Beyond the Wall: Info and Claims

Even in ancient times, just about anyone who had ever been on a boat could tell you that the world was round. The Asendavians had figured out you could sail east off the edge of the map and arrive in Novaris and Gondwana in the 1300s, and the Norvians had been sailing in just about every direction a thousand years before then. No, the world being round was never the question, not exactly. It was just about in what way it was round.

You see, plenty of people had sailed across the world from east to west. No one, however, had ever attempted to circle the world from north to south. Or at least, no one had ever succeeded. In ancient times, the myths and legends said that it was dragons or beasts or something that killed you if you went too far north or south. The lupines of Vesienväl told stories of a massive wall of ice that stood at the end of the world, guarded by massive, frightening giants that were the progenitors of humans, elves, and dwarves.

As science and reason took hold among the civilizations of Urth, though, the old folklore was replaced with the strict, reasoned, scientific method. There was no ice wall, there were no dragons, it was just so cold at the poles that people who visited couldn’t survive. The Urth, of course, was a sphere. Just like all the other planets and stars the scientists could see through their telescopes. It was only a matter of time before society would advance far enough for sentient-kind to reach the poles and live to tell the tale.

It did not happen in the 16th century, though, or the 17th. By the 18th, people were beginning to wonder. By the 19th, people were bound and determined to figure out the answer, no matter the cost. Still, none of them returned. Not the Morst, who weren’t really that far from the South Pole; not the Asendavians so close to the North Pole; not the Tavari or the Salovians or the Vistari or the Durdneelians nor anyone else who ever tried. For all of recorded history, the world ended at 75 degrees of latitude away from the Aequator.

The atmosphere at the poles reached temperatures cold enough to freeze lamp oil, scientists theorized. Or torrential circumpolar currents tore boats apart before they could even land on Sempiterna. Navigation was hampered by unpredictable magnetic behavior at the poles of the planet’s magnetic field, almost assuredly. There were plenty of ideas. But none of them, none of them could have ever prepared them for what the people of Urth discovered once they had learned enough to send a person beyond their world.

“We, uh… we have a problem,” were the first words broadcast to the surface of the Urth from orbit.

It was 1961 when Morstaybishlia sent a man into space, but they were only the first to find out. The Ethalrians and the Salovians were quick to respond during the heat of the Auroran Space Race. Of course, the Auroran Imperial War was a significant distraction, and after the Kevatuul disaster, going into outer space was the last thing on the minds of most people on Urth. But the astronauts remembered what they saw, and the governments did too.

They kept it a secret. Secret beyond top secret. Some countries didn’t even tell their heads of state. They focused the public’s attention elsewhere. They “discouraged” university faculty from researching the poles. They said outer space was full of debris and wasn’t safe. They fabricated textbooks, they lied to school-children. They lied to adults. But they also made plans. Plans for expanding their borders beyond the wall.

The Internet and the global tech industry, however, were not part of the plan.

It takes a lot of infrastructure to build a global communications network, you see, and eventually the slow pace of the various governments in launching internet-capable satellites began to annoy industry titans like Cluster and Serenitech. By the turn of the third millennium CE, they, too, discovered what had been kept secret from them. But they had different plans for what to do with the information.

The year is 2020 CE, and while watching the latest Cluster product keynote, you have been informed that the world is a cylinder, the sun rotates around the Urth, and your entire life has been lived in a tiny fraction of an infinite world, sandwiched between two massive walls of ice, on which your government lied to your face to keep it all secret.

Now you have the information. Now you know the truth. So what will you do?

The following information has been taken by a Tavari Ministry of Defense presentation prepared for Prime Minister Šano Šonai Tuvria upon his election as Prime Minister in January of 2017 and is used here with permission.

I. Urth

The planet Urth is a cylinder of infinite length located at what experts believe is the center of the universe. Around the cylinder are several other celestial bodies, all of which are spheres. The closest of these are Tep, the sun, and Olune, the moon, both of which have a radius of approximately 1,700 km and orbit the cylinder at a distance of about 400,000 km. There are several other, more distant, planets that also orbit around the cylinder on the plane of the Aequator. Other stars and planets, all spheres, have been observed beyond our local system which appear to also orbit the Urth, though this is not yet confirmed.

