Veshdyn

## Tis'on'tant bok Vesh'dyn

The flag of Veshdyn, colloquially dubbed the "Black Banner" (Veshkis: Vas Van'shtet). Written on it is the national motto, "ever-rising banner" in Veshkic script.

### Motto

"Jyd'ypt'on Van'shtet" (English: "Ever-rising Banner")

### Anthem

"Pip Tant bok Vas'ad" (English: "A Land of Vasad")

### Head of State

Fyldenis (Formal Veshkis: Tis'on bok cis Fyl'den)

### Religion

Primary: Veshkis VasadismMinority: Strait Vasadism, Mjaamtism

### Population

~875,000

**Veshdyn** (Veshkis: Vesh'dyn) is a human kingdom (Veshkis: Tis'on'tant) on the fringes of Zumäro (Veshkis: Dis'kul'tant) located within the western half of Stinjel and is the sole political entity of the Veshkis people. It is composed primarily of 21 islands with hundreds of other minor isles dotting the archipelago, the most influential and populace of which is Veshktant, which has the capital of Mishkunon on its western shore. Veshdyn is the overlord of the Valtaenis Port.

## Etymology

The name "Veshdyn" has its origin in the native Veshkis *Vesh'dyn*, which is derived from v*eshk* and *dyn*, meaning "dark" and "law" respectfully. The term was popularized under the reign of King Jytynekis (Formal Veshkis: Tis'on bok cis Jyt'yn'ech) as to differentiate the region under his rule from the Veshkis cultural center at Veshktant and legitimize his claim as ruler of all Veshkis under the Dark Law of Vasad.

## History

Archeological evidence suggests that humans have inhabited the archipelago of Stinjel for at least 10,000 years and more likely over twice that time, making it one of the first places of Zumäro to be inhabited by a sentient race. Little historical work has been done on pre-Veshkic Stinjel ever since the dominance of the Veshkis in the archipelago, as many early artifacts are deemed heretical (most famously the Old Light, the oldest human artifact ever found on Stinjel that was destroyed months after discovery). The last non-Zorr pre-Veshkic population on Stinjel died out in roughly 800 UA in the northernmost islands of Bytanon and Sitanon.

### Veshkic Migration

*Main Articles: The Stoltontic Arrival, Semilu Wars*

The Veshkic peoples had been migrating west from their ancestral homeland in the Valvat Desert and cool steppes of Mézaxómu (Veshkis: Steg'yt'an) for hundreds of years, and by 0 UA had reached the coasts of the Tynfek Bay. Less than a hundred years later the Old Veshkis had begun to settle along the eastern coast of Jutynt (Veshkis: Shtec'ton) and Veshktant under the guidance of Stoltontis (Veshkis: Stolt'on'is), forming the two populations that would eventually become the Jatsyti and the Veshkis. By 500 UA the Old Veshkis made up the majority of Stinjel's inhabitants, having successfully supplanted the native pre-Veshkic peoples of Stinjel.

### Veshkis Cultural Genesis

*Main Article: Veshkis (People)*

The cultures of the Veshkis and Jatsyti first became distinct around 800 UA, but had begun diverging far before that. The Veshkis and Jatsyti diverged due to three main differences, language, geography, and interaction with the native Zorr. While language change was inevitable, the flatter and more geographically spread homeland of the Veshkis brought them into greater conflict with the locals and as such a feeling of severe distrust developed between the two groups over the next millennium. This was only exacerbated by the higher population densities that were able to be achieved on the western isles of Stinjel as opposed to the mountainous terrain of Jutynt. The final distinction between the two groups was that the Veshkis had a more naval focus historically due to the increased amount of islands and distance between them that they inhabited. The Veshkis were more able to interact with the outside world which would lead to unique cultural experiences that were either delayed or unexperienced within Jatsyti culture.

