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| - Tarkio is a small, developing, and old nation at 221 days old with citizens primarily of Caucasian ethnicity who follow no religion. Its technology is progressing moderately and its citizens enjoy an average amount of technological improvements within the nation. Its citizens pay moderately high tax rates and they are somewhat unhappy in their work environments as a result. The citizens of Tarkio work diligently to produce Lumber and Aluminum as tradable resources for their nation. It is a mostly neutral country when it comes to foreign affairs. It will usually only attack another nation if attacked first. When it comes to nuclear weapons Tarkio will not research or develop nuclear weapons. Tarkio has no definite position on drug use in the country at this time. Tarkio allows its citizens to protest their government but uses a strong police force to monitor things and arrest lawbreakers. It has an open border policy, but in order for immigrants to remain in the country they will have to become citizens first. Tarkio has no definite position on free speech. The government gives foreign aid when it can, but looks to take care of its own people first. Tarkio will not make deals with another country that has a history of inhuman treatment of its citizens. TARKIO HISTORY Tarkio was founded in 1124 when a group of refugees from Plevna made the dangerous trek over the Kalbreth Mountains to escape the tyrannical reign of Emperor Lennep III, nicknamed “Lennep the Terrible” by history. While half of the refugees perished during the journey, the remainder settled in an area of land previously unclaimed by Plevna due to its location across the unforgiving mountain range. The settlers named their land “Tarkio,” which in the ancient Plevnan language means “sanctuary.” Even after Lennep’s death, the people of Tarkio feared discovery by their neighbors, who had given them up for dead when they left. The people of Tarkio immediately set out to form a government that was the opposite of everything Plevna stood for. Equality among genders, a pioneering idea for the time, was foremost on everyone’s mind, and equal inclusion in government process led Tarkio to adopt a pseudo-democratic model where city governors comprised a council to advise the king on matters of state before he made the ultimate decision. Tarkio has practiced a policy of isolation until recently, making occasional envoys to neighboring Huson and the Saltese Empire for trade, but foreigners have rarely been allowed access to the kingdom. As such, little is known about Tarkio’s history since its founding. What is known is that Tarkio has experienced two civil wars, the latest one resulting in the loss of the original Charter. At that time, King Yuntil IV had taken to a very extreme interpretation of the Charter and started acting with the kind of impunity Tarkio had intended to escape. The city governors led their garrisons to storm the castle in Cyr, and in his final act before execution, Yuntil burned the Charter. No copies had been made, so the kingdom had to begin again. In 2012, the British vessel RMS Queen of Scots ran aground on the Hafrich Peninsula and found the local populace to be extremely helpful, if not a little guarded about their society. The ship’s captain decided to act as ambassador and requested an audience with the sitting King, Elberon X. While Elberon did not appear to be enthusiastic about relations with unknown outside nations, they did assist the crew with transport home and sent a gift of local art. Eventually formal envoys were dispatched from Britain and the die was cast – Tarkio could no longer remain in isolation. The state of Tarkio at the time the Queen ran aground can be likened to Commodore Perry’s expedition to Japan in 1854 – the society the sailors found was extremely pre-industrial and steeped in local tradition. The difference was that the British had no intention of forcing the Tarkian government to explore trade, but instead submitted a proposal for the government’s review. Elberon called an extraordinary session of government and the decision was made to present a vote to the people. The resolution to open Tarkio’s borders narrowly passed and Elberon called the British back to the island to negotiate the appropriate treaties. What happened next was to everyone’s surprise. Elberon had, in secret, dispatched emissaries to Huson, the Saltese Empire, and even Plevna, proposing their inclusion in a united nation that would work together toward prosperity instead of wallowing in isolation and stalemate. Huson and the Saltese Empire were onboard almost immediately, and the ascension of a new dynasty to the throne of Plevna helped to cement the deal. At the present time, all nations are still in the negotiation process to make the transition easier for their governments and people. GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS Little is known about the government of Tarkio prior to the Second Civil War in 1743, as the original Charter was burned and lost to eternity. Records indicate that the King was assisted by a council of city governors, who served as advisors to the King but had no voice in the final decisions of running the country. The governors were free to make city policy as they wished, so long as it did not contradict the Charter of Tarkio. The system created some problems for much of the citizenry who still lived in rural areas outside of city boundaries and had no direct representation, but the decisions of the sovereign rarely impacted these people directly. The Second Charter adopted in 1747 provided for a new system – the country would be divided into provinces surrounding the cities. Each city put forward a governor and the province would have two Provisors who would represent the rural people. In addition, the King was changed from a dynastic position to an elected one, with the people electing the King from the pool of currently-serving Governors and Provisors. At least once every month, the King calls the Governors and Provisors to make major policy decisions affecting the country. All parties vote together on the first draft of a policy. If a vote does not meet a majority of 10, then a second vote is put only to the Governors, where it needs to pass by 3 votes. If the vote passes, then the king signs and stamps the legislation and the law is distributed around the country. A failed policy is tabled and may be brought up at the next session. City Charters are different among the kingdom. Most specify that the Governor calls a local council of five to ten residents of the city, but two cities (Vandec and Sisindre) are known to place all executive power in the Governor himself. All decisions within the city are subject to review on the national level, but this power is rarely exercised as the cities do a good job of checking their policies before enacting them. No word has yet been given on what the governmental structure of the Combined Kingdom will be, but it is likely to be along the lines of a constitutional monarchy. FOREIGN RELATIONS AND MILITARY Tarkio has