Altis

The island of **Altis**, previously known as **Limnos**, was once a British colony in the 20th century. It gained its independence in 2003 and served as an important joint Altian and Hellenic Air Force base in the Mediterranean. Altis is still partially inhabited by a fraction of the original ethnic Greek populace. When the citizens of Limnos were granted complete independence from Greek influence, the Hellenic Armed Forces turned over much of the control to the newly established AAF. By 2031, the AAF was the sole defense force protecting the island republic. The island bears many scars of the fierce battles between Altian Armed Forces and the Freedom and Independence Army in the early 2030's. In summer 2035, the large airfield and adjacent military facilities served as a base for a fairly large Iranian force supporting a large military compound, designated Objective-Omega, and an aerial radar station covering Mediterranean and partial Agean airspace. After the rebellion led by Devon, the island is controlled by the New Altian Army, led by "Swallow".

## Geography

Altis, spreading over an area of 270 square kilometers, is situated in the Mediterranean Sea (35.71, 16.12), and is a strategic location for defense of the Aegean and Ionian Seas. The terrain of its North-Western territory is remarkably uneven, gradually lowering Eastwards into the flatlands; its highest peaks reach almost 400 meters above sea level. The island’s climate is Mediterranean, with particularly strong winds and average temperatures, slightly colder than Greek mainland, mild winters with the occasional seasonal snowfall. The highest peak is Thronos with 350 meters above sea level.

The most inhabited and developed areas can be found on the South-West of the island. The current population (excluding military personnel) is partially scattered amongst the isolated farms and villages, estimated to be approximately 44,000 people.

## History

The island played a vital role for many cultures throughout history, with many traces of antique history to be found across the island. Limnos became particularly important to Allied troops during the Gallipoli campaign and later in 1918, when the armistice between the Allies and the Ottoman Empire was signed in the city of Moudros.

In 2020-2030, the island was defended by a weakened contingent of the Altian Armed Forces, elements of which successfully repelled FIA attacks for several years. The island has since been occupied by the Iranian Armed Forces, United States Armed Forces, Hellenic Armed Forces, and the New Altian Army.

During the 2030's, some of the Altian and Greek troops established a resistance movement covertly backed by Israel, despite the Jerusalem Cease-Fire, which intended to prevent CSAT involvement in the Mediterranean theatre. In 2035, the AAF turned against NATO for unknown reasons and allowed a regiment of CSAT to "reinforce" it's assets in the region, but in reality the regiment was there to shore up defenses around the island, most likely to defend the secret projects that they were working on. At this moment of time, the FIA were at an all-time low. While they had more public and local support than ever before, their numbers and supplies were rapidly dwindling. Eventually, through the efforts of the FIA and NATO survivors, a NATO task force lands on the island and begins pushing the AAF back. One month later, the AAF has been pushed back to the eastern half of Altis. NATO forces capture Pyrgos, the capital city, and begun pushing AAF to the South-East and North-East, while their CSAT allies retreat to the far North-East. Over the course of the next four months, the AAF suffered defeat after defeat until being pushed back to the Sofran Peninsula. However, in a desperate attempt to keep their experiments a secret, CSAT launched a devastating counter-attack against NATO forces. Many NATO soldiers were killed and captured within the first few hours, but many soldiers were either left behind or had to hide with the FIA remnants. The world was stunned by CSAT's sudden offensive and NATO was caught off guard when civil wars broke out along many small nations around the border of CSAT nation-states and no one foresaw the CSAT declaration of war against all of NATO and the subsequent invasion of Israel. [START HERE PARKER, IGNORE DEVON] Across the Mediterranean, NATO began preparations to retake the island; however, they did not wish to directly engage with CSAT knowing that it would cause a global war. Instead they partnered with the CIA and inserted them into Altis in the hopes of starting a proxy rebellion to overthrow the AAF and allow NATO to recover the vital staging area. As time went on