St. Ark National Democratic Forces

== About ==
The St. Ark National Democratic Forces (Pelkian-Lithuanian: Šv. Arkos Nacionalinės Demokratinės Pajėgos) were a resistance group in the St. Ark Federation. SANDF was founded in 1979 after Frederick Goldlock overthrew the democratically elected government in a coup d'etat, assuming position as leader and suspending parliament. SANDF was not one massive resistance group, instead, it was rather more of an alliance comprised of other smaller resistance groups which formed after the establishment of the military government. SANDF's motives vary upon most of the resistance groups which were in SANDF's leadership, but its goals were clear, to overthrow Frederick Goldlock's government, and restore a democratic government in the country once again.
During its peak, which was in the 1980s, the St. Ark National Democratic Forces had over an estimated 620,000 resistance fighters, which were active mostly in regions in the north, where most of St. Ark's cities and urbanized areas were located. The resistance group initially gained significant victories against the St. Ark Military Government, and had even seized the city of Montrois, which was near the capital city of Heightsbound. They continued to occupy a significant portion of the country for atleast two years, until Frederick Goldlock launched an offensive against SANDF, forcing them out of the cities from the north and putting most of the SANDF-controlled cities under their control. 
SANDF had dwindled to over around 43,000 resistance members by 1983, and by 1984 had greatly dwindled to over 25,000. The St. Ark National Democratic Front held its last stand in the Battle for Wheelerville and EInbend, before the last of its active resistance units were destroyed by the St. Ark Armed Forces in 1984. Remnants of SANDF continued to struggle against the military government, even influencing active cells of resistance such as the New Shingleton Resistance, but after the collapse of the military government, SANDF actively disbanded, with most of its remaining fighters returning to normal lives after the decade long fight.
== Background ==
In the year of 1978, 2 years after the end of the Federation War which forced the St. Ark Federation to capitulate, political dissidents and their supporters began demonstrations in Heightsbound, demanding Rodney to step down from power. This was however put down in a brutal massacre, as Rodney's government soon deployed the National Guard to the city, killing over hundreds of protestors which brought a violent end to the Heightsbound Riots. Rodney soon declared a state of emergency in the country, and soon restricted information coming from the Federation's media outlets, and soon blamed the incidents in Heightsbound on traitors, who were actively infiltrating the country and bringing it down within its knees, prompting Rodney to initiate a purge within the country. In reality, it was an attempt to rid of many of Rodney's political enemies.
In the aftermath, it was only put to an abrupt stop. It soon culminated in a series of riots which rocked the entire country as it spread to the cities. Hadshellad, Jefferson City, Hainesbend and Jahresville were beginning to witness riots occurring throughout most of their cities, and soon spread nationwide, albeit mostly in the north. Law enforcement in the country were greatly overwhelmed, and soon their law and order collapsed as the second wave of the Heightsbound Riots continued to rip the country apart. Rodney soon refused to step down, including his government, continuing to crackdown on the large scale riots which were happening throughout all of the country. Rodney's cult of personality was utilized to crackdown on the rioters in several of these cities too. The riots had gotten too severe, and soon the St. Ark Military Police and the National Guard took action, firing the first shots in Hainesbend where hundreds more died. This prompted rioters to attack local police departments in several cities.
=== St. Thomas Incident (1979) ===
As the riots reached into 1979, and massacres had become largely common during the riots, rioters would then launch attacks towards police departments across the affected cities, in which the police departments responded by heavily defending and deploying more reinforcements to defend these police departments. The responses were effective, but at a large cost of killing over hundreds and possibly thousands of rioters who attempted to storm these local police departments. Some groups tried for dozens of times in some cities, but the worst of them all was in the city of St. Thomas, which would eventually become the epicenter of the armed revolution. On midnight, after hundreds of people died storming the police department located in the city center, the personnel attempting to defend these police departments had been heavily exhausted and traumatized, and severely weakened. Because of this, the next storming arrived, which picked off most of them with ease, immediately storming the police department in St. Thomas. Media coverage on the situation spread globally, as rioters stormed in and damaged a majority of the equipment, and possessing firearms. This was a breaking point for the Heightsbound Riots, as now rioters had possessed firearms. This would immediately lead to a majority of rioters storming police departments once again, with the last one falling in Jefferson days later.
After rifles and weapons were seized by the rioters, it did not take long for the military morale to drop instantly, and as a result, some of the St. Ark Armed Forces began defecting to the side of the rioters, along with those from the St. Ark Military Police. This then resulted in Rodney Faron Lenn and those loyal to him to only control a few dozen cities which had not been affected by the riots. Authority in the rest of the cities collapsed, and some who continued to fight against rioters were then forced to abandon their equipment in the city, allowing for some to seize convoys, and even military equipment. As Rodney Faron Lenn and his government was informed of the incident, Rodney Faron Lenn was completely at a loss. He soon later on discussed that he would admit his defeat, but refused to step down and would stay in power until his death. This then made further problems, as armed rioters had arrived at the capital city of Heightsbound. That following night, something unexpected had happened.