Urth’s climate is heated by the sun. The heat and light generated by the sun are strongest at the Aequator and weaken as one approaches the “poles.” Using the traditional system of latitude and longitude, beginning at approximately 66 degrees North and 66 degrees South, it becomes cold enough for the formation of ice sheets.

II. The Walls

In the extreme reaches of the Rotantic and the Sempiternic, approaching 90 degrees North and South respectively, massive formations of water ice, believed to be several kilometers tall and hundreds if not thousands of kilometers thick, prevent any further access by land or sea.

At both of these locations are large populations of humanoid animals that are colloquially called “giants” because of their large size. They regularly approach between twenty and thirty feet high and have tremendous strength. They have been observed to craft weapons from stone and the bones of walruses and whales, but have not been observed to display sentient behavior. Individualistic and highly territorial, these “giants” will attack any living creature that enters their field of vision. These giants, even more than the climate, are believed to be the primary cause of death among explorers to these regions. Ancient myths that these giants are the ancestors of modern humans, elves, dwarves, and nekomimi are unconfirmed.

III. The Global Accords

Governments on Urth have been aware of these phenomena since the 1960s. Tavaris has been aware since the Tana Tavat Project launches of 1977 and 1978, and was contacted by Morstaybishlia shortly after to join the secret international treaty regarding the classification of this information. All nations who have been to space are parties to this agreement, known as the Global Accords, which necessitates that the Tavari government do “everything within its power” to prevent the release of this highly sensitive information to the public (including the existence of the Accords themselves). Other member states are authorized to use any force, including nuclear capabilities, to enforce the Accords on Tavaris - just as Tavaris is so authorized to do against any other member-state in violation of the Accords.

The reason for these efforts to keep the information secret is largely because the nations of the world have agreed that should this information become public, a massive scramble of private and public attempts to access the land beyond the walls would lead to chaos and violence. It is also believed that this information would threaten the stability of several world religions and potentially lead to religious sectarian violence.  Neither the Church of Akrona nor the Tavat Avati Temple Association is aware of this information, and to disclose this information to either organization would be a violation of the Accords.

IV. Beyond the Walls

While only the sections nearest “our” section have been directly observed, it is believed that the cylinder does, in fact, stretch on into infinity, and that the surface of the entire cylinder is covered in land and water. Both the section immediately to our north (sometimes called Rotantica) and the section immediately to our south (sometimes called Sempiternica, not to be confused with Sempiterna) are known to have their own sun and moon, the same size as our own, in orbit. The light from these suns is refracted and obscured by the height and thickness of the Walls, which results in them being effectively undetectable from “our” section. When it is needed to refer to our section of the Urth as distinct from other sections, the name “Aequatorica” has been commonplace among members of the Global Accords.

Rotantica and Sempiternica both have several continents and oceans, and appear to have roughly the same total surface area (including both land and oceanic surface) as Aequatorica. Both Rotantica and Sempiternica have been observed to have both plant and animal life. Neither has been observed to have either intelligent or sapient life.

While plant life in Rotantica appears largely similar to our own, animal life is somewhat different in that the dominant class of animal is reptilian rather than mammalian. Reptilian megafauna, colloquially known as “dinosaurs,” are common on all continents of Rotantica and, in particular, in the oceans. These species appear similar to, but not identical to, dinosaurs that existed in the past in Aequatorica. While efforts are underway to relocate or otherwise remove these megafauna from areas of interest, all parties to the Global Accords should know that many of these animals are extremely dangerous, and they post perhaps the most significant threat to efforts to establish settlements in Rotantica.

Sempiternica is the more different of the two. Plant life in Sempiternica lacks chlorophyll as an energy-producing cellular compound and instead uses a pigment called retinal, which is purple. The sun in orbit of Sempiternica is significantly (40%-50%) weaker than Tep and the Rotantican sun (sometimes called Sola, from the Impelanzan sol) and therefore there is more ice, and less liquid water, in Sempiternica. Nearly all observed animal species are bioluminescent in some fashion, and most rely on senses other than sight.

