Themyscira

**Themiscyra**

**Other Names:**Paradise Island, Land of the Amazons, California (disused)

**Notable Leaders:** Queen Hippolyte, Queen Hippolyta I, Queen Penthesilea, Queen Califia, Queen Thalestris, Queen Hippolyta III

**Capital:**N/A (the island itself is essentially a small city)

**Population:**6,000

**Government Type:**Matriarchal absolute monarchy

**Language(s):**Greek, Latin, Atlantean, English (minority), Spanish (minority)

**Currency:**Drachma (1 Drachma=$50 USD)

**Religion:**None (De Jure), Olympian Neopaganism (De Facto), Egyptian Neopaganism (minority), Kratosism (minority)

## Economy

Themyscira is a largely self-sufficient island nation that has enough natural resources to sustain its population, but not to conduct international trade.

## History

### Greek Mythical Era

Themyscira has its origins in the Amazons, originally a matriarchal tribe inhabiting ancient Greece. It is alleged that they were founded by women who had been subject to abuse or rape at the hands of males resurrected by the goddess Hera, though this has not been confirmed and may not be true. It is widely believed they were the offspring the daughters of Ares and Harmonia (a nymph of the Akmonian Wood). What is known is that said tribe, starting around 3,000 BC, began to exclude men from their tribe. Rules against sexual encounters with men were in place at that point and repopulation of the tribe was handled with annual visits to the neighboring Gargarean tribe. Themyscyra itself began as a city-state established by Amazons in Greece, where despite their anti-male tendencies would interact with neighboring Greeks. Queen Hippolyte had a daughter named Tempest with the greek King Darius.

Some Themyscirans of this period, such as Atalanta and Gabrielle, would become heroic icons to the whole of Greece upon leaving and others would interact with or clash with various Greek heroes. Gabrielle was the companion to the warrior Princess Xena and despite being a farm girl, was given an Amazonian weapon to aid her in combat. Bellephon is known to have wiped out an entire Themiscyran unit meant to kill him and Heracles would be required to obtain the girdle of Queen Hippolyta I as one of his labors imposed by the goddess Hera.

Themyscira participated in the Trojan War under the leadership of Queen Penthesilea with the Amazon Ainia being a warrior of note. The Amazons are believed to have fought in the conflict because they possessed great respect for the Spartans, who treated women equally, believing strong women gave birth to strong warriors. They were also disgusted at the kidnapping of Helen of Sparta. Penthesilea was killed by Achilles during the war and her sister Hippolyta became the new Queen of the Amazons.

The first Themyscira would ultimately be abandoned in the wake of a war against the Delian League in about 900 BC, forcing many Themiscyrans to flee mainland Greece, though some would be trapped in Scythia owing to poor navigational skills. Another further group, the predominantly black, Bana-Mighdall, would make their way to Egypt.

### Founding of Themyscira

Those who did manage to escape mainland Greece would settle on the island currently known as Themyscira, located just beyond the Strait of Gibraltar. The Themiscyrans, hoping to maintain secrecy from the rest of Greece. When the god Ares rebelled and was killed, the Amazons were entrusted by Zeus and Hera to defeat and imprison the god's spirit following the defeat of Ares by Kratos. To weaken Ares and prevent his return, many of the Amazons converted to worshipping Kratos as the god of war. Hippolyta was able to for a time overcome her prejudice against men and married the greek hero Theseus. When Kratos rebelled against the Greek Gods, the Amazons were conflicted as many felt Kratos had been betrayed by Zeus simply by refusing an order not to aid his own people. However, Hippolyta was swayed to supporting Zeus when Theseus was sent after Kratos and was then killed by the Spartan warrior. The Amazons prepared for war against the former God of War but Zeus revealed his mission for them, to remain hidden.The Amazonian island of Themyscira was magically concealed, reproducing through the aid of a mystical plant from the all female "Herland". This was because the Gods would be revived so long as people still worshipped them. The Gods of Olympus knew they may not have survived, and they were justified in their fears as Kratos freed the Titans, beginning the Third Titanomachy. The Gods would perish and then be reborn.

The Themyscirans remained hidden in the event of future purges of the Greek Gods including one purge by Xena. On their own, the Themyscirans encountered and fought against the witch Circe, who had made her home near the island. Circe inadvertently helped keep the Amazons hidden by casting a primitive obliviation to convince those who passed the Strait of Gibraltar that they had entered the Underworld, which successfully prevented outsiders from reaching the island for centuries. The fog created by Zeus would shield Themiscyra for centuries to come.

