Republic of Argenis

Now you have a full-fledged world for role-playing. The player can choose any faction and specialization from the described sections, create a character, and immerse himself in the atmosphere of a civil war. His goal is to survive, achieve his goals (power, freedom, wealth, redemption), and change the story of Argenis. All the characters and events from the previous 50 descriptions are waiting for your decisions.

Welcome to Argenis. It's your turn.

Soldiers believe in omens: a bullet that is "yours" whistles differently; do not light three cigarettes from one match; talismans save from death. There were stories about "white women" on the battlefields, about the ghosts of dead children. Shamans of the north conduct rites of protection. Belief in the supernatural helps to cope with the horror of the unknown. Even atheists sometimes whisper prayers.

Dogs are used as sappers and guards, cats save grain from rats, horses transport goods off-road. Stray dog Rex has become a symbol of hope as he crosses the front lines. Some animals suffer no less than people: they die in shelling, lose their owners. Spontaneous shelters appeared. Animals often show amazing loyalty when saving lives.

Those who are now 15-25 grew up during the war. They do not remember a peaceful life, they know how to kill, but they do not know how to build. Many suffer from cruelty and cynicism. After the war, they will either become the basis of revival, or plunge the country into a new anarchy. Psychologists are sounding the alarm: the trauma of an entire generation can poison the future. Rehabilitation programs are still only on paper.

Both sides paint utopias. Vellanus promises "a strong hand and order"; Raynard - democracy, lustration, economic recovery. Neutral intellectuals draft constitutions. The main questions are: how to judge war criminals, how to restore cities, how to reconcile warring families. Faith in a just world supports many fighters.

The regime uses facial recognition cameras, surveillance drones, and subcutaneous chips to track civilians. The Internet is under total control: any disloyal statement leads to arrest. Resistance develops methods of evading surveillance: jammers, substitute documents, shielded rooms. Privacy has become a luxury. People are afraid to say too much even at home.

Due to unsanitary conditions, cholera, typhus, and hepatitis break out. Vaccines are in short supply. Field hospitals cannot cope with the flow of wounded and sick. Antibiotic resistance is growing. Diseases that were considered defeated are returning. Quarantine zones resemble plague barracks. Doctors work to the limit, often without protection, becoming infected themselves. An epidemic can mow down more than bullets.

Cities besieged by loyalists or rebels suffer from food shortages. Humanitarian corridors are opened irregularly. People eat grass, bark, domestic animals. Hunger becomes a weapon: who controls the food supply controls the population. On the black market, bread prices are fabulous. In besieged areas, cases of cannibalism (officially denied) are recorded.

The conditions of detention of prisoners are terrible on both sides. Official camps are overcrowded, there is not enough food and medicine. Torture is practiced to obtain information. Prisoner exchanges are rare and often fail. Some prisoners go over to the side of the enemy for the sake of survival. The International Red Cross is trying to monitor, but access is limited. The fate of the prisoners is one of the darkest pages of the war.

International mercenary groups (PMCs) offer services to both sides. The most famous are "The Flock" (Europeans), "Claws" (Asian syndicate), "Free Shooters" (individuals). Their motivation is money, adrenaline, and sometimes ideology. The mercenaries are more trained than the local militia, but their loyalty is always in question. Among them there are both outright sadists and "soldiers of fortune" with a code of honor.

The factory workers of the "Rust Belt" created underground trade unions demanding an end to the war and social guarantees. They organize strikes and sabotage in military production. The regime brutally suppresses such demonstrations, the Resistance tries to use the workers as a fifth column. The working class is a vacillating but powerful force.

General Vellan is a dictator with the charisma of a villain. Commander Alice Reynard is a Resistance icon whose portrait is worn in medallions. Archbishop Lukasz is the voice of conscience. "Ghost" is a mysterious hacker-avenger. Cults of personality and legends are formed around them. Soldiers go into battle with their names on their lips.

It is said that Krajicek is not dead, but is hiding in a bunker, controlling events. That Filin is artificial intelligence. That the war was provoked by corporations for the sake of selling weapons. That somewhere in the mountains there is a secret laboratory that creates super soldiers. Rumors replace news, generating hope and fear. Mystical legends about the ghosts of war are told around the fires. Reality and fiction are intertwined.

Roads are destroyed, bridges are blown up. Moving between cities is a deadly enterprise: checkpoints, snipers, mines. Civilians use bicycles, horse-drawn vehicles, old cars. The railway operates fragmentarily. The connection is unreliable: the cellular network is jammed or overloaded. People are returning to wired communication, radio, notes.