### Veshkis Kingdoms

*Main Articles: Four Kingdoms Period, Veshkis Unification Wars, Jytynekis (Person)*

Emerging into the 9th Century, numerous Veshkis dynasties would form the first proper countries of Stinjel. Of these various rival kingdoms, the four most notable were Mishkunon, Shynet, the Bovec Kingdom, and Sinytan. This dynamic would create the Four Kingdoms Period in the early 830s, as over the next two decades the main Veshkis powers would seek to gain supremacy over the others, slowly expanding and subjugating the lesser states in archipelago-spanning conflicts.

In late 848, an individual known as Tunis Bovasad Civev overthrew the Bytlys Dynasty that had ruled Mishkunon for over a century with the help of local Vasadist leaders. With religious authority, Bovasad (soon to be known as Jytynekis) suffered little resistance and quickly established himself as the manifestation of Vasad's energy in the mortal realm. His impact on the Vasadist faith created a rift between Veshkis Vasadism and Strait Vasadism which persists to the present, with the Jatsyti and Pokwutsakann refusing to recognize the king of the Veshkis as a divine reincarnation. In the aftermath the popularity of non-divine monarchs crashed across the Veshkis world, and Jytynekis started his expansion. In 851 UA he successfully invaded Shynet, defeating the smaller and demoralized army at the Battle of Vasan and annexing the second-strongest polity in Stinjel in under a year. He would go on to conquer the Bovec Kingdom in 853 UA, Ciskul in 857 UA, and Sinytan in 859 UA. The Balis Kingdom and Kingdom of Vegun would willingly join under ultimatum less than a year later. In 860 UA Jytynekis would die of a sudden fever as a demigod to many of the people he governed, and as such expansion would slow substantially for the following decades. In the years after his death the Council of the Light would emerge as a regency and advisory body until the next *tis'on*, Pigsis, could come of age. This institution continues to this day, albeit now a primary regent is chosen during interregnum. Regardless, by 900 UA all the smaller kingdoms were consolidated and Veshdyn would be the sole political entity for the Veshkis people.

### Subjugation of Jutynt

*Main Article: Veshkis Invasion of Jutynt*

The conquest of Jutynt was a surprisingly fast undertaking by the (at the time) fledgling nation of Veshdyn. From the coastal outposts in the west, the armies of Veshdyn rapidly expanded across the Strait of Danech over the lowlands of the isle, with only tribal units to subjugate the native inhabitants were militarily unprepared. As such, in 906 UA, just 5 years after the invasion began, the majority of the island was under the direct rule of Veshdyn without a single decisive battle needing to be fought. However, by the next campaign season in 907 UA, several Zorr tribes had formed into a basic confederation, uniting their armies to avoid the fate of their lowland relatives. The Jatsyti were also consolidating, albeit it under more violent means.

The newly created united armies of the Zorr and Jatsyti would present a significant hamper in Veshkis expansion, as now the opportunity for large-scale battles was there and more tactical movements needed to be considered. This reality would present itself harshly to the Veshkis at the Battle of Jantbraen in the winter of 907 UA, where the Zorr, under the banner of the Caabekjoi, would ambush a large Veshkis force in the forested hills of Jutynt's interior. The Zorr would charge downhill and catch the Veshkis completely by surprise, where General Stegidad would make the order to hold. Eventually the Veshkis would recompose themselves and begin to overwhelm the outnumbered Zorr, who then retreated back into the forest. The battle would turn out to be a pyrrhic victory for the Veshkis and made future expeditions into Jutynt's heartland more cautious.

The next Veshkis offensive would occur in early 909 UA, and would see an army of approximately 8,000 soldiers deposit themselves at modern Tsecoi (Veshkis: Shec'on) and develop the location into a basic fort. As the first Veshkis settlement on the east coast of Jutynt, the Jatsyti saw the establishment of such a base as an existential threat to their resistance effort. Thus, the decision was made by the united Jatsyti war effort, under the lead of the Kosktonek dynasty, to pre-emptively strike the Veshkis before they could properly reinforce the location. As such the opposing sides would meet at the Battle of Tsecoi (909). It would turn out that the Jatsyti arrival was too late, as the Veshkis army had already established rudimentary defenses. Nonetheless, the Jatsyti charged in hopes of surprising the Veshkis, which achieved extremely minimal success. The defenses and superior equipment of the slightly outnumbered Veshkis resulted in an overwhelming victory, in which the defenders charged out of their positions and chased the remaining few attackers into the island's highlands. Over the course of the next year most of the Jatsyti tribes would submit to Veshkis authority in the decisive battle's aftermath, and those that didn't would quickly be brought into compliance through force.

