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Encyclopedia Maxima

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-Size of the Nation-
Larpus Maxima, a nation of about the population and economic might of the UK, is located on a somewhat arid peninsula, with dry, hot deserts in the mountains inland, and borderline jungle areas on the opposite end, with a small temperate region in between, where the capitol is located. The arid, mountainous areas are prone to heavy snow in the winter, whereas the more jungly areas are prone to severe weather and coastal disturbances. This allows for relatively diverse environmental conditions within a medium-sized geographical area.

-Politics-
The nation is led by a president, who is elected by a council of about 100 senators, who are each elected by popular vote. The number of senators can vary, as each senator represents a set number of people of the populace. During elections, all candidate’s names are placed on the ballot, and voters can vote for any candidate or combination of candidates, and the top 100 or so are elected. The president is the link between the LM government, its military, and other nations, and is elected by the senate. The president acts as figurehead and ambassador, and answers to the Senate. Once the president has had his/her term, he or she can join the Council of Experts to advise the actions of the senate and president. The senate also controls the actions of the military, who also act as the police (which is controversial to some). There is also a court system, but it does not affect the actions of the government as a whole, but rather judges based on them. The nation's founding documents and law system are highly specific yet changeable, allowing for them to  be changed over time, while still maintaining the structure of the system as a whole.

-Military-
The military/police is the Larpus Maxima National Defense Force (NDF), who defend the nation from any threat no matter the size. From intervening in domestic disputes to thwarting smugglers, pirates, and even invasion forces. The nation has no space program, and thus no satellites for communication or navigation. Global positioning is a military only feature, and enabled through a secret network of high altitude reconnaissance craft and land-based radio beacons. The military focuses mainly on stealth and lethality, and while ballistic materials allow for adequate protection of the NDF's troops, every soldier is enlisted knowing that he or she may very well not make it out alive. The fighting force as a whole attempts to achieve maximum efficiency to achieve the task at hand, mostly regardless of the means. Because of it's dual role as police and military, the NDF is highly practiced at non-lethal combat, engaging in it in both military and civil intervention. To the NDF, the purpose of a battle is not to kill the enemy, but win the war.

The Larpus Maximan military specializes in areas of high technology and material sciences. Radar Absorbent Materials, voice command systems, precision guided munitions delivered by rail-guns, laser tracking systems, sophisticated computer mapping and navigation, advanced CAD systems, precision manufacturing and more are delivered with upmost efficiency and simplicity.

-Law-
Law in Larpus Maxima is relatively unrestricted in it's coverage, but strict in it's enforcement (partly due to its enforcers, of course). Any situation in which an individual or group threatens the well-being of another are ended with drastic haste. Hostage situations, high-speed vehicle pursuits, and armed robbery all end similarly.
Due to ethicality and many early court cases bickering over laws and by-laws, the government actually stays relatively free from civil life. In fact, there are very few social programs. Usable land is restricted in certain areas, but only to protect the environment and military secrecy.

-Commercial Regulation-
Little restriction is given to commercial interests marketwise, thus the free market in Larpus Maxima is very strong indeed. To further barricade itself from the market, the government produces all of its tools and resources itself. Everything from the vehicles and weapons the military uses to the computers and operating systems of the senators are all produced by the government for the government, and no-one else. Because of the division between the market and the government, politicians hold little sway over companies, and thus are of little interest to them. The informed consumer of LM keeps the large corporations on their toes, with upstarts constantly replacing less efficient and less popular companies regardless of their size. The free press is what keeps the market free, and what keeps the worker free from the large companies. If a consumer catches wind of a company's exploitation of its employees, or shady competitive practices, he or she will likely drop it for another, more fit company.

