idea Integration of Saale and Pallamara

[Variota]

With the new map update, Saale and Pallamara have been assigned to me. In order to ensure that IP doesn't become an issue and so that it's fleshed out a bit more, I've planned this OOC thread so I can pull in people when needed and keep everyone (including myself) in the know in regards to how it's going. I might also leave some things open to the opinion of the general community.

So, first things first, the easier/harder one: Saale. Saale is easier because there's been very little written by Saale but at the same time, that also makes it more difficult. 

Basic Saale info:
Population: 11,008,652
Area: 171.546 km2
Density: ~64/km2

Now, that's about it in regards to basic info about Saale. I had to calculate the land area myself and there's nothing about the economy. If I read the climate map correctly, Saale falls under a humid continental (?) climate. This makes it somewhat similar to Eastern Europe, which fits with Argis. With the density of the area being lower than Variota proper, I'm thinking of perhaps making the area the breadbasket of the nation. Its location could also mean that it exports to Argis, although the nations there are generally lower income so I'm not entirely sure how much they'd be importing.

Saale had it written down that the nation was mostly Salish, about 95%. I think that's a bit too high for the area, even with integration/assimilation and general murder or death of the original inhabitants. Variot colonizers would have preferred to work with the local population and wouldn't have stopped immigration from other areas so long as they'd behave and pay their taxes. For now I'm thinking of:

• Variot 70%
• Girks 5%
• Valacians 10%
• Limonaians 5%
• Random Slavs ('original inhabitants') 5%
• Ivericans/Beleareans 5%

The larger amount of Valacians, about one million, would be due to the close proximity of the nation and the relative instability found there. With Valacia not being active, this would be somewhat of a gamble and I'm not entirely sure if it's worth the risk even if it makes sense. If I end up not using Valacians, I'll probably up the other groups equally.

Now, for the name of the land, I thought about looking to Argis and the meaning of the word but seeing as Argis means white... Whiteland or