Talao (roleplay)

The Greater Socialist Union of Talao, formally the United Socialist States of Talao and the Unified Republic of Talao, is a federal republic situated in The Leftist Assembly. It is located on the Tal Peninsula and Tali Archipelago. The nation was formed in 1942, during the First Tal Peninsula War. The capital New Union is located on New Union Island.

Talao uses the Assembly Note currency, and the national animal is the Tal Peninsula Attack Puma.

History
In ancient times, the Tal Peninsula was home to the Twin Kingdoms of Tal, a pair of monarchies that were great allies. The Kingdom of Ti sat upon the Tal Peninsula, while the Kingdom of Alao sat upon the neighboring Tali Archipelago.

The Twin Kingdoms would meet their end during the colonial age, their monarchs killed in an invasion by the British Empire. Most traces of the past were erased by their soldiers, temples to ancient gods leveled, palaces razed, and records burned. Over time, the people of Tal would forget their heritage as they were taught how to live alongside their Western overlords.

Founding
Amidst the political turmoil of the interwar period, many schools of thought formed among important members of the Dominions of Tal and Tali. From the island city of New Victoria, a group influenced by the works of Marx began to gain popularity. Banding together worker's unions, leftists, and working-class intellectuals under one banner, the Movement of Liberation formed. the MoL began working to undermine British rule. Two other factions would come to additionally weaken support for the United Kingdom, the Historians, a group that wished to bring back the Twin Kingdoms after finding a living descendant of both royal families, and the Democratic Front, a pro-capitalist faction that held the values of America in high esteem.

In 1941, Japan declared war on the United Kingdom, throwing its colonies and dominions into disarray. The MoL, Historians, and DF made their move before the British could fully mobilize, and used the chaos of the war to prevent any kind of response. What followed was a short and bloody revolution, forcing the British authority off of the Peninsula and Archipelago.

Too far from Japan to have direct threat of invasion, and too costly for the British to go after, the people of Tal were now faced with what to do in the face of their newfound freedom. As can be expected of such a mixed group, feuds began immediately. Among the Movement of Liberation, a charismatic leader arose. Jacob di Georgio, son of an Italian business owner and a native maid, challenged the leadership of the Historians and DF from New Victoria. Refusing to stand down, negotiations began to break down between the three factions, and war began to brew again.

The First Tal Peninsula War
The war started with a pro-Liberation organization in the city of Talo, located in the DF-led northern region of the Peninsula, which had served both as the capital of the Kingdom of Ti and the Dominion of Tal. In early 1942, the group had organized a student protest, but faced heavy resistance from DF soldiers. The soldiers began to open fire under orders from an as-of-yet-unknown commanding officer, killing many within the crowd. When the MoL demanded an apology and reparations, they were met with a declaration of conflict. The Historians too declared war on both, sensing an opportunity to capture more lands.

With what authority was left now embroiled in a civil war, the new government of Tal and Tali completely shattered, supporters within the Congress returned to their respective factions. Jacob di Georgio, pouncing upon this opportunity, claimed the Tal Archipelago and Peninsula as being the territory of the sovereign United Socialist States of Talao, and renamed the capital of New Victoria to New Union. The DF would too, claim authority as the Republic of Tal, with the Historians' State of Talaoia following suit. Thousands would die in the ensuing conflict as the three sides stalled out, the USST struggling to maintain its pitiful foothold on the Peninsula, and no faction capable of pushing into the other with severe equipment issues. This conflict would last until late 1943, when a negotiator from China managed to forge a armistice between the three.

Though nobody was content with it, it did temporarily stop the fighting, allowing the three nations of Tal to slowly rebuild what they had lost and build their industry up.

United Socialist States of Talao
Now that the war was technically over, Jacob di Georgio and the Movement Council began making preparations for a transition to a democratic socialist state. Putting up a referendum for their constitution, citizens were allowed to vote for what vision of their nation would be going forward. The di Georgio constitution won out in the end, thanks to his popularity and name recognition after leading the USST through the First Tal Peninsula War.

Talao's military began to ramp up rifle production, basing their standard rifle loosely off of semi-automatic rifles like the BAR or M1 Garand. In addition, the TA-52 series of tanks saw deployment for the first time, entering service in 1945. Their more advanced weaponry and mass-produced tanks

The Second Tal Peninsula War
In 1952, the State of Talaoia would launch an invasion of both, the Republic of Tal, and the USST. This would prove to be a mistake on their part, as they were unaware of the capabilities of either opponent. Amidst the jungles and plains, their heavy tanks would stall or sink, while Talao's would frequently flank their forces and wipe out entire units. The Republic of Tal had large quantities of cheap imported equipment, ensuring that they would never again run out of supply, no matter the capabilities of their factories. This conflict almost wiped out the State of Talaoia, only holding along the southern shore, the Port-Talo Highway, and their capital city of Berdin.

Suing for peace in 1954, the Treaty of Berdin prevented Talaoia from ever building a military again, and ceded land to both, the Republic of Tal and the United Socialist States of Talao.

The Unification
The Tal Peninsula Crisis was a series of conflicts and civil wars that struck without warning in the RoT and SoT throughout the late 2010s, causing near-total breakdown of the two governments. Seemingly due to a crash within their capitalist economies that would not effect their socialist neighbor, the two governments were completely ineffective at quelling the violence. Intervening first in Talaoia, the heavily-modernized Army for Liberation of People, Talao's land army, crossed into and occupied Berdin and the surrounding countryside, crushing rebellions and forcing the State of Talaoia to dissolve. Turning their attention to the Republic of Tal, they repeated what they had done before, moving into Talo and fighting off the near-warlord factions that had arisen.

Now the sole authority over the entire Tal Peninsula, Talao began to assimilate the governments, briefly transitioning into the Unified Republic of Talao in 2017, then the Greater Socialist Republic of Talao in 2019. With this, all peoples of Tal and Tali were now under the banner of socialism.

Government
Within the constitution, Talao is laid out as a pseudo-federal republic. The country has eight states, Tali, New Union, Berdin, Talai Islands, Tela Islands, Heazi, Oi'iu, and Coastland, each with their own state government. The federal government is split into three branches, the Executive Council, the People's Legislative Branch, and the Judiciary Councils. Each state would have its own government, voted upon by the people of each area, and were given great autonomy. The nation also has a complex network of boards, directorates, and agencies, a heavy bureaucracy answering to all three branches. Somehow this odd mix of federal authority and local autonomy has allowed Talao to come out on top in the region, currently being among the most powerful nations in Southeast Asia, and planning its own independent lunar missions.