=== Coup d'etat and Fred Goldlock's rise to power (1979) ===
During the night when Heightsbound was besieged by rebels, Fred Goldlock, a commander within the St. Ark Armed Forces, who was brought back into the army due to the Heightsbound Riots in 1978, had admitted that he had failed to quell down the riots, and realized that his attempts to defend Rodney Faron Lenn and his government had failed. As a result of this, he would proceed to initiate a purge without the knowledge of Rodney Faron Lenn, in which he had generals and even some of his colleagues executed. He then had the military in Heightsbound to be directed to the presidential office, including parliament and government offices, and had them surrounded. The next day, they were stormed, and state funded media in the city were controlled aswell. As those who arrived to the city knew what was going on, Fred Goldlock and his army had the support of his own people, and Rodney Faron Lenn was eventually overthrown and strangled by military personnel. The next day, Fred Goldlock issued a statement declaring that Rodney Faron Lenn was overthrown, and that he would place himself as the leader for the temporary administration. This was however, the beginning to his true intentions, to become the sole leader of a country and reign terror on his own people and to fulfill his agenda. A 10 year martial law was also in place, lasting until 1989.
=== Federation Civil War (1979 - 1984) ===
See also: St. Ark National Democratic ForcesAfter the coup d'etat, the St. Ark Federation was still in a chaotic state even after Rodney Faron Lenn was brutally overthrown by the military. Unfortunately, it came to realization that Fred Goldlock did not allow a peaceful transition of power to the country's politicians, and instead dissolved the transitional government and established a military government under his own supervision. With the promises being broken, politicians, including government officials, would condemn and lash out against Fred Goldlock and his new administration. This however, resulted in Fred Goldlock responding by purging nearly all of them, and dozens were killed in the process while some disappeared. Because of this, the resistance began turning their backs on the St. Ark Armed Forces, and launching dozens of attacks in retaliation. After Fred Goldlock had purged the country of politicians which had disobeyed him, some members of parliament, which survived the purge along with government officials, would then together help form a resistance group aimed at overthrowing Fred Goldlock's military government. Known as the St. Ark National Democratic Forces, or SANDF for short, it would be a resistance movement which would continue resisting against Fred Goldlock and the St. Ark Armed Forces. With the rebels now equipped with military equipment, and weapons, conflict eventually began, beginning the events of the Federation Civil War, between the St. Ark National Democratic Forces, with over almost 400,000 rebels, and the St. Ark Armed Forces, with possibly around 500,000 personnel.
Several days after the founding of the St. Ark National Democratic Forces, the resistance movement called for all civilians in the country to arm themselves and wage a war for the restoration of democracy on the country. Civilians, which had been violently oppressed by Fred Goldlock's martial law, began taking up arms with the help of resistance groups in several cities, and joined the resistance movement. In the city of St. Thomas, the epicenter of the movement, the majority of resistance there joined the St. Ark National Democratic Forces, and over a total of almost 400,000 joined the resistance. The following day, the St. Ark National Democratic Forces launched their first attack, beginning the first fight in the Federation Civil War, by attacking National Guard units stationed in St. Thomas and several cities, this was later on known as the Catastrophe, in which nearly 200,000 National Guard personnel had died. In the aftermath, the St. Ark National Democratic Forces would gain popularity and support within the country, and those from the National Guard and the St. Ark Armed Forces began defecting on their side. Some units were trained and then taught combat tactics, which further improved their performance.
The St. Ark National Democratic Forces grew in sheer size, as some began taking up more arms. As their numbers grew, so did their influence across the country. This gradually overwhelmed Fred Goldlock's rule over the country, and hampered his efforts to consolidate his power over the country. The St. Ark National Democratic Forces would seize major cities, such as St. Thomas, Jahresville, and Hainesbend. It was also on the verge of besieging the capital city of Heightsbound, in which SANDF earned support from countries in the west. Heightsbound however, was saved by the St. Ark Armed Forces, and over half their personnel and equipment were lost by their efforts to capture the capital city. This gradually led the resistance movement to decline, and would lead Fred Goldlock and his government to victory, as he launched a military operation which saw a majority of the cities captured by SANDF liberated by the St. Ark Armed Forces. The St. Ark National Democratic Forces continued to dwindle, and most of their organized units had been destroyed and were captured by the military. The resistance movement further dwindled, as the leadership were mostly killed, leaving some rebels without leadership or organization. Some units were then reduced to a shell of their former selves, only in several remaining pockets of resistance located beside Mount Cromwell. They continued to control smaller towns and highways in the rural countryside, but some had been already recaptured.