V. New Way Project and Colonization Beyond the Walls

Since the 1980s, a project known as the New Way Project [Translator Note: “Kekanu Tana Tavat,” in Tavari, abbrev. “KKT”] has been in place in the Tavari government to plan for expansion into territories beyond the Walls. Rotantica has been chosen over Sempiternica as the candidate region due to its similarities in biota and climate. To our knowledge, this is the case with every other member-state of the Global Accords. You will receive a more specific briefing on KKT (sometimes also called “Tavaris 2” tongue-in-cheek) later.

The Global Accords member-states have generally allowed some very minor expeditions to Rotantica for scientific exploration and for starting the very basic foundations of eventual colonization. No state may begin formal colonization until the Global Accords Council votes to open colonization efforts. As travel to Rotantica can only be done by spacecraft, technology has hampered efforts to develop cost-effective ways to travel there. The current Global Accords target date for opening colonization is 2035 CE.

VI. Penalties for Disclosure

Disclosing ANY of the information in this briefing to anyone, at any time, is a violation of the Global Accords. The Kingdom of Tavaris will immediately disavow any relation or connection to you or to anyone else who discloses any information and will, in accordance with the Accords, take all measures in its power to apprehend and eliminate you and any other person(s) who unlawfully obtain this information.

CLAIM PROCESS:

Claiming here will work largely in the same way as it does in the main canon. You may claim an area of the map that your country will colonize. Your economic, military, and political strength will be determined by your main canon stats. Technology is more or less at the same level as in the main canon, perhaps just slightly more advanced. For now, the AU will consist of Rotantica (the section to the north of Aequatorica, “our” Urth) only.

To be clear about how this AU works, consider that the events of history in this AU are completely identical to history of the main canon until 1961 (when space travel begins) and only marginally begins to differ from there. Your nation may - or may not have - decided to act somewhat differently in events between the 60s and now depending on if it knew it needed to save money/resources for a massive colonization effort in the future.

The Auroran Imperial War and the Kevatuul events did actually occur in this AU, but if Auroran nations want to focus on getting to Rotantica after they pick up the pieces, they certainly can. (I hope that this allows for some evening of the playing field in that most of the rich superpowers got to space first but then had to clean up after a huge war so they lost some time relative to everyone else.) Remember that your country will not have discovered Rotantica until it became able to send people into orbit.

Travel to Rotantica requires spaceflight - there is no other way around the walls. It’s still pretty expensive and pretty logistically challenging to get to space, so keep that in mind when considering how your country will get to and begin colonizing Rotantica. Money, fuel, materials, and technical failures are still things in this AU, so nobody will have built any big huge gleaming metropolises in Rotantica. (Yet.)

Corporations will also be a big deal in this AU! The already pre-existing canonical tech corporations of Cluster and Serenitech are already featured in the AU, although if you want to colonize with one of your corporations instead of your governments, that is also an option available to you - so long as you can reasonably claim that the corporation has the means to build, launch, and pilot spacecraft and arrange for the logistics required to build entire cities from scratch.

Post your claim in this thread (I will post an example claim) based on the map below:


<Click https://static.miraheze.org/tepwiki/3/3b/BTW_Map.png
to see the image at full scale>

The world of Beyond the Wall is full of opportunities and mechanics, never-before-seen in the world of Evolved RP or AUs. Of course, classic roleplay and worldbuilding still play a big part in this. The various new mechanics are all explained in the document below, where you will learn the functions and intricacies of security perimeters, map expansions, relationships between nations, and much more!

(Don’t let the document discourage you! You’ll be able to grasp most concepts after taking a glance at it for a few minutes.)