maintained an isolationist attitude since its founding in 1124, but has maintained a ground military for national defense. The Tarkio Guards also handle internal security as the kingdom’s police force, although larger cities do maintain their own separate constabularies. The Guards have only been called up for war with other nations three times, and participated in two civil wars. The First Civil War in 1579 caused a split allegiance within the Guards, while in the Second Civil War the Guards unilaterally turned against King Yuntil IV. At the time of the Queen’s grounding, Tarkio maintainted trade with Huson and the Saltese Empire, and while not in a direct conflict with Plevna, Tarkio was not in communication with their historic ancestor. Fearing attacks of retribution from Plevna, Tarkio kept to itself for almost two hundred years before reaching out to its trade partners, and even then would not allow merchants from other nations to visit for trade. Instead, Tarkio would send its own merchant ships with instructions that the crews were to spend as little time on foreign land as practical. When the British first sent envoys, word spread of the newly discovered nation and many countries were quick to open trade agreements. Eventually Tarkio was brought under the protection of The Legion, which has enabled significant development within the kingdom’s borders. Tarkio currently trades significantly with five other nations: Vijay ki Talwaar, the Empire of Legion, Sopliaci, Aisuru Kuni, and the Bergen Islands. Tarkio’s main exports are lumber and aluminum, and imports food, marble, iron, and livestock. GEOGRAPHY Tarkio is located on the southern part of a large island in the north central Pacific Ocean and lays claim to a smaller island just offshore called Gafron Island (currently uninhabited). The island is volcanic in origin but the volcanoes are long extinct. Still, the evidence of the island’s formation is clear in the steep and treacherous mountain ranges that cover almost half of its total land area. The climate of Tarkio is temperate but has its extremes. Winters can see temperatures below 0 degrees Fahrenheit and summers have been known to reach 100. There is usually snow accumulation in winter, even in the lowlands, although the lower elevations typically melt within a week. The lower regions are well suited for growing crops and Tarkio can readily feed itself; the imports are for items not available in the country. The average temperature in Tarkio in winter is 35 degrees Fahrenheit, and in summer is 73 degrees. This is based on records for the region, analyzed by British scientists, but no specific data is available to corroborate. Similarly, no data is available about the record high and low temperatures in the kingdom. A large portion of the east side of Tarkio is heavily forested, and it is from here that most of the lumber export is sourced. Most of the rest of the non-mountainous land area is suitable for farming and growing produce, and grassy fields cover most of the undeveloped areas. There are marshy regions in the south with an ecosystem all to themselves. ECONOMY The economy of Tarkio is largely determined by the internal sale of goods and services; imports and exports contribute little. Workers in Tarkio earn an average of around $134.00 per day and are taxed at 20%. Although the taxes are higher than most citizens are comfortable with, they have helped Tarkio to maintain a treasury surplus for years. Tarkio is far behind the technology curve, but that is expected to change with the opening of trade and assistance from other nations. Transportation is still largely by horse and carriage or by watercraft. Tarkio has not independently developed such advances as bicycles for horseless conveyance. The government does maintain a system of roads between cities but does not have roads reaching its neighbors to the north. DEMOGRAPHICS As part of the isolationist policy in Tarkio, there is very little racial diversity. Most citizens are Caucasian, with a small percentage (less than 1%) making up all other races in total. The truly surprising thing to sociologists who have analyzed the country since 2012 is the level of progress in equality that has occurred in Tarkio. Women are guaranteed the same rights as men under Tarkio’s economic and legal systems, and both polygamy and homosexuality are covered under anti-discrimination legislation. Religion has always been central to Tarkian life, with the primary religion being Chuda, which is best described as something of a Christian-Buddhist hybrid. However, drawing from the conditions that drove the first Tarkians away from Plevna, the country has never established a national religion that its citizens are expected to practice. Religious freedom is prevalent, and several other religions are practiced extensively, although Chuda is still practiced by an estimated 60% of the population. By a strange coincidence, Tarkians speak a dialect of English, leading sociologists to suggest that the island was originally settled by Anglo-Saxon descendants prior to 1000 AD. There are no other languages spoken. Most Tarkian children are educated in the home. The country runs a national Academy in Cyr which accepts the most promising students at 16 years of age, but most youths enter apprenticeship by age 18 and learn a trade within the kingdom. CULTURE Tarkians are very artistic and produce wonderful paintings, sculptures, and tapestries. Art is taught at an early age in almost every home. Tarkian music is usually played on simple stringed instruments and flutes, but where it really stands out is in its vocal harmonies. A song with only two distinct vocal parts is generally considered “low art” in Tarkio, and three- and four-part harmonies are much more common. Tarkio even funds its own national Melodic Institute, which is composed of fifty of the country’s best players and singers. The group regularly performs in Cyr, but usually tours the country once per year. Most literature in Tarkio is in the form of poetry. Young Tarkians are taught the importance of all things in nature and it has inspired wonderful wordplay in many artists. Stories are still mainly told through oral recitation and different records of the same story can vary depending on who is doing the telling, and sometimes the transcribing. Cyr does have a Sovereign Library that holds transcribed copies of many of the most popular poems and stories from within the nation. Tarkian diets traditionally consist of large portions of meat (chicken, beef, and rabbit are the three most-consumed meats), smaller fruit and vegetable portions, and some form of bread. It is very reasonably assumed by sociologists that introduction to Western diets may cause a breakdown in the health of Tarkio’s citizens as the relationship between Tarkio and the rest of the world continues to strengthen. Tarkians actually play very few sports beyond childhood games. There are no organized sport leagues within the kingdom, although adults tend to place bets on the outcomes of small card and board games.
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