Official competitions have been stopped. But in the Free Territories, amateur tournaments are held in football, wrestling, even esports (where there is a network). Stadiums have been turned into refugee camps. People play cards, backgammon, homemade board games. Sport is becoming a way to relieve stress and remind you of a peaceful life.

In bomb shelters, performances are staged, poetry is read, and paintings are made on the rubble of the walls. Graffiti artist Emil creates images that have become symbols of grief and hope. Musicians play homemade instruments. Art has become a form of protest and therapy. The regime prohibits "decadent" creativity, but cannot control every wall and basement. A culture of resistance documents war for future generations.

The bombing destroyed factories and oil storage facilities, causing toxic leaks. Rivers are polluted, the soil is poisoned. Burning oil wells cover the sky with smog. In some areas, water and air are uninhabitable. Wild animals migrate or die. The environmental consequences of the war will be felt for decades. "Green" activists try to attract attention, but their voice is drowned in the roar of explosions.

Neighboring states secretly support the parties: some supply weapons to the regime, others to volunteers for the Resistance. Mercenaries from different countries are fighting for money. The UN condemns, but the sanctions are stalling. Journalists and human rights defenders are trying to influence world public opinion. In the enclave, diplomats weave intrigues. The war in Argenis has become a proxy conflict of global powers.

Thousands of children have lost their parents. Some are nailed to the fighting detachments, becoming messengers, scouts, cartridge carriers. Both sides formally forbid the use of children, but in practice turn a blind eye. Orphanages are overcrowded or destroyed. Children of war grow up too quickly, having forgotten how to play. Many of them do not know how to read, but they know how to assemble a machine gun.

Women fight on an equal footing with men in both armies. Many command detachments. In the rear, they work in hospitals, in factories, in the underground. Women are the main force of humanitarian missions. The war has blurred gender boundaries, but it has also brought an increase in violence. Women's resistance organizations fight for equal rights and post-war reforms.

A special military slang appeared: "threshing" - mortar shelling, "birds" - drones, "rubella" - loyalist uniforms, "blue" - rebel armband, "five minutes" - curfew, "green" - Dead Sector. Words are labeled "friend or foe". The language of propaganda penetrates into everyday life. Some expressions are taboo depending on the controlling party.

PTSD, depression, apathy are mass phenomena. People sleep with weapons, shudder from loud noises, lose loved ones. Psychological help is almost non-existent. Some find an outlet in art, religion, drugs. Children who grew up under shelling do not know another reality. A "lost generation" is being formed. Fortitude of spirit becomes the main resource for survival.

The Constitution has been abolished. There are military courts-martial. The punishments are severe: execution by firing squad for desertion, espionage, sabotage. Prisons are overcrowded, and extrajudicial executions are frequent. The Resistance has its own "people's tribunal", which is also not known for its mildness. The concept of justice is blurred. The only hope is the Coalition's promise to hold an international tribunal after victory.

And spies are everywhere. The regime's intelligence (Internal Security Service) infiltrates agents into Resistance cells. The Shadow Committee recruits loyalist officers. Both sides use drones, radio interception, cyber hacking. In the International Enclave, scouts of all stripes are on the hunt for information. Secret meetings, safe houses, passwords are part of everyday life. The price of betrayal is death.

The war gave rise to a wave of crime. Gangs of marauders control the ruins. Traffickers in weapons, drugs, and slaves profit from the chaos. Shadow bosses like Madame Zhou have created underground empires. Thefts, robberies, contract killings have become commonplace. At the same time, criminal networks are often the only channel for the delivery of humanitarian aid, creating moral dilemmas.

International corporations are profiting from the war. OmniTech supplies drones and surveillance systems to both sides. NovaMed sells medicines at inflated prices. Local oligarchs loyal to the regime finance military orders. Corporations hire private armies to guard facilities. Their representatives are untouchable, but inside the country they are treated with hatred. The Resistance is sabotaging corporate warehouses.

The main religion is the Church of the One Light (conventionally Christian), but there are also pagan cults, especially in the north. Churches became refuges, priests became mediators and comforters. Many have lost faith, others, on the contrary, have gained. Archbishop Lukasz is a moral authority calling for peace. Military cults appeared: soldiers pray to bullets, tanks, and the spirits of ancestors. The regime is trying to use the church in propaganda.