There would be some encounters with the outside world, however. Various wizarding governments (which were largely more egalitarian than their Muggle counterparts) maintained contact with Themyscira, acquiescing to demands that all visitors be witches. Trade with the wizarding world (Themyscira has native flora that is quite conducive to potion-brewing and alchemy and the wizarding world would reciprocate access to such things in return for providing raw materials to produce weaponry, as well as various livestock and other animals).

In the early stages of the expansion of Islam, a Muslim preacher would arrive at Themyscrya and convince the Queen Calafia to convert to Islam and participate in a war against the Byzantine Empire. This intervention saw many Themyscirans (including their great warrior Maximo) perish and Calafia ultimately was captured and forcibly converted to Christianity. This intensified the hostility of Themyscirans to outsiders and for the next several centuries, any mortal man who visited to island was executed. Despite this Themyscira still occasionally interacted with the outside world, Thalestris, Queen of the Amazons during the conquest of Alexander the Great brought with her 300 Women from Themyscira, hoping Alexander would breed with them and produce great offspring. The only man known to have set foot on Themyscira between 1100 AD and 1941 AD and lived to tell the tale was infamous “adventure capitalist” Lyle Rourke, who managed to steal Hippolyta I’s girdle from the island in 1899.

### Contact with the Outside World

The first peaceable encounter with the outside world would be the arrival of Major Steve Trevor in 1942. Trevor, an American pilot participating in the Second World War, was saved by the island’s princess Diana, the daughter of Hippolyta III. Diana was the first child on the island in a long time. The Amazonian immortality and lack of conflict in centuries had stagnated the population. he was told she was molded out of clay, but later evidence suggested she was actually the daughter of Hippolyta III and a god, either Zeus or Hades.

Diana would subsequently accompany Trevor to the outside world and participate alongside the Allies in the Second World War. She did this as she believed Hades had manipulated the war. She found that he had grown stronger but had not caused the war itself. When it was discovered the Norse Gods had allied with Nazi Germany and was the reason for many of Germany's atrocities, The Amazons and with them the Greek Gods joined the allies, even ironically working alongside an aged and possibly resurrected Kratos, who wanted revenge against Odin for abducting his son.

Themyscira’s de facto membership in the Allies during this conflict would ultimately lead to diplomatic contact with the US, USSR and Britain by the war’s end. Themyscira would pull back from the world following the end of the Second World War, though it maintained covert diplomatic relations with the various world powers and Diana (under the pseudonym Diana Prince) would become Themyscira’s de facto ambassador to the United World Organization, as well as a member of the Justice League in the 1960’s. Themyscira maintained strict neutrality in the Cold War, despite efforts by a USSR diplomatic mission headed by Colonel Rosa Klebb to convince Themyscira to align with the communist bloc.

Themyscira’s existence is not officially recognized, but is generally a poorly kept secret overall, somewhat akin to the presence of alien technology at Area 51. No government has officially confirmed Themyscira’s existence and relations with the nation are usually conducted either by female diplomatic missions or via communications with Prince (who periodically returns to Themyscira for various reasons). In more recent years, Prince has convinced her mother to loosen the rules regarding male visitors to the island and some nations (including all G8 member states, as well as China, India and most European nations) now have permanent embassies on Themyscira. Themyscira also has sent individual Themyscirans on goodwill missions abroad, specifically helping the US rebuild after the Harvester invasion of 1996 (though all individuals who participated were given cover identities as humanitarian workers from Israel). Themyscira’s existence is suspected by many rank-and-file members of the public, but for now, its existence is only definitively known by the world’s various governments. Only time will tell if Themyscira’s increasing openness will progress further or plateau.

## Culture

Rather martial, matriarchal and insular overall. The bulk of Themyscirans are members of the country’s armed forces and the training of the women of the island in various forms of combat. While possessing some items of modern weaponry, the island’s leadership prefers the usage of more traditional weapons such as swords, spears and other Iron Age weaponry. Despite this, since the Second World War, at least some of Themyscyra’s populace has familiarized themselves with the usage of guns and basic ballistics (provided by the US as a symbol of appreciation for their assistance in the war in 1956).

For a long time, Themiscyra was only inhabited by women, with the rare male children being sent into exile once they reached puberty. However, in more recent times (likely a result of the encouragement of Prince), the island has taken a more liberal stance on men in general and, while still a rather small minority, you can find men living on Themiscyra. These men do, however, face suspicion from much of the population, are not permitted to join the armed forces and (unless they are from other nations) not permitted to leave the island without being accompanied by a woman. While younger Themyscirans are more open minded, the longevity of Themysciran women ensures traditional attitudes remain prevalent on the island.

