The People's City

The People's Soviet Republic of Mishalan - A communist land of clockwork robots and cavalry. Fans of Red Alert and steampunk would love this place. And we have cute bears.

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Orion
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The People's City

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The long train of Mishalanski had been holed up in makeshift refugee camps for several months now. Conditions were deplorable despite the best efforts of the Red Mango and others. It was time to move on.

Vlad organized a team of engineers, surveyors, planners, architects and more to help design a city that could accommodate the diaspora in one place. But they also needed to sustain themselves without relying on the test of capitalism. River access for energy and industry was essential. Adequate farmland was necessary to create a breadbasket to feed the people. Thus a flat highland close to the River Elwynn was chosen, with rich soils and access to resources. Here would be built the great city of the Mishalanski - the city of Mishagrad.

And so the great train of people began their trek east, towards the river and their new home.

(OOC Note: This will be an ongoing chronicle of the founding of Mishagrad.)

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Orion
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Re: The People's City

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A Plan for Mishagrad

Essential to the development of a robust and sustainable community is the creation of a city plan. To this end the team of professionals assembled by Vladimir Medvedev have begun unveiling the first drafts of plans for Mishagrad. Radiating out from the Town Hall and a Grand Plaza, the city forms a grid along the banks of the Elwynn. In it the plan calls for every necessity that the team could think would be necessary to the prosperity of the Mishalanski people. There is a large hospital, several schools, a public library, airport, river harbor, banks, hydroelectric plant, a cinema, parks, farms, suburban homes, industrial centers, and commercial venues. Plus a long retinue of other amenities.

Yet it is rather obvious that the resources available to build this grand city are for now limited. Thus planners are placing emphasis on two primary objectives of initial development: farms and industry. Food is a priority and so lots are being given out in a lottery to those who will take on the burden of establishing the areas first agriculture. Next is the need for industry to produce the materials needed to build the city. Thus plans are also being set in motion to construct steel and cement plants - two basic ingredients for construction. Until more local resources can be tapped, other materials and equipment will be purchased or borrowed from outside sources, likely through a loan to the city. In the meantime however the objective is to get the farms and some industry up and running to provide some essentials to the thousands of refugees huddling along the river.

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Orion
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Re: The People's City

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Feast or Famine ~ The Collective Farm

The collectivization of farming is key to the survival of the Mishalanski people. Without food, the people starve. With an abundance of food, the people are healthy and productive. Thus the development of collective farms has been targeted as the first priority in the development of Mishagrad. While the city itself has been plotted, and several central structures of necessity built, such as the administration building, collective housing and medical clinics, none of these can be sustained without food. Workers have been tasked with plowing the rich river plains along the Elwynn and planting wheat, rye, barley, corn, squash and other hardy crops with great yields. Tractors are limited, and funds to appropriate more are even tighter, therefore the majority of the work is being done with teams of horses. The state is setting aside funds to pruchase more tractors; although the eventual goal is to have local industry provide these products.

Thousands of eager young men and women have flocked to the fields to begin the arduous task of turning the land into a veritable breadbasket for Mishagrad. Small stone and thatch huts have erupted along the outskirts serving as farmsteads for the workers. Nearby the footings slowly take shape for the large collective farming that is to come as a result of these labors. Once crops begin to be harvested Mishagrad will start to have a steady supply of food, with excess set aside for winter or emergency use. And with food any chance of famine - the ever-looming threat to our people - will be duly eradicated.

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Re: The People's City

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The First Decade ~ A Retrospective

The first decade of Mishagrad's development has seen the construction of numerous farms, markets, and a normalization of living from the extremes experienced during the refugee crisis. Modernist apartment blocks have started to take shape to provide for a growing population of workers, and the rural core of the city has begun to disappear in lieu of asphalt and concrete. The massive administration building dominates the Grand Plaza, which hosts weekly markets in the square, while around it taller skyscrapers are starting to dot the skyline. The port has provided a great deal of business in acting as a means of transport, shipping goods across the river to Elwynn, Shirekeep, and further. This in turn has generated profitable business, and the commercial sector continues to grow as a result. Indeed, Mishagrad is growing more quickly than initially anticipated, and more Mishalanski continue to make their way to the region from various parts of Amokolia to the north.

But for some the growth and development is too fast. Farmers who have spent the last ten years developing their land are being pushed further into the outskirts as the burgeoning population demands more space for apartment blocks, shops, factories and so forth. Efforts to stymie this growth with alternatives, such as tall and dense apartment blocks, has alleviated the sprawl somewhat, but not entirely. This has left the breadbasket of Mishagrad disgruntled, and also reduced the amount of available food. In order to avoid further destruction of farmland, the government is setting aside designated parcels of land for collective farming that will have restrictions on development. Laws will prevent other uses of the land besides farming for a set period of years, typically in blocks of 20-50 years. Planners are hoping that by setting aside farmland they can avoid food shortages and reduce the chances of pushing farmland far to the outskirts of the city, which would only serve to raise food prices. Farmers has been responsive to the government's plans, hoping that they will be able to keep the lands they worked so hard to grow crops on. In the meantime however, the growth of Mishagrad shows little sign of slowing.

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Re: The People's City

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Perhaps rooftop gardens and high rise farming?