Schools and universities have been closed or converted into hospitals and barracks. Education is underground: in basements, in churches, on the radio. Teachers conduct lessons at home. Science is frozen, except for military developments. Talented young people are recruited by both sides. Underground Resistance laboratories create explosives and communications equipment. Knowledge is passed on as a precious resource.

Millions of people have fled their homes. Some went to the free western lands, some to the International Enclave, many huddle in the subway or the Dead Sector. The flow of refugees puts a strain on humanitarian organizations. Families are separated, children are lost. Spontaneous camps appeared, where disease and hunger reigned. Both sides use refugees as human shields or a source of recruits.

Hospitals are overcrowded, there are not enough doctors, medicines, donor blood. Field hospitals are deployed in schools, basements, churches. Infections are common due to unsanitary conditions. The Resistance Medical Corps and international missions are stretched to their limits. The main problems are gangrene, sepsis, post-traumatic syndrome. Vaccination has been stopped, outbreaks of measles and typhus appear. Medicine has become one of the most dangerous and respected professions.

The official currency, the argen, has almost depreciated. Barter is in use: food is exchanged for medicine, cartridges for fuel. The black market is flourishing: prices for antibiotics, gasoline, and weapons are sky-high. Foreign currencies (euros, dollars), gold, jewelry are used. In some areas of the Resistance, local "bonds" have been introduced. Shadow barons like Madame Zhou control entire commodity flows.

Queues for water and rations, checks at checkpoints, fear of shelling are routine. Children do not go to school, many work. Adults are looking for any kind of income: repairs, trade, underground services. In the evening, the city dies out due to the curfew. But people find ways to preserve their humanity: secret concerts in basements, underground libraries, evening gatherings by candlelight. Mutual help is appreciated: neighbors share the latter.

State radio and holographic screens on the streets broadcast around the clock: "Victory is near, the rebels are terrorists." The Department of Information blocks any independent media, journalists are declared enemies of the people. The resistance responds with underground radio "Free Argenis" and leaflets. Both sides use images of martyrs, patriotic slogans, and demonization of the enemy. For the civilian population, information is as scarce as bread: rumors replace news.

In parallel with the fighting, there is a war on the network. The Committee of Shadows hacks into government servers, jams propaganda, intercepts communications. The Department of Information implements surveillance programs, spreads fakes, and blocks websites. Civilian networks work intermittently, many use underground messengers. There is a darknet where data, weapons, and hacker services are traded. Information is valued on a par with cartridges.

Standard weapons: KR-22 assault rifles, Viper submachine guns, grenade launchers, mortars. Heavy equipment: T-140 tanks, Rhino armored personnel carriers, attack helicopters. The regime has aircraft (Hawk fighters), while the Resistance has mostly hijacked or captured samples. Specifics of the war: active use of FPV kamikaze drones, improvised explosive devices, chemical traps (gases, acrid smoke). Both sides accuse each other of using prohibited ammunition.

Argenis is a technologically advanced country. Combat drones, exoskeletons, and biometric scanners are widely used. Elite soldiers undergo cybernetic enhancement (implants that enhance reflexes, vision, endurance). Civilian technologies: smart glasses, neural interfaces, subcutaneous chips. The war stimulated the development of homemade technologies: homemade jammers, reconnaissance drones from household quadcopters, hacked communication protocols. The Shadow Resistance Committee specializes in cyberattacks.

Pre-war Argenis exported oil, rare earth metals, and electronics. With the outbreak of war, the economy collapsed. The national currency (argen) has depreciated, barter is used everywhere. The main resources now are weapons, fuel, medicines, water, food. Control over resource points (mines, ports) is a key task for both factions. The black market is flourishing, where you can get anything for gold or information.

Argenis was a unitary republic with strong presidential power. The Parliament (Senate) had limited powers. Dictator Krajicek gradually removed all checks and balances. Formally, there were elections, but they were fictitious. The real power belonged to the law enforcement agencies and Krajicek personally. After his death, the system collapsed, exposing deep contradictions between the military elite and civil society.

Not everyone chose a side. Humanitarian missions (doctors without borders, volunteers), smugglers, corporations (e.g., OmniTech), religious communities, gangs – all of them form a "third force". Their goals are different: from saving lives to profit. In the chaos of war, they often turn out to be the real power on the ground. The black market flourishes, and temples become sanctuaries. Neutrals are forced to constantly maneuver between the parties.