In the wake of the Battle of Jantbraen, the Veshkis sought a new approach to subduing the Zorr. Now, with the defeat of the Jatsyti, the decision was made to divide and conquer. As the Zorr were completely surrounded, the Veshkis decided to avoid a decisive confrontation in hostile terrain by invading with multiple armies from multiple angles in what became known as the Venyn Campaign. Ultimately this would accomplish the goal of avoiding a decisive battle, but this doesn't mean there were no difficulties during the campaign. The armies of the Caabekjoi took advantage of these smaller armies in victories at Cyrr (Veshkis: Cyj) and Javhin (Veshkis: Jav'jin), but ultimately the Veshkis tide was relentless, and the Zorr were defeated by converging armies at the Battle of Haelrr (910). Another independent Zorr state would not exist for just under 350 years.

### Maritime Plunders

*Main Articles: Ásdend (Federation), Veshdynis Raids*

After the consolidation of Stinjel, the Kingdom of Veshdyn would enter into a lull in its expansion. With the exception of the Revolts of 921 and 922 (and the controversy concerning Sitantekis' treatment of them), the next three decades would be marked with economic growth and increased relations with the overseas empires.

During this prosperity, the Veshkis admiral Kosk Vevdolt Boshiv would take part in many trade fleet expeditions to Ásdend (Veshkis: Shad'un-Jast'esh) and witness the greatness of the region. Citing a slight increase in pirate activity in the region, Admiral Vevdolt would significantly increase the militarization of his trade fleets, turning them into floating armies with little oversight from the regent of the time, Detantat, and her acting Council of the Light. Vevdolt's first deviant act would occur in late 943 UA at the Ásdan naval base of Výnad. Raising the usual trade banners, Vevdolt made the decision to instead plunder the base, which was woefully unprepared (on account that this had never happened before in Veshdynis-Ásdan relations). The ensuing slaughter would be remembered as the Výnad Treachery, and would be the unassuming catalyst for centuries of poor relations between Veshdyn and the nations of Ásdend (Veshkis: Jast'esh'tant).

Admiral Vevdolt would follow up this outlying offense after just under 2 years, beginning his second campaign. The admiral's marines would achieve easy victories at Ferúnaf (Veshkis: Fej'jyn'af), Nakamábor (Veshkis: Nak'am'ab'oj), Semetúr, and Výnerod, enrichening his fleet to an impressive degree. However, the admiral had become overconfident and decided to launch an assault on the developed delta city of Fáranav (Veshkis: Faj'jan'av) and its walls, as the harbor was too dangerous and well defended to consider landing in. Using his usual tactic of storming the city with the element of surprise, Vevdolt found the city defended with a proficiency he had not foreseen, and his troops were set onto by Ásdan archers on the walls. The admiral had underestimated his opponent, and was forced to withdraw with nothing for the efforts of his men.

Following this failure, Detantat would crack down on Vevdolt's unlawful behavior and bring him away from leading Veshkis trade operations in the Sea of Dakanech (Veshkis: Stol'ton bok Dak'an'ech) and beyond, shifting focus temporarily back to peaceful trade. It was also during this time when the first permanent interests in Wutsakanntunt (Veshkis: Stin'jel-Sin) were realized by Veshdyn. Veshdynis trade settlements began to appear on the coasts of the main island, the island of Sjuhtunt (Veshkis: Val'ten'tant) was populated (which would later become the Valtaenis Port), and peaceful relations were made with the various Pokwutsakann kingdoms of Syhunt-Synn, Zhaennannyh, and Vaejjyjtenn. The situation became tense during this time of diplomatic expansion into the Tynfek Bay area as the Veshkis world began to run into the Súnü and Ószutanu worlds, with a naval skirmish occurring in 950 UA. Past this however, the situation remained stable once more for a brief period.

