Kingdom of Wittenland



A nation of unicorns, magic and parties, Wittenland is proud of its meritocracy, where leaders are selected by magical talent, not bloodline. Its ancient traditions of magical scholarship and mountain castles have defended against griffons and ponies alike for centuries. But times are changing, and the lavish parties of Wittenland hide its archaic economy and oppressed feudal serfs. The current Queen and Reformer-in-Chief, White Star must navigate the intrigues of Wittenland politics if she wishes to bring change to this stagnant nation.

Lore
Wittenland is an ancient land, long the home of unicorn spellcasters who have enjoyed the seclusion and bounty of its mountains and plains.

Founding and Early Years
Wittenland is the oldest nation of the Riverlands, with the High Kingdom stretching from the Egysic Forest to the southern coastline long before Lakeish and Rijekan ponies had even settled there. Powerful unicorn mages lived and ruled there, who's mastery of the arcane was unrivaled. But over the years, it slowly faded into irrelevance as the mages became a decadent aristocratic nobility, the nation becoming a backwards realm as other unicorns, pegasi and earth ponies were forced into serfdom.

Though it has come under attack many times, it was conquered only once in approximately 66 BLB by Grand Prince Blessed Sword of the Lake City, becoming part of his River Empire - the Greater Principality of Eastern Ponies. It would be a part of this empire for centuries, until it broke free, led by King Haysil II at the forefront of deer mercenaries from a distant land. These deer were rewarded with the south-eastern peninsula, becoming the nation now known as Austurland.

However, even with new independence the decline of Wittenland continued. The southern coast was quickly overrun by pirates and barbarians. Ponaidhean's tribes, who were long subjects of the High Kingdom eventually broke free and became independent. However, one of the most memorable loses came in 807, with the war over Coltstream.

The Loss of Coltstream
Whilst Lake City battled the crusades of the  Griffonian Empire. the River Republicgrew to become the great power of the Riverlands, relying on the immense trade wealth brought by Rijekograd. With wealth, and their rival distracted, their Princess Wild Water hired mercenaries from Diamond Mountain and  Nimbusia to invade Wittenland, attempting to take Coltstream and monopolise the valuable river trade.

Her invasion was successful, capturing Coltstream. Emboldened, she pressed on into Wittenland, advancing on it's ancient castles. The unicorns of Wittenland made her pay for every inch of territory. Even as her forces dwindled, she pressed on to the fortress of High Mane.

The battle was narrow but decisive. High Mane was breached, and Wild Water herself charged in, where she was thrown from the ramparts by the Fortress Commander herself. Three of her four daughters, Velvet, Lily, and Rose also met their end to assassins, the chaos of war, and the final assault on the fortress.

With their forces smashed, the Wittenlanders launched a counter-offensive, recapturing their losses. But they found Coltstream manned and defended by fresh militias and the regrouped armies, and could not retake it.

Despite terrible losses, the River Republic had won. Coltstream was theirs. However the Royal Line was devastated, and the last remaining Princess, Soft Water, died childless. In her will she instructed that her mother's mad ambition never be repeated - Rijekograd would become a Republic, accountable to its ponies, not to its ambitions. Yet, it never returned Coltstream, much to the chagrin of the Wittenlanders.

Wittenland's Decline
With the loss of Coltstream, Wittenland lost much of its trading income. Already mired in tradition, it sunk into stagnancy. The seeds of distrust were sown in the Kingdom, and so when the Treaty of Coltstream was created and the River Coalition along with it in 898, Wittenland declined to join. It was only when griffon cossacks from the Gryphian Host managed to burn Ivanhorn to the ground that the Kingdom joined its fellow ponies in the Riverlands, though it did little to cease the attacks.

This worsened even further in 967, when Count Ambrosius broke away from the Kingdom with dark magic, creating the Barrad Magocracy. The land grew dark and twisted, draining and consuming the ponies of Wittenland who attempted to step near.

The ponies of Wittenland vowed never to let such a mistake repeat, and even the slightest suspicion of dark magic is dealt with harshly.

Queen White Star
Time passed, and the world outside began to press. New inventions, new ideas, and news began to percolate into Wittenland. An educated and ambitious noble, White Star saw an opportunity. Seizing on an atmosphere of change, White Star maneuvered skillfully through Wittenland's complex politics, drawing on the power of a growing middle class, the gifts of the new world and the support of other ambitious young nobles hungry for change.