TEMPLATE CLAIM — PASTE THIS AND FILL IT WITH YOUR INFORMATION

Nation Name: New Emerald Coast

Cities(List all cities. https://media.discordapp.net/attachments/717472467878150231/832421656428806165/unknown.png
)
Otanís (capital, city)
Lõunasadam (camp)

Demonym: Tavari 
Language: Tavari, Rodokan 
Species: Predominantly elven, some human 
Population: approx. 4,750 
Formation: 2019 
ISO 3166 code: NEC

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[spoiler]https://media.discordapp.net/attachments/717472467878150231/832421649541627914/new_emerald_coast.png
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Kurikian Zone for Research and exploration

Demonym Kurikian

Population 5907

Main City’s

New Veliky City 3000

Belresky Town: 2000

Vlankov camp: 907

Established 2018

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Nation Name: Sevopasenos

Cities (List all cities. City scale.)
New Stromharad (capital, city)
Torvavarjupak (Safe Harbor) (camp, the one on the island)
Taurinkoklorun (Land of the Sun) (camp, the one across the strait)

Demonym: Asendavian
Language: Asendavian
Species: Mostly humans, some dwarves, and a few ursines
Population: approx. 5,200
Formation: 2018
ISO 3166 code: SEV

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Turtle, I’ll also be sending you an xcf file of my claim to make this easier for you

Nation Name: New Cascadian Empire

Cities:
Caribou (Capital, Town)
Fir (Camp)
Sunglow (Settlement)
Moonwave (Settlement)

Demonym: Cascadian
Language: Codexian
Species: Humans
Population: 5,368
Formation: 2019
ISO 3166 code: NCE

Map: https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/340334319749038080/832447594524442624/new_cascadia.png
Flag: https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/632494863182725140/832739795578519622/Cascadia_AU_Flag_1.png

Nation name: Tretridian Rotantic Territory

Cities:
Niewe Iegburg (Capital city, on the island)
Wesæhealfburh (town, the dot on the west coast)
Easted (settlement, dot on the east coast)

Demonym: Tretridian
Language: Tretridian
Species: Predominantly human, some elves
Population: ~5500
ISO 3166 Code: TRO


Name: Nov Tolinsk
Cities (List all cities. City scale.)
Nov Tolinsk (capital, city)
Adleygrad(camp)
Fahrbhaile(camp)

Demonym: Tolinsker
Language: Durdneelian, Durakan, Evaktoran languages
Species: Predominately human
Population: approx. 8k
Formation: 2020
ISO 3166 code: NTU

A collaboration between members of the Tolinsk Accords the colony of Nov Tolinsk uses a general fund to import more people. Territory claimed is still largely untamed, but the territorial regions have already been agreed upon by the members.

Nation Name: Nuova Aspiria

Cities: Monado (settlement), Talbo (exploration camp)

Demonym: Aspirian
Language: Fortunan, Rosalican
Species: Predominantly human, some Usprian elves
Population: 680
Formation: 2019
ISO 3166 Code: NAS

Two unlikely nations come together to cross over the ice wall. As the nations and corporations of Urth race to stake their claim in the new world, representatives from Fortuna and Rosalica agree to a joint-effort campaign to explore the lands of Rotantica. Fortuna has the equipment, Rosalica has the funding, along with a diverse team of scientists and explorers readily available.

The task of exploring the new world is handed off to the newly formed organization Rosalica-Fortuna Expeditionary Committee (RFEC) which is headed by three entities: Terine Industries, the Fortunan Science and Engineering Department, and the Rosalican Institute of Science. Available technology made it easier for RFEC to successfully launch a first exploration team, although it quickly failed as communication with the team was lost a few weeks after. The next few launches allowed for the building of a settlement just within the Cluster-Serenitech Security Perimeter. Although it left a handful of Fortunan RFEC members disgruntled, the settlement agreed to Cluster-Serenitech’s terms which in the long run benefited RFEC and their claim. In return, the Fortunan delegates were allowed to name this claim, and after long discussions, it was decided to name their claimed territory Nuova Aspiria.

More Detailed Information:
In charge of the operation in Rotantica is the Rosalica-Fortuna Expeditionary Committee (RFEC), made up of representatives from both nations and recently corporations participating in the creation of the settlement. Upon the request of Fortunan representatives, the claim is named Nuova Aspiria after the Aspirian Isles. As of present day, there are currently 680 Aspirians within the territory. Although not official, four factions hold the largest amount of influence in Nuova Aspiria.