With the coming of the *tis'on* Dakanekis (Formal Veshkis: Tis'on bok cis Dak'an'ech) into power later that year, Admiral Vevdolt once again came into the picture. Freed from the constraints of the retired regent, he mobilized a miniscule taskforce to sail south to raid Ásdend and get revenge for his defeat at Fáranav. Setting sail in early 951 UA, his fleet first sailed west of the island of Dracanél (Veshkis: Dak'an'con) and raided the small island fort town of Semenél (Veshkis: Sem'en'el) with mixed success. Vevdolt would then return to the Astor Delta (Veshkis: Net'fan'con-Jast'esh) and lead a second attack on the city of Faranav. With his much smaller force his troops snuck into the city's port by night and began to lay waste to the city, although in the end the local garrison was far too strong and the attack would fail with Vevdolt being slain. The Second Battle of Fáranav would mark the end of the first stage of Veshkis involvement in Ásdend, as troubles up north would divert the resources of the kingdom.

### Súnü Power Struggle

*Main Articles: Union of Hój, Óxéjwú, Valten War*

Beginning in 956 UA, the expanding Union of Hój, led by the Súnü of Óxéjwú (Veshkis: Jav'jec'vyj), would seek further overseas expansion routes from their position across Northern Mézaxómu. A series of intermittent and minor conflicts would start in the Tynfek Bay for the next decade as Súnü attacks began to occur with more and more frequency on Sjuhtunt and Sitantech-Valten. These were treated as inconveniences by the kings of Veshdyn whose focus largely lied towards Ásdend. This all changed however in 971 UA when a Súnü fleet, led by Xéxnoj bwé din Sonó, invaded and permanently occupied the island of Sjuhtunt.

This act would start the Valten War (Veshkis: Skan'cav'on-Val'ten), a 14-year-long military conflict between the Union of Hój and Veshdyn. It would be a primarily naval and economic affair, with both sides attempting to assert dominance on the seas over the other as to enforce a blockade. Despite Veshdyn's larger population, the nation was both younger and less navally focused than the Northern Union. As such, Veshdyn struggled to maintain sovereignty of its coastal waters, their boats being poorly designed for the deep seas and storms of the Tynfek Bay. As the resources of the war increased and both sides grew wary, *tis'on* Dakanekis sought to form the largest Veshkis fleet ever. At the same time, King of Kings Szünaxk bwé din Waédé sought to deliver a decisive and ambitious blow by invading Veshdyn proper. At the Battle of Bojdoj Bay in 984 UA the Hóju fleet destroyed its ill-prepared Veshkis counterpart and the army soon laid waste to the isles of Sitantech-Valten. Dakanekis' fleet was prepared several months later and returned to challenge the occupier. The ensuing Battle of the Fikyp Strait was a Veshdynis victory and stranded bwe din Waédé and his army.

Dakanekis personally led the blockade of the attackers' separated armies and then engaged them in twin battles at Sitanon and Bojdoj. The battles ended in Veshkis victories and the death of Szünaxk bwé din Waédé, bringing an end to the Union of Hój with Óxéjwú losing its personal union over Níseme (Veshkis: Jak'sej'mej) and an ensuing independence war against Mmojhobiú (Veshkis: Moc'ob'jyj). In the war's aftermath Veshdyn reestablished full control over Sjuhtunt and assumed cultural and economic primacy within the Tynfek Bay, conducting trade with Tjaeme (Veshkis: Don'jil'tant) and emergent rebels on zhNavt (Veshkis: Shun'av). The remainder of the 10th century would be a time of prosperity and dominance for the Veshkis nation.

As part of establishing relations with zhMana rebels, a small contingent of some 800 volunteer soldiers operated to protect Veshkis commercial interests and assist the islanders in achieving their independence from Óxéjwú. Their contributions in battle would be minor, but succeeded in establishing positive relations between the nations.

