The Fifth Reich

## Introduction

The Fifth Reich is also known as the Kingdom of Verdun, the seat of the small nation's capital. Like the Empire of Virginia, the Fifth Reich is ruled by a monarchy though theirs is not elective and instead completely hereditary. Royals are subjected to a strict, selective breeding program that does incorporate hand chosen peasantry at times when the royal gene pool is in danger of incest. Their worlds have been historically ravaged by war repeatedly and their culture shows it.
Initially, the Fifth Reich's worlds were inhabited solely by humans who had fled the Nell invasion of Earth in generational starships; believing that their homeworld was doomed. Those colonists inevitably died and their descendants landed first on Verdun, a world with a lush tropical climate full of life and hidden dangers.

They were ill prepared for their landing and much of the knowledge of Earth had been lost in several accidents that damaged their historical records as well as their scientific records. In an effort to protect themselves from hostile wildlife, and under the belief that a Nell invasion of their own world would inevitably follow, industry was prioritized over all else and soldiers were armed with the best weapons their technology had to offer; primarily bolt action rifles.

A massive, widespread extinction event made itself known in the form of humans armed with firearms against local creatures that lacked the instinct and intellect to understand that they were outmatched. Systematically, the new Verdun colonists hunted down and destroyed huge swathes of wildlife until they established their colony. Citizens that were unable to fight were brought into the protection of high walled cities that could keep local wildlife at bay and ensure the safety of its occupants.
It was not until nearly a century later that the rest of humanity found Verdun; still lush in life at this point aside from the areas the cities had spread to. When they arrived, they found a technologically backwards society that relied on high caliber weapons and extreme amounts of armor to protect their people. By then, however, Verdun had figured out how to make aircraft and many other technological advances... though without any serious warfare they lacked the knowledge on how to use them efficiently in combat.

The Empire of Virginia was the first to begin an invasion of Verdun, bombarding it from orbit until city after city fell. Like the rest of humanity, Verdun refused to surrender and instead doubled down on its military policies. Any able-bodied man of legal age, only sixteen in their society, was to serve in the military where human wave tactics became commonplace against the Virginian invaders. Years later, Verdun remained independent and suffered the brunt of the Human-Scrin conflict where their world was burned beyond recognition and its lush life gone under a blaze of plasma, bombs and toxic gases from both sides.

Often times, their foes have offered them the chance to surrender. Each time, Verdun's king has responded in the negative; often coupled with expletives. Many of Verdun's soldiers are quite proud of their nation despite its shortcomings and their Marines often speak of whenever Verdun is inevitably destroyed in its entirety that the planet itself will crack apart before Verdun's guards surrender.