An alliance of democrats, deserters, students, workers, intellectuals. The motto is: "For our and your freedom!" Structure: city cells (sabotage, reconnaissance), field detachments (guerrillas, militia), Shadow Committee (cyber attacks, counterintelligence), Medical Corps. They control the western plains and part of the highlands. Advantages: support of the population, morale, knowledge of the area. Weakness: Lack of heavy weapons and medical supplies.

Official armed forces under the command of General Wellan. Motto: "Order. Stability. Argenis." They wear gray uniforms with red patches. Structure: privates (conscripts and contract soldiers), officers (career military and careerists), the Regime Guard (cybernetically strengthened elite), the Department of Information (censorship and propaganda). Loyalists control the capital, the east, and part of the industrial zone. Their advantage is heavy weapons, aviation, drones. Weakness - low morale, desertion, mid-level corruption.

The only place in the country under UN protection. Located on the coast, it includes a port, embassies, and a humanitarian hub. Formally demilitarized, but teeming with spies of all stripes. From here, you can emigrate by collecting a package of documents and giving a bribe. There are strict rules in the enclave: weapons are prohibited, violators are expelled. Journalists, diplomats, humanitarians work here. The dream of many refugees.

Destroyed suburbs, fields, abandoned villages between the front lines. Danger zone: looters, booby traps, autonomous combat drones that have lost control. You can hide here, but the price is complete isolation. According to rumors, the Dead Sector is inhabited by deserters who have created their own micro-commune, subordinate to no one. Sometimes journalists and researchers make their way here.

Hard-to-reach mountains with caves, passes, dense forests. An ideal place for guerrilla bases and shelters. There are training camps, weapons depots, secret hospitals. The regime rarely conducts major operations in the mountains for fear of ambushes. Local tribes and small nations remain neutral, but often help the wounded regardless of faction. The harsh climate in winter creates additional difficulties.

An agricultural region held by the Freedom Coalition. There are training camps, refugee camps, underground radio stations. There are farms that supply the rebels with food. Relatively safe, but the lack of resources and the constant threat of Loyalist airstrikes make life hard. The local population actively supports the Resistance, although there are those who are tired of war and dream of the return of any order.

Factories for the production of weapons, electronics and cars. A strategic resource for which fierce battles are being waged. The main part of the working class is concentrated here, which the war divided into those who support the regime (out of fear of losing their jobs) and those who sympathize with the Resistance (out of hatred of the elite). Many enterprises have been destroyed, but some continue to function under the control of one side or another, producing military products. A strong trade union underground operates in the belt.

A giant city split into sectors. The center is the Citadel: a fortified government quarter with bunkers and headquarters. Around are high-rises of the business elite, now partially destroyed. The subway is a labyrinth of shelters, hospitals, black markets. The outskirts are a continuous ruin, alternately controlled by loyalists, rebels, or gangs. A curfew has been introduced in the city (from 20:00 to 06:00). There are patrols, drones, and sometimes snipers on the streets. Despite the war, the city continues to live: there are underground cafes, theaters in bomb shelters, secret schools.

Argenis is divided into four major regions:

· The Capital District (Krajicek City) is a metropolis, the heart of power. · The industrial belt ("Rust Belt") is factories, mines, power plants. · The western plains are agriculture, a stronghold of the Resistance. · The northern highlands are hard-to-reach mountains, partisan bases, and refugee camps. There is also the International Enclave, a small zone under the auspices of the UN, the only safe corridor for evacuation.

Elias Krajicek ruled for 28 years with an iron fist. Stability was based on fear and repression. After his sudden death, there was no legitimate successor left. General Wellan, the commander of the Guard, declared himself "provisional supreme leader" and dispersed the remnants of Parliament. Opposition MPs fled to the west, where, with the support of military units loyal to them, they created the Freedom Coalition. The international community is hesitant: some countries recognize the regime, others recognize the rebels. The conflict instantly escalated into a full-scale civil war with clear fronts and an ideological split.

The setting is an alternative modernity with elements of cyberpunk. Argenis is a former prosperous republic, now split in two. After the death of long-time dictator Elias Krajicek, his successor, General Darius Vellan, dissolved parliament and seized power. The democratic opposition and part of the army revolted. The country turned into an arena of civil war. Street fighting, propaganda, humanitarian catastrophe, cybernetic technology and total fear are the reality of every resident. Atmosphere: gray skies from the smoke of fires, curfews in cities, ubiquitous checkpoints, queues for water and bread.