== Remaining influence ==
Since the St. Ark National Democratic Forces had dwindled in size, and being constantly cornered by St. Ark troops, with Fred Goldlock succeeding in his counter offensive, the SANDF resistance movement was on the brink of disintegrating, with little to no proper leadership and a lack of manpower. However, there was a little glimmer of hope for the resistance movement, and it would be shifting their focus on the rural countryside in St. Ark, including Mount Cromwell. Because of the harsh terrain and weather like conditions, it gave them spots to hide in, and several strongholds in Mount Cromwell and rural areas were constructed, willing to carry on the resistance movement once they had took enough time to reorganize and strike again. However, there was one major setback, due to the lack of communication, several units from SANDF units seperated, and as a result they were unorganized and often isolated to the point they would spend over 30 days for accomplishments by rebels.
=== Dimitri's Forest Roads ===
In the years between 1980 and 1983, some of the last organized units in SANDF were destroyed as a result of the St. Ark Armed Forces counter offensive, leaving only one organized unit left remaining, as a result, the organized unit would constantly migrate into temporary strongholds, where they would ambush convoys which had hampered Fred Goldlock's efforts to stabilize the countryside, however they were still struggling to find another area where there was no influence. However, when they were surveying the locations beside Mount Cromwell, they stumbled upon an abandoned town called Dimitri's Forest Roads, which had no signs of life, and after some had scattered across the town, there were no signs of the St. Ark military, including no signs of any civilians in the town. They eventually came to conclusion that the town was completely empty, and it became the perfect place for the unit to rest. Overnight, the town underwent major rebuilding, and the town was turned into a living fortress. The unit had gradually recovered after settling in, but they weren't prepared to fight once again. They also had dug several tunnels leading in and outside of the town as supply routes, and underground shelters and holdouts were constructed under the town.
== Battle of Dimitri's Forest Roads ==
However, despite their safe location and surroundings, their stronghold would later on would be revealed to the St. Ark military. Over miles away from Dimitri's Forest Roads, there was another town which was located south of their stronghold, which was properly functioning and only a thousand residents continued to live in it, although they had struggled for years, the remaining SANDF leadership did not do a proper survey of the area surrounding them, and as a result they were in complete grave danger if they did not decide to leave as soon as possible, however, the leadership had declined, and claimed that the village located nearby did not pose a threat to them. However, a few days afterwards, three men, who worked as scavengers to earn for a living, had planned to walk miles away to Dimitri's Forest Roads, and began their journey, however, the next day, only one returned to the town heavily injured. As he tried to explain the situation to the nearby police department, he had described that he along with two other men approached an abandoned town near their location, suspecting it to be a fraud, the local police department sent a few sheriffs to inspect the area, only for them to not show up a few days later, then, they proceeded to send more sheriffs, in which some of them were found shot in the head inside their own vehicle, once the local department sent even more sheriffs.
Suspecting rebel activity after the local police department had realized most of the groups they had sent did not reeturn back, the local police department had called the military to report signs of rebel activity, and as a result several convoys belonging to the St. Ark military arrived to the town, and drove up north where they were ambushed by rebels, the majority of the soldiers were crucified infront of the former town hall. As the convoys had mysteriously disappeared out of nowhere, the St. Ark military then proceeded to send thousands of personnel to the abandoned town, where they were suddenly attacked by more rebels, as a result, they began retreating, and reported it to the command, and the highway leading to the area was then temporarily closed and destroyed beyond use. Artillery was then used in the clash and the abandoned town was bombarded nearly for days. Weeks later, Fred Goldlock began his preparation for an operation to take over the town and destroy the last organized rebel forces, and the following day the Battle of Dimitri's Forest Roads began, and so was the fate for the factions.
=== Canon Scenario ===
In the year of 1984, Fred Goldlock's final offensive against the St. Ark National Democratic Forces in Dimitri's Forest Roads began, and a massed attack by St. Ark troops weakened and overwhelmed rebel outposts, forcing resistance to retreat from the outskirts and into the town, after more heavy battles and clashes ensued in the winter, it eventually led to a stalemate, and the situation exhausted thousands of troops stationed in the winter. Finally, after weeks of heavy clashes, SANDF units in the frontlines were wiped out by mortar, and government forces marched into the center of the town, and tanks including vehicles rolled into the town center, officially marking the capture of the last rebel held territory. The remaining SANDF units which survived the wipeout, attempted to retreat northwest out of the town into Mount Cromwell where they aimed to establish a stronghold, but they were ambushed by government forces with the remaining survivors either shot by government forces or starved to death. In the aftermath of the defeat, Fred Goldlock issued a statement on national television that he had now finally secured his control over the country and continued his police of the 10 year martial law, including the creation of a new society. It also marked the beginning of Fred Goldlock consolidating his power, and reign of terror over the country for decades to come.