### The Age of Regents

Main Articles: *Age of Regents, Wutsakanntunt (Region), Ószutanaat, Veshdynis Raids, Vonat Cakat-Veshkis Vostitis*

With dominance established and sovereignty protected, Veshkis expansionism came to return by the dawn of the 11th century. At the same time, a string of tragedies and intrigues would see a series of powerful regents rule for the first half of the century, beginning the Age of Regents (Veshkis: Shtav'on bok Tis'on'at'ech).

Towards the end of the Valten War, Veshkis raiding across the Sea of Dakanech resumed under the leadership of Vijjanadej Bytdolt Boshiv, the adopted son of Kosk Vevdolt Boshiv. From the years of 989 to 1000 UA, the new fleet's operations would be a state sanctioned affair under Dakanekis and the regent Civdyt (following Dakanekis' death in 992 UA). Raids were performed across the coasts of Ásdend by Admiral Bytdolt with mixed success, with attacks against Ószutanaat (Veshkis: Shen'jel'dyn) also occurring for the first time. In 1012 UA, a new generation of leaders had arisen with the passing of Bytdolt and the ascension of Skanoptonis. As a result, national policy and focus shifted towards the Pokwutsakann kingdoms and their long-raging conflicts with the Ószutanu. In the short 8 years that Skanoptonis reigned as king, he successfully formalized the de-facto vassalization of the three Pokwutsakann kingdoms and together launched a campaign of reclamation that successfully brought all of Wutsakanntunt under Veshdynis suzerainty by 1019 UA.

The early death of Skanoptonis would see the rise of the regent Cakat-Veshkis, one of the two principal figures of the 1000s and the longest-serving *tis'on'at* in Veshkis history. She would reign from 1020 to 1036 UA until the rise of Nestynis, who would die a mere two years later from an assassination. Cakat-Veshkis would resume her role as regent following his death until she likewise died in 1048 UA. During the twenty six years she was in power, Cakat-Veshkis earned a mixed reputation. She broke many precedents and ignored limitations on her power, ruling rather corruptly. At the same time, she permitted radical reform of the military into the first professional standing army of Stinjel which drastically increased the fighting capability of Veshdyn. She also encouraged the stockpiling of magical crystals for war and prohibited their export, a practice many prior kings such as Sitantekis and Skanoptonis engaged in to fund their lavish lifestyles on an archipelago that had grown foreign to war. Cakat-Veshkis' reforms also finally gave explicit legal encouragement for privateers to operate against rival and wealthy powers (mostly to the south). All and all, her dual reigns were not remarkable at the time, but served as a vital step on the Veshkis path to war on the mainland.

Cakat-Veshkis was succeeded by the regent Tylsat, whose six-year reign was uneventful and marked the end of the Age of Regents. Her passing would usher in the long reign of Sinvasekis, the king who would be first to invade Ásdend.

## Geography

Veshdyn is composed primarily of 21 major islands (including Veshdynis Jutynt) in the archipelago of Stinjel, within the continent of Zumäro. To its north and west it is bound by the World Ocean (Veshkis: Stol'min'stolt'on), to its east by the Sea of Vapech (Veshkis: Stol'ton bok Vap'ech) and the Strait of Stoltonti (Veshkis: Des'on'dolt bok Stolt'on'is), and to the south by the Sea of Dakanech. Over land, it borders Zorrdzop and all of the Jatsyti kingdoms except for the Sensen Kingdom (namely, Veshdyn borders the dynastic kingdoms of the Woiton, Kosktonek, and Tsecsen).

In total, Veshdyn has over 150 populated (and many other) islands and islets and constitutes an area of about 15,500km2, making it have a total population density of approximately 56 people per square kilometer. The archipelago is dominated by the two large islands of Jutynt and Veshktant, which combined are roughly 84% of Veshdyn's territory and 3/4 of its population of 875,000 people.

Veshdyn is the - largest country in the Lounge and the - largest in Zumäro (by land area).

Interactive Map of Stinjel (Including Veshdyn)