The Imperial Gov't will not permit the city to grow hungry.
Kaiser Raynor XII

Kaiser of Shireroth
Ducal Baron of Greater Yardistan
MoMa of the Imperial Republic, Baron of Hallucination
Once and Future King of the Ma'alanje
Prophet of Loki, Wielder of the Sword of Madness


Shireroth sumus. Tempus in parte nostrum est.

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Re: The People's City

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Plague in Mishalan Sparks Renewed Interest in Amokolia

The recent outbreak of a new cabbage epidemic that is reportedly sweeping across Amokolia has renewed interest in the expatriate population now residing in and around the city of Mishagrad. The Mishalanski, once fleeing from the oppressive monarchist regime of Amokolia, now look to their north and see a dying, empty land. The plague has virtually wiped the population of Amokolia from the face of the planet, and while a disaster of epic proportions, it has opened a political door that has, for decades, remained firmly shut. That door is the potential of a return to Mishalan for the thousands of refugees that have settled in the Transelwynn territory. The City Soviet has held three meetings recently to discuss the disaster and potential follow-up measures to take should Amokolia completely collapse. Vladimir Medvedev, General Secretary of the Supreme Soviet, spoke to reporters indicating that relocating the entire population of Mishagrad would be out of the question, but that sponsoring a 'right of return' program for expatriates to resettle in old lands would certainly be feasible.

Others have called for a more vigorous program of resettlement. Mikhail Todochev, Secretary of City Defense, indicated his displeasure at Medvedev's proposals, stating that the long-term objective of Mishagrad has always been to return to Mishalan and retake the people's historic lands. Speaking to press, Todochev said, "If Amokolia is going belly-up, then we are presented with an opportunity to once again establish an independent Soviet state for our people. Shireroth has hosted us for many years, but as a host, not a home. Our home lies to the north, and we should return there if the opportunity presents itself." The idea of establishing a Soviet state in the vacant historic lands of Mishalan is considered extreme, but opinions on the matter remain divided. Roughly fifty-percent of Mishalanski feel that returning to Mishalan is a viable option, while the other fifty-percent feels that the focus should remain on what has been built here in Mishagrad. The topic has become the subject of many heated debates on the floor of the Soviet in recent months, and shows no signs of cooling any time soon.

The other concern is the cabbage plague. Reports have already been documented in Mishagrad, though medical professionals and defense personnel have been quick to isolate and treat these cases, preventing a large-scale outbreak like what has devastated Amokolia. By moving people and troops into abandoned Amokolian territories it will expose people to risk of infection, and thus officials are erring on the side of caution in advancing into these areas. At the same time, humanitarian need is great, and there are calls that those Mishalanski that remain north of the border are suffering and should be helped. Government response so far has been to monitor and care for those sick within the borders of Mishagrad, and to isolate, destroy and remove any cabbage within the city. The border with Amokolia has also been shut indefinitely to civilian traffic. Officials did indicate that an effort will be made to organize a relief effort into Amokolia to assist in combating the plague there, but that safety precautions must be taken to ensure the epidemic does not spread into Mishagrad or Shireroth, any more than it has already done so. The combination of imminent threat by the plague and eagerness to return to Mishalan has left everyone's nerves tense, and the next few weeks will be critical in determining a future course for the Mishalanski.

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Re: The People's City

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Historic Vote Approves Unification with Amokolian Mishalan

In a surprise vote by the Supreme Soviet, the council approved a motion opting for unification with Amokolian Mishalan and the formation of an Autonomous Soviet Republic. With the collapse of the Jeannite Monarchy due to the overwhelming resurgence of the Cabbage Plague, Amokolia quickly fell into anarchy. The Mishalan region has since become contested between Elwynn and the Mishagrad District. General Secretary Medvedev had been hesitant about putting the district in direct confrontation with Elwynn, but continued hostility from the Elves has served to galvanize the determination of the Mishalanski. Medvedev finally conceded to placing the matter to a vote in the Supreme Soviet, concluding that he would accept and support any determination made by the People. After careful polling the response was overwhelmingly in favor of reuniting with their northern comrades and establishing an Autonomous Soviet Republic that would remain in free association with Shireroth as a subject of the Kaiser.

The General Secretary was quick to note that this disagreement lies solely between Elwynn and Mishalan. "We brook no ill will towards the Kaiser," Medvedev said in a statement. "But neither will be be bulldozed by another tyrant. Mishalan does not forget the favor of Kaiseress Kizzy, and we wish to remain an active and helpful part of Shireroth. However we will not tolerate Elwynnese intrusion on our territory or sovereignty. It is time for Mishalan to forge its own path." The historic vote paves the way for official channels to now be open with the Kaiser and Landsraad. Already delegates have offered an proposal to the Landsraad lobbying for Imperial support in the creation of the autonomous republic and its land claims. Officials are hoping to avoid any hostilities by negotiating a resolution in the Landsraad and with the Kaiser.

In the meantime, the government is being cautious in regards to the Elvish behemoth across the river. Defense installations are being reinforced and armament factories have increased production. Veritable hordes of bears are undergoing training as cavalry mounts and warrior companions, and war machines are being wrought from ore mined deep within the mountains of central Benacia. Expeditionary forces have already begun to police and reassert control over Amokolian Mishalan. The historic center of Old Mishalan City has been occupied and reinforced by teams from Mishagrad, a major victory for the Mishalanski. As efforts begin to restore the city to its former glory, smaller teams have begun fanning out into the countryside to restore government to an otherwise devastated landscape. But the looming question remains: Will the Elves march to devastate it even more?

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