Ascending to the throne after challenging the old corrupt king and forcing him to step down, she embarked on an ambitious series of reforms, loosening the holds of the ancient feudal system, which bound serfs to its land for life, and protected incompetent nobles from having their lands bought out or out-competed by their more efficient peers.

She toured the country, telling ponies that any could achieve greatness, and the need for Wittenland to return to its ancient meritocratic roots.

Years have turned to decades, and White Star pushes on, somewhat jaded but determined. Yet the changes are not enough, and a strong reactionary movement of conservatives, has arisen, led by the venerable Lord Wulfric.

Can Wittenland adapt to this new future? Or will the ancient land of Wittenland become a footnote in history?

Starting Situation
Wittenland starts in a safe position, with a simple army of 6 divisions comprising of around 41k ponies. As a part of the River Coalition, it can call upon the alliance in a defensive action, and it is unusual for neighbors to gain war goals - only a Princely Restoration in Lake City or Communist  River Republic pose a significant threat.

Outside of the River Coalition are Wittenland's two rivals - the Barrad Magocracy and the  Gryphian Host. Neither should pose too much challenge for a skilled player, allowing for expansion, a rarity in the River Coalition.

Wittenland begins the game with a poor industrial and scientific base, but tolerable national spirits. With careful management, the nation can use its magic speciality to become a powerful nation within the River Coalition.

National Focus
The Wittenland focus tree has 4 sections (from left to right) - military, political, economic, and the shared River Federation tree.

Political Focuses
Wittenland's Political focuses can be divided into two segments - External Threats, which deals with Barrad Magocracy and the Gryphian Host, and The Springfield Festival / Advanced Enchanting, which deal with Queen White Star's political reforms, unlocked at the end by The Duel.

External Threats - These focuses offer war goals on Barrad Mageocracy and the Gryphian Host. The Barrad Mageocracy should offer little challenge and comfortably add some factories to Wittenland. The Gryphian Host presents a strong industrial base - timing is important. Waiting too long may see it swallow up or be swallowed up by Griffon Liberation Army.

The Springfield Festival / Advanced Enchanting - These focuses offer little in substantial rewards, but are required to progress Queen White Star's political reforms, removing the Unicorn Parties spirit and allowing the adoption of new political ideologies and war goals inside the River Coalition. However, as the Unicorn Parties spirit is not excessively punishing, players may wish to pursue other goals first.

The Duel
The Duel is the final focus in the political tree.



Merchant Captain Honoria, a former serf freed by Queen White Star, challenges Queen White Star for the throne. She desires to bring about a new era of Greater Wittenland, where all Unicorns are free to realize their true potentials. Due to the meddling of Lord Wulfric, what is normally a honorable non-lethal duel becomes a duel to the death. The ensuing duel leads to three outcomes.

The duel will hinge on how both parties spend magic. White Star burning her magic wastefully will lead to her loss, and the same for Honoria. If both parties use similar amounts of magic, both will die, and Wulfric claims the throne for himself, and begins to roll back White Star's progressive policies. This starts a civil war between Lord Wulfric and the former serfs of Wittenland, leading to the Communist path.

At present, all paths gain ways to go to war over Coltstream, however, the player will likely face the combined might of the River Coalition, making it a non-attractive option to take.

Economic Focuses
Wittenland's economic focuses provide a quick boost in civilian and military factories, but the true reason to pursue this tree is to achieve the Peasant Reformation Act, which begins the process of removing Wittenland's crippling industrial base, and leads to an extra research slot and improvement in science base.

Also notable is Assembly Line Manufacturing, which provides Production Efficiency Cap.

Military Focuses
The military focus tree offers the 4 standard doctrinal paths. All paths feature a variety of tech speed bonuses and minor buffs. All paths conclude with The New Wittenland Standing Army, which improves Mountaineers. Other notable features include:
 * Mass Assault -  recruitable population
 * Mobile Warfare - 2 military factories
 * Superior Firepower - 2 military factories, soft attack to magical weapons
 * Grand Battleplan - 14 steel, max entrenchment

Staff and Designers
Political Advisors

Tank Designer

Ship Designer

Aircraft Designer

Materiel Designer

Industrial Concern

Theorist

Chief of Army

Chief of Navy

Chief of Airforce

Military High Command