=== Alternative Scenario ===
In the year of 1984, Fred Goldlock's massive final offensive began, officially beginning the Battle of Dimitri's Forest Roads. This time, before they could potentially begin a surprise attack on the rebels, rebel forces properly secured their outposts and located possible potential attacks, in which it resulted in the deaths of hundreds of government forces. A mass attack, which involved over a hundred rebel forces occurred, and artillery, which was stolen, was used to shell the nearby town at their approximate location, resulting in the commander of the offensive being killed as a result of the battle, as a result of heavy loss, government forces were forced to retreat and deserted, betraying the military command and began collapsing in the process. In the aftermath of the war, several groups from the living fortress hijacked several radio towers nearby, announcing a decisive victory over the battle.
In the aftermath of the offensive which had failed, Fred Goldlock was completely devastated by the total loss, and he would eventually execute many of his generals in the process. Because of this, the St. Ark National Democratic Forces would continue its democratic revolution against the military government, and might potentially pose a threat to Fred Goldlock's regime, and the Federation Civil War would continue to rage on for years to come. If the alternative scenario happened, then the events of New Shingleton would have not occurred, and since stability decreased ever since SANDF won, it would be likely that the rebels would make a great resurgence and eventually takeover the country and establish democratic rule in the country once again.
== Aftermath ==
In the aftermath of the Battle of Dimitri's Forest Roads, the St. Ark National Democratic Forces ceased to exist as a resistance movement, and as a result the Federation Civil War had ended, in which Fred Goldlock began rebuilding the country from the ground up. Although it had been completely destroyed in the battle, remnants of the St. Ark National Democratic Forces continued to exist, although most of them were located in Mount Cromwell or otherwise rural areas which were hard to reach by government forces. Most of these remaining strongholds located in Mount Cromwell were isolated, and unorganized, and the majority of resistance members would not return to society for another 5 years. Although the military had wanted to destroy the remaining remnants of SANDF, Fred Goldlock denied any efforts to destroy the remnants, as they had been gradually weakened to the point they had not posed a threat to his regime.
In the aftermath of the democratic revolution in 1989, which resulted in the overthrow and execution of Fred Goldlock and the destruction of the military government, SANDF's motives were fulfilled, and a democratic government was established in the St. Ark Federation for the first time in 10 years, however, the democratic government was unstable, which resulted in the constitutional crisis in 1995. After the revolution in 1989, and the ending of the Cold War, remnants of the St. Ark National Democratic Forces in Mount Cromwell were advised by authorities to disarm themselves, and the St. Ark National Democratic Forces officially ceased to exist. The resistance members underwent rehabilitation and treatment in medical facilities. Later on, former commanders of the strongholds, later on had wished to carry on the legacy of SANDF, and in the year of 2000, the National Democratic Prosperity Party was established, later on called the NDPP, which served as a political party still existing to this day.
== Legacy ==
Although originally a resistance movement founded by former members of parliament who went under constant controversy for unconditionally supporting the passing of economic laws, the St. Ark National Democratic Forces held a great legacy within the St. Ark Federation. It had inspired dozens to continue and carry on democracy till death, and a democratic movement in the St. Ark Federation would continue for over 10 years thanks to the resistance movement. It had also inspired the beginning of the democratic revolution in 1989, which involved the overthrow of Fred Goldlock.
Several other resistance movements, such as the New Shingleton resistance movement, aimed to restore democracy in the St. Ark Federation, was inspired by the St. Ark National Democratic Forces, and would later on become a threat by Fred Goldlock and his regime.
== Flags ==
Over the years of its existence, the St. Ark National Democratic Forces had used a variety of different flags in the course of the Federation Civil War, this came up with several variations of flags, but two were known as the infamous known flags for the St. Ark National Democratic Forces.
=== St. Ark National Democratic Forces flag ===
The St. Ark National Democratic Forces flag, also known as the SANDF flag, was the official flag of the resistance movement, and the most widely used flag for resistance during the Federation Civil War. It involved a white flag, with the name of the resistance movement placed in an orange text. It would later on be seen in the game, the Battle of Dimitri's Forest Roads. This flag would also become synonymous for the movement.
=== Flag of the St. Ark Federation ===
Although SANDF resistance flew their own flag during the course of the Federation Civil War, in some cases, the St. Ark National Democratic forces would also use the old flag of the St. Ark Federation, which had been used from 1957 to 1979. It became known as the democratic flag, and became synonymous for freedom and democracy in the country. It involved a blue and black flag, with the symbol of the Federation placed in the middle of the flag. It would become widely used aswell, although in some cases they would use the main flag.
== Gallery ==