traditionally been used to cement alliances between families. Ostensibly, this is to 'keep the kids out of it', and it is definitely related to the large number of ancient and modern Chō dramas that proclaim the deep romanticism of same-sex relationships. Between such couples, all resources and finances are inseparably joined, symbolizing the joining of the families' fates and fortunes. When you add in that the Chō are fully accepting of relationships between multiple partners, the social situation can get thoroughly convoluted and all but impenetrable by any outsider. Which, frankly, is just how the Chō like it.

Climate: Chō boasts some lovely mountains and the unpredictability those bestow upon the surrounding terrain. Given that weather has been known to come from all sides of the island, some days Iroa is drenched, while others is sits pleasantly in a rain shadow while Uwi is soaked to the skin. All of Chō's major cities get regular baths, wether they need them or not. At one point, the island was heavily forested, but the need over recent years has outstripped even Chō's very ambitions re-seeding program.

History: Chō was, for many a fine century, left alone on their little island. With the exception of the occasional Thevan trader or Eurite raider, they were quite happily left to play in their little sandbox. Perhaps if the other young nations had asked them out to play more often they would not have grown up to be so standoffish. Instead, they were left alone with their toys: strange shafts sunk into their mountainous island that no mere mortal could have dug.

Through these gifts from the gods, they pulled iron, copper, coal, aluminum, and a wealth of other materials. They moved but slowly in the beginning, extracting only what they needed and experimenting with it to create newer and better weapons and techniques with which to fend off the Eurites. Over the centuries, traders took some of these techniques away with them, only to return with a more advanced process, which they would sell the Chō - for a price. With the new technique in hand, however, the people were determined to eke out every last drop of its value. Given a few more centuries, their passion for exhaustive application developed into a downright mania.

Then, on one fine summer's day, a Thevan merchant arrived with an invention smuggled out of his native country and sold to the Chō crown for a hefty sum and the promise of permanent asylum. The steam engine made its way to the Island of Metalworkers and the seeds of a revolution were planted deep in its fertile soil. Since that day, Chō's population has exploded, its cities have blossomed like fetid mushrooms, and its uses for that little engine have taken the world by storm.

GodTouched: Most godtouched are quietly put off the main island or put to death. One or two might be employed by the government solely to defend against other nations' godtouched, but such would very much be a case of stockpiling nuclear weapons to counteract an enemy's nuclear weapons. Nobody actually wants to set them loose on the world. Unlike in Miln or Afrene, Chō's Magi keeps him or herself strictly anonymous and buried in the nation's recently expanded government.

     *Iroa (eye-ROW-ah) – The capital and largest port. Deliberately established apart from the island's mines, Iroa is carved into the side of a sloping cliff whose base meets a broad beach and cool water. Extensive terracing has turned the city into a jewel of verdant beauty. Gardens are tucked away into any corner large enough to house a few plants, with some used for food, but most simply designed to look pretty. This look requires a fair amount of upkeep, but the city's citizens are pleased to put forth the effort, or at least the government is. It's a good public image and it makes for a lovely place to live. Property values are amongst the highest in Chō, and not simply because the city boasts one of the healthiest environments in the country.

     Ezai (ee-ZAI) – A trading town, Ezai is a home to artisans and smiths. Runoff from the mines and factory exhaust leave the citizens in less than ideal health. Chronic, although not debilitating, sickness is more the rule than the exception and the local hospital mostly keeps things under control. Without those doctors and pharmacists, however, life would be a good deal less pleasant. While Oize manufactures stock parts and machinery, Ezai crafts masterpieces and works of art: custom swords, specially crafted rifles, curious parts orders from Thevan engineers, and dozens of other items.

     Iesi (YES-ee) – X

     Jur (JER) – The central city for a host of tiny islands and Chō's aquaculture industry, Jur is built atop ruins from an earlier time. Rising up out of the water on its cliffs, the city's main port is built atop a large pier jutting out into the ocean, and it sees traffic during every daylit hour and no few of the dark ones. Nearby hills are riddled with caves and tunnels, the exploration of which is a bit of a childhood hobby. Also the bane of most parents in Jur. A significant percentage of the affrennen immigrants (10, mayhaps) have ended up in and around Jur, helping to bring in food to feed the rest of the imported population. (City image reference)

     Oize (oo-EEZ) – Sheltered from the worst of the Eurite raids by the bulk of the island, Oize is free to host a significant percentage of Cho's industry. If Iroa is a delicate flower, Oize is a lump of coal. The city is dirty, grimy, and an altogether miserable place to live. It should be noted that, with the level of industry present within the city, it should be completely unlivable. In any sane, reasonable world, it would be. For some reason, however, it is merely disastrous to one's health, instead of instantly fatal. Very few people live here that do not have to.

     Reli (REL-ee) – Insert Military Complex Here. Chō's naval and terrestrial military forces are headquartered out of this port city, with its large training grounds, obstacle fields, private shipyards, and enough smiths to outfit an army... literally. Military units are stationed in every city and on every island larger than a football field, but a hefty chunk of the nation's military forces are present at Reli, training and available for rapid deployment to counter any raid or assault by a foreign power. The city itself largely exists to support and cater to the soldiers living nearby.

     Uwi (OO-wee) – X