-Fuel and Energy-
One restriction the government places on the market is of fuels. The most popular fuels for individual and commercial use are biodiesel and ethanol, as the government has granted the military exclusive rights of the more powerful yet fouler hydrocarbon fuels such as gasoline and A1 jet fuel. Because of the hydrocarbon restriction, many modern LM street cars are lightweight, biodiesel-powered cars. Because of the focus on efficient personal transportation, and the materials technology available, motorcycles and other in are popular among many LM citizenry. Most power is supplied to the grid from hydroelectric power plants, with wind farms, solar fields, and various other sources contributing when they can. A massive offshore facility hosts an array of underwater ocean current turbines, near Central City.
Nuclear power and nuclear weapons both are strictly forbidden by LM law, and all possible measures are taken to prevent the acquisition of nuclear facilities and weapons by other countries.

-Religion-
Religion in Larpus Maxima is given no concessions nor restrictions, as the government views religious institutions as commercial groups, and thus part of the free market, and religion itself as a personal choice, and by its nature unregulatable. The freedom of religion and speech is only limited when it becomes dangerous to the well-being of others. Because of the official view of religious institutions as commercial enterprises, many LM citizens generally keep to themselves about their own, but the attitude of the culture and of the government in fact does display a reverent attitude towards the protection of the natural environment. The restricted areas are kept free from all motor vehicles, and some are even treated as holy lands; the only structures allowed on them are ancient shrines and ruins, built before the nation came into being.

-Early History-
Larpus Maxima started as a micronation of canoid colonists of mixed backgrounds and feloid natives. The national culture as a whole is, as a result, distinctly Larpus Maximan, with little else than the land and the ideas of the inhabitants to grow it. The foundation of the nation occurred in the Larpus Maximan capitol of Central City, at the mouth of The River Max. The colonists were not alone on the land, however, as the feloid natives also shared the area along the mouth of the river, next to the sea. They had chosen that area for habitation for the simple yet understandable reason that that was the closest they could get to the fish of the sea without resorting to seafaring. Feloids at the time had an aversion to deep water due to superstitions and myths. As the nation of Larpus Maxima expanded, the native feloids were either assimilated into the new society, or pushed downriver. For years afterward, the new and growing Larpus Maxima and Central city bled contaminants into the river Max, until the river became foul with pollutants. Recent environmental provisions by the government and the re-acquisition of the banks of the River Max by its original inhabitants has lead to the restoration of the river's original condition. Feloid individuals and organizations, rather than protesting or petitioning, eventually re-acquired much of the land along the banks of the river through purchase, and now the riverwalks are a prime example of native feloid arts and culture.

-Further Expansion and Modern Challenges-
Larpus Maxima expanded up to the borders of the surrounding nations (and further, where the borders were unprotected), and sat content for many years. Larpus Maxima has weathered several invasion attempts since then. Eventually, through its regional conflicts it has also added the lands and people of some neighboring nations to itself, and where once there was despotism and conflict, now is the safety and freedom that Larpus Maximans enjoy. Larpus Maxima now is at peace with most of it's remaining neighbors, who learned vicariously from the fates of the fallen states that it was wise to appease the Larpus Maximans, and emulate its success with similar political systems. Through years of regional peace, the LM NDF has focused more on its policing role, but still is constantly on guard from external threats. Though the region where LM resides has long since become mostly stable, the global community has continued to be shaken by strife and war. Terrorism, genocide, and rogue nuclear states has made the government realize that in order to protect it's nation's safety, it must also quell military threats elsewhere that can not be solved with traditional military strike. If the nation was to send NDF troops across the continent to stop a genocide, or destroy a nuclear facility, it would draw international condemnation. So, the Senate held a secret vote to create a top secret special operations force consisting of the best forces and weaponry of the NDF. It would fly no colors, sport some separate camouflage patterns from the NDF, and mobilize out of separate bases from the NDF. They would call it Project Omnibus.