The Settlers of Nuova Aspiria (SNA) refers to the group of settlers who arrived to the territory with the hope to separate themselves from Fortuna and Rosalica, potentially forming an independent Rotantican state. In total, there are 386 settlers. Administering the region is the Governor’s Office which oversees land distribution, regional politics, and exploration. The governor is elected by the settlers with the current governor being Benjamin Sneiders. The faction is further divided into guilds which consists of settlers of like minded goals and occupations. The Expeditionary Guild of Nuova Aspiria is a group of explorers and adventurers who pride themselves in quickly adapting to the new environment of Rotantica and oftenly are hired to lead expeditions. The Settlers Guild of Nuova Aspiria consists of farmers and homesteaders who own large swathes of land with the hope to clear the heavily forested territory and cultivate it. The Manufacturers Guild of Nuova Aspiria is the collection of workers that are employed in industrial sectors. Finally, the Militias Guild of Nuova Aspiria refers to the volunteer militia group of the region with many settlers signed up to be members in case of emergencies.

Terine Industries is the Fortunan corporation brought in by RFEC to build the spacecraft needed to cross the ice wall, build the base of the new settlement, and are in charge of supplying Nuova Aspiria. Placed in charge of the Terine Industries Rotantican Holdings (TIRH) is Manager Marco Faraldo. There are currently 232 Terine Industries personnel in Nuova Aspiria. TIRH is mainly made up of two subdivisions: Terine Management Division and Terine Logistics Division. Terine Industries also hired a private military company, Red Shield Security Agency, to provide security. They also were brought in by the SNA to serve as law enforcement whenever necessary. With little to no restrictions, Terine Industries holds major power and influence in the settlement, especially to the dismay of the SNA.

The scientific marvel of Rotantica immediately gained the attention of the scientific community in Fortuna and Rosalica once it was made aware to them. To discover, research, and categorize the many wonders of this new world, the RFEC allowed access of the territory to two associations: the Fortunan Science and Engineering Department (FSED) and the Rosalican Institute of Science (RIS). In Nuova Aspiria, there are currently 33 FSED personnel and 29 RIS personnel. In charge of the research branches in Nuova Aspiria are FSED Director Luciano Biagi and RIS Director Erna Kollen. They are often found roaming the lands of Nuova Aspiria and are responsible for the building of the exploration camp Talbo, the largest settlement outside of Monado. They are often at odds with the other factions and at times with each other as they race to make new discoveries for their respective nations.

[spoiler]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/download/file.php?id=603441
I’ll leave it up to you to make it prettier (or uglier).
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Note: I would like to shrink my claim. The new southern border of New Emerald Coast is the red line on this map. The settlement will move in accordance to the helpful arrow on the diagram.

Nation Name: Grand Dominion of Nyvera Kanskusta and Nieuw Korsland

Cities:
Marihaven (Capital City)
Prinsdok (town)
Pietersfort (camp)

Demonym: Vistari, Kankut, Korsaric
Language: Vistarian, Noorvic, Valrikian, Kolonital
Species: Human and Elves
Population: ~6942
ISO 3166 Code: KVC, INT, KNK

Currently caught up with claims (minus a few clarifications) and ready for more! :slight_smile:

Nation Name: Tawusian Rotantic Territory

Cities:
Nuova Noutest (City) 
Mantienni (Settlement) 
Campo-Una (Research camp)
Campo-Due (Prospecting camp)

Demonym: Tawusian
Language: Tawusian

Species: 80/20 - Human/Lupine
Population: approx. 4,800
Formation: 2019
ISO 3166 code: TAW

https://imgur.com/a/lb2I3Vy

Nation Name: ASTER Rotantica (Aster = Axdelian Scientific Territories for Exploration and Research)

Cities:
Lapytia:
Lapyta (Capital Town, pop 2182) 
Aeqa (Settlement), pop 1120)
Teros (Camp, pop 487)
Nix (Camp, pop 253)

Ueclidia:
Kassarii (Settlement, pop 1404)
Riian (Camp, pop 519)

Narmer:
Nazure (Camp, pop 732) 
Tabris (Camp, pop 126)

