Interlude – A brief briefing on the Republic.

A room, back in Brown’s cave and HQ in Libertycave, and a giant map. One dark elf, Kim’s ex-secretary Nirmal, with a long stick to point on the map. A wooden board with a stack of paper nailed to it, to act as a slideshow. One John Brown ready to be debriefed.

“After much work, this the map we have of the areas under the control of the Federal Republic of Gemeinplatz. This isn’t exact – most of these borders have been retained from the Empire. For example, the easternmost part of the state of Bolipoli is still under elven control from Periligoul, but it is colored blue since it lays within the old borders of the county of Bolipoli.”

“Elven raids?” asked John Brown.

“Yes, we’ll get to them in more detail later. In total, we estimate that the population of the Republic is around a hundred and twenty thousand people, though this doesn’t yet account for immigration from the nomads. Western Gemeinplatz is relatively unpopulated compared to the rest of the Empire.”

Brown pointed out, “Yet, that doesn’t mean much if they can’t mobilize that population.”

“That’s correct. We painted the map red, since they’re all slaver states and therefore our enemies, but they do not present an united front at all. The Chancellor seems to be attempting to centralize the Empire, and we do not have a clear vision of what exactly is happening there, but it’s clear that he’s having trouble if he hasn’t wiped us out yet with a united force. We at least know that Ancoire is not cooperating with him. The elves of Periligoul have not made any major moves since the siege of Aroghlie. It’s hard to get a reading on the rest. As for our troops, our forces number five regiments totaling five thousand men. We’ve mostly replenished our losses from the last battle, and currently we’re gathering equipment for a sixth regiment, comprised of cavalry from nomads. Next slide.”

Nirmal flipped the map over, to another map, this one of Casamonu. Imperial Highway №04-765 snaked between Libertycave and Casamonu, then connecting to №04-030 off into Zon’guldac which remained off this map.

“The state of Casamonu and the capital at Libertycave, totaling fifty thousand. Currently the 1st Ranger Regiment, 2nd Infantry Regiment and 3rd Cavalry Regiment are garrisoned around the province. Mount Curry remains our most important source of income. The copper there is mined by various independent mining groups, nowadays mostly by dwarves, though most of them operate under the Libertycave Copperworks who provides them funding and equipment in exchange for guaranteeing to buy their copper ore at a set price. The Copperworks also has branches in Casamonu and Zon’guldac. It’s adopted an… odd form of governance, where the workers of these branches elect a representative among themselves and send that representative over to Libertycave to vote on issues within the organization. They’re like a government of their own, in that way.”

Brown hadn’t exactly played a hand in how the Copperworks operated, but… “As long as they’re doing honest business, they can operate as they wish.”

“Speaking of operating, Mister Brown, the status of guilds deserves a special mention. They’ve of course lost the old influence they held, since we refused to renew their monopoly on trade and crafts, but most of them still remain operational as professional associations. A few have formed gangs to try and continue holding on to their monopolies through force. The National Guard of various states have been working on cracking down on these guild gangs. With how deeply rooted these guilds were, it’ll take some time.”

Nirmal vaguely gestured at the slide, again. It was a printed piece of paper, which connected to his next topic. “Of course, another important element of Libertycave and Casamonu is the Inkwell Printworks. For now, they remain the only printworks in the Republic, as printing was heavily regulated under the Empire. The Inkwell family used to serve all of the less populated areas around them, hence there being only a press in Casamonu, and there isn’t anyone else with the required knowledge to operate a printing press.”

Brown nodded “I believe that’s a point we should rectify. While Miss Inkwell has been doing excellent work, we should still be careful with having that be in the hands of one person. The pen is mightier than the sword, after all. If Doctor Rabanowicz wasn’t so busy, I’d get her to open another printworks… I might have to get her working on that despite. Do ask her about it whenever she’s available.”

“I will, Mister Brown. Next slide.” The next slide in question being the rest of №04-030, neatly connecting into a map of the State of Zon’guldac.

“Zon’guldac, our second most populous state at around thirty thousand people, majority dwarven, with the 4th Infantry Regiment garrisoned there. With the liberation of Aroghlie life has gone back to mostly normal, and the dwarves have integrated quite well into the Republic. The state retains the laws and governance structures of the Union of Dwarves, with them accepting to collect taxes to pay their part for the protection of the Republic and they’re maintaining a National Guard unit with their state’s resources. The high-quality coal that they mine is critical to the production of steel in Zon’guldac and the rest of the Republic, as it cannot be found anywhere else in Gemeinplatz. In general, the dwarves seem to be happy as long as trade is unimpeded and they’re left to freely to do their dwarven business, and they trust and respect us way more than the Empire in that regard. Next slide.”

Nirmal flipped over to the next slide, which contained the maps of what were now three states: Changra, Karabush and Bolipoli.

“The states of Changra, Karabush and Bolipoli totaling around forty thousand people. Compared to Casamonu and Aroghlie, they’re highly rural and underdeveloped. We have one regiment garrisoned between the three of them, the 5th Infantry Regiment. To go over them quickly: Changra is right on the border of the nomadic lands, and serves as an entrepôt of sorts for these nomads. Every week they’re allowed entry to trade in the market. The state itself also has deposits of rock salt and gypsum, which are traded back to the nomads in exchange for their cattle and wool. Bolipoli has derived most of its wealth from being on the highway from Ancoire to the capital, which means that the dawn of the Republic has not been good for its immediate prospects. Its terrain is wooded, meaning there isn’t much agriculture either, and I expect that it’s population will immigrate to other states unless we invest in the area.”

Nirmal paused, to take out a bottle he had brought. He handed it over to Brown, who uncorked it to find that it was full of saffron.

“Karabush, I personally find to be at least, to be the most interesting out of the three of them. It has land suitable for growing saffron, and the locals there have done so for generations. These fields have become empty of course, due to the emancipation of the slaves working the fields, not to mention that not many people on this side of Gemeinplatz are much interested in spices in our current situation. Still, it is a very rare, valuable spice, one that would make the Republic a fortune if we can find buyers.”

“If we can find buyers” emphasized Brown.

“Yes, that is the hard part. The port in Aroghlie is very small, and even then, we do not have any trade connections outside of Gemeinplatz. The Empire is obviously not going to take our saffron, and the rest of Gemeinplatz is united in their dislike for the Republic. Nonetheless, we shouldn’t lose access to such a resource. I’ve already gathered together a group of former saffron cultivators, and given the Republic’s permission and funding, they’re willing to head back to Karabush and restart their business.”

Brown took a good whiff out of the saffron. One could say it was worth more than its weight in gold. “Bring it up next time to council is gathered. You’ll have my support.”

“Thank you, Mister Brown. You can keep the saffron as a gift.” Then Nirmal flipped the slides once more, coming to the last one that simply stated “Thank you for listening to my presentation.”