-Project Omnibus and Task Force Phantom-
President Kabarra had nearly reached the end of his term, and wanted to do something to help those suffering under despotism, and stifle the threat of the rising nuclear states. He teamed up with a few brave military officers and convinced the Senate to create the secret Project Omnibus, and hide its funding in the government's research and development budget. In order to protect the secrecy of the program, and to distance the government from the actions of Task Force Phantom (Omnibus's action end), President Kabarra initiated Project Omnibus in a secret session in the Senate. In its secret session, the Senate authorized the program, and drew up a set of circumstances at which Task Force Phantom was authorized to act. They are if a nation or organization: acquires a nuclear facility of any kind, attempts a genocide, take hostages, or any other act that would jeopardize the safety of the citizens of LM wherein the NDF was not authorized to act. The Task Force was also authorized to take measures to prevent the operation of any terrorist organization or state on a secret list that is updated by the Senate as needed.

Keeping the secret of Project Omnibus has proven difficult. Only the soldiers who carry out the secret missions, the original senators who voted to initiate the project, and the president who endorsed it know the full details of the program. Even the senators who vote countries and organizations onto the secret blacklist don't fully understand the implications of them being on the list, just that the government of LM would prefer that they didn't exist anymore. The sheer number of entries on the list make it difficult for even them to draw parallels between the blacklist and the overthrown dictators, looted nuclear facilities, and shredded pirate ships washing up on shores around the world. Even with that few people knowing the National Secret, the threat still looms that a defector may expose the nation's actions and have them lose the trust of even their own citizens.

-Celebrations-
What keeps these secrets kept? Festivals, of all things, and an all-too-healthy paranormal culture. What could explain odd-shaped objects darting about the sky, armies appearing from thin air and disappearing again, and other odd happenings? What else! So every year large festivals are held where large groups of enthusiasts gather together, talk about things that don't exist, and eat unhealthy food. The largest and by far most popular of such venues is the national Unknown Day, when the limits of knowledge are not just acknowledged, but celebrated in a tongue-in-cheek spirit, and resolutions are made for the acquisition of knowledge in the coming year. Charms, spectral-scopes, and various other pranks are sold to unsuspecting tourists, and generally a good time is had by all. Best of all is the involvement of the National Defense Force, each year jokingly announcing the deployment of various unfeasible technologies, and even taking part in the Unknown Day Parade, where they have a string of floats escorted by stony-faced NDF peacekeepers, portraying life-size models of various fictional war machines, including literary and pop-culture vehicles, laser-cannons, anti-gravity devices, and even a few models of actual secret stealth aircraft. This ensures that any sightings or reports can be easily written off by official sources. This festival in particular is effective due in part to the advanced level of technology already available, and the citizenry's belief that paranormal events can be blamed on high technology rather than other sources.

Other holidays include Nature Day, Founding Day, Culture Day, the two solstices and equinoxes.

As Larpus Maxima approaches its hundredth Founding Day however, great obstacles loom before it on the horizon. Threats from without threaten to destroy the nation from within, and secrecy and power start to make the relatively new nation enemies beyond their caliber. And what of the country from across the way, the nation of The Sentinels? Will they turn out to be trusting allies, neutral forces, or the nation’s downfall? Has Larpus Maxima’s secret pursuit of the destruction of evil in fact made them the targets of those who wish to end international deception, or will they find their causes intertwined? One thing is certain, that Larpus Maxima is in a tough situation, and will back down to no-one’s threats, and will count on their advanced technology and iron resolve to pull them through whatever rock and hard place they may fall between.
Encyclopedia entry (out of storyline of course) for the fictional country of Larpus Maxima.

To be updated whenever needed. Last updated July 19, '09.
© 2009 - 2024 madcomputerscientist
Comments4
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1tyler's avatar
Great Work! really in-depth. I find it also ironic that Larpus Maxima is practically the Sentinels opposite. Larpus Maxima is a democracy, the Sentinels are a constitutional monarch. Larpus Maxima despises the the use of nuclear power and weapons when the sentinel's infrastructure is almost completely dependent on nuclear energy and they also boast a massive stockpile of nuclear weapons. Larpus Maxima also favors stealth and precision covert operations when the sentinels are direct and tend to favor aggressive sledgehammer-like tactics and want the enemy to see them to better intimidate them. The only thing they seem to agree on is their goal of vanquishing evil from the world. it will be interesting to see how these two will cohabitate.