Demonym: Axdelian, Asterian
Language: Axdan, Staynish

Species: Human/Lupine - 70/30
Population: 6823
Formation: 2020
ISO 3166 code: AXD

History:

The Norogradian government became aware of Urth’s nature with its space program established during the AIW. Post war, the country was involved in the dissemination of a cover up story claiming Kevatuul exploded in orbit after use, polluting low orbit with a significant amount of debris that made commercial spaceflight risky. After recovering from the war, Norograd pursued advances in rocketry, collaborating with other nations for the purpose of developing stations and transfer vehicles capable of supporting a permanent population in the habitable lands beyond the wall. The collapse of Norograd in 1996 was a tense moment for nations involved in the cover-up given how much information they had accrued over the decades. Thus a series of covert interventions ensured that the new pan-Axdelian government would be compliant with the accords, and would continue to support ongoing projects.

In 2010, Axdel began the ASTER project, with probes and small teams preparing landing sites for potential use in settlements. Assaying surrounding soils and rock, investigating local flora and fauna, and experimenting with growing crops. Overall these efforts were very small scale though, given colonisation would likely not occur until 2035.

After the release in 2020, there was a schism within the Axdelian government between those who supported the release of information by Cluster-Serenetech, and those who opposed it, resulting in a bloodless coup in which many officials which were involved in managing the ASTER project were ousted and replaced, and a shift in Axdelian foreign policy occurred. Whilst not openly denounced, Axdel distanced itself from Cluster-Serenetech. They officially began colonisation of three sites between the Beta and Gamma Sectors, refusing to establish territory in Alpha or within the CSSP. and may seek closer cooperation with other colonies nearby. The local governments of the colonies are democratic, but ultimately answer to Axdel.

[spoiler]https://static.miraheze.org/tepwiki/8/86/Aster.png
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[spoiler]https://static.miraheze.org/tepwiki/3/30/Aster_Rotantica.png
Currently, Ueclidia borders Nov Tolinsk to its South West, and Lapytia borders the Tawusian Rotantic Territory to its South.
An XCF can be provided if desired.
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Just to clarify something real quick for future claimants, the map of Rotantica doesn’t use a capital marker, so you need to specify where it falls on the scale below as well.
(A good example is Pagi’s claim above)

Hi yes I’d like to add the Nyvorp Camp to the map (Pop: 98) as well as display my more accurate population stats for Kanskusta & Nieuw Korsland

Total of the Grand Dominion: 7,040
Dominion of Kanskusta: 4,299
Marihaven: 3,884 (Kankut City))
Dominion of Nieuw Korsland: 2761
Prinsdok: 2,663 (Korsaric Town)
Pietersfort: 415 (Kanskut Camp)
Nyvorp: 98 (Korsaric Camp)

Nation Name: Patriarchal Theocracy of Heligeland (Condominion of Asendavia and Gransrik)

Cities:
Nekirka (Town, Capital)

Demonym: Helic, Geansmer, Asendavian
Language: Geansmeric, Asendavian

Species: Primarily Human, Minority Dwarves and Ursines
Population: 2,140
Formation: 2021
ISO 3166 code: HGL

OH SHIT IT’S A DOUBLE CLAIM AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA


Nation Name: New Salovia (also Tuvaltastan’s two colonies of Chrdiloeti and Samkhreti)

Flag: https://static.miraheze.org/tepwiki/3/32/Salovia_flag_png.png

Cities (See Map ;P)
Demonym: Salovian, Tuvalt (only within Samkhreti and Chrdiloeti)
Language: Salovian, Codexian, and Staynish
Species: Primarily Human, some Elves and Vulpines
Population: NS- approx. 3,000; Tuvalt Colonies- 1,500
Formation: 2018
ISO 3166 code: NESA and TUV

Nation Name: South Hills Rotantic States of New Meldan, The Zone, North Alpha Canal Zone, Gamma Territory, and Beta Territory

Flag: https://static.miraheze.org/tepwiki/f/fd/Shflag.PNG

Cities (Also on Map <3)
Demonym: Meldanian
Language: Codexian
Species: Predominantly human
Population: approx. 24,750
Formation: 2018
ISO 3166 code: SHRS or UCCS