Themyscira is instinctively isolationist and is not a major player in international trade. Despite this, Themyscirans have been known to participate in the wider economy—largely younger individuals who have more curiosity about the outside world. Several young Themyscirans in the US were responsible for the creation of the international shopping website Amazon and many young Themyscirans have sought to make their way to the US to work for the company. Themyscira’s official position on this sort of behavior is generally negative and, while individuals who leave to do so are permitted to return, they are frequently ostracized by older Themiscyrans.

## Colonization Entry

Colonization is a game series using historical Leaders.

**Leaders:** Queen Penthesilea

**Queen Califia**(While still beginning with Hellenism, Queen Califia will adopt any new religion introduced extremely quickly, as will the Themyscira Civ. This is an advantage against Civs who will attack you for not following their religion, but also can cost the Player a Religious Victory).

**Queen Hippolyta**(the game does not specify which one but it is presumably Hippolyta III based on physical appearance).

**Unique Unit:** Amazon

**Legendary Unit:** Invisible Plane(Cloaked until it fires, at which point its missiles and their trajectory is visible, this practically ensures a first hit but also leaves the vehicle exposed for a counter attack at the next enemy turn.Hits also briefly expose the Plane to view.

**Unique Building:** Paradise Island(cloaked. Does not appear on maps unless discovered an outside Civ Unit is present in the City).

**Superhero Unit:** Wonder Woman(In addition to Wonder Woman's combat abilities, WW can also capture and interrogate spies, successfully gaining any information they may have obtained).

**Abilities:**

**Hera's chosen-**Begin the game with a Religion(Hellenism), this provides an advantage for those seeking a Religious Victory since the Amazons can spread Hellenism towards other Civ before they discover Religion on their own.

**Arranged Marriage-** The Queen of Themyscira will marry either the ruler of another Civ, A Superhero Unit of that Civ or a "Famous People" Unit, cementing a powerful alliance between the two Civs, especially if marrying the Civ Leader.

**All Men Must Die-**Amazons during a war will kill all men but spare women, increasing their numbers if they liberate slaves or prisoners.

**Lasso of Truth-** The Capital of Themyscira can interrogate and obtain information from Spies captured in the Capitol city(until or unless Wonder Woman is created.

**Agendas:**

**Women's War-** Civs with a negative aspect towards women(such as Gilead), including Slavery, sexism or second class citizen status, will be met with aggressive action by the Amazons.

**Famous People:**

(Famous People appear in powerful Civs, often randomly).

**Warriors-** Tempest, Atalanta, Gabrielle, Maximo

**Wonders:**

(Wonders can be built by any Civs)

**Amazon-** Can be built during the Information Age

**Achievements:**

**Midsummer Night's Dream-** Hippolyta, as Themyscira's leader is married to the Hero Unit Theseus.

**Amazon's Attack-** The Amazons attack Washington D.C.

**No Man's Land-** Wonder Woman is created by the Amazons and unleashed against an enemy during a war occurring within the time frame of the historical World War I(1913-1918).

**Notes:**

-The Amazon Units such as Workers and Soldiers are intentionally modeled to appear female. Something similar happens with Zero One in which the units appear to be heavily damaged and rusty androids and robots, seemingly forced to rebuild their civilization from a Stone Age level.

-If one plays on the in game realistic Earth Map, but places the Amazons inside Africa, they will change into being named the Bana Mighdall, a reference to the rogue African Amazon sect. The Units will appear to be black, including Wonder Woman(who's model appears based on Beyonce Knowles) and the Leaders sans Queen Califia who already has a dark complexion. The Bana Mighdall begin with Polytheism(worship of the Egyptian Gods) instead of Hellenism(worship of the Greek Gods). It is also possible for two players to play Themyscira if one creates the Bana Mighdall, though they cannot choose the same Leader and Wonder Woman cannot be built more than once, meaning the Amazon Civ who builds her first steals the chance of building her from the other Amazon civ, leaving them Superheroless.

-Wonder Woman and Queen Hippolyta play themselves in some of the voices games.

- Themyscira's defeated cutscene has the Amazons be transported to another Universe for their own protection. Something Similar happens when you defeat Wakanda with the implication being your actions against Wakanda have convinced them to return to their isolation. In both cases, the conquered last city vanishes rather than be taken.

-Themyscira is understandably popular among female gamers such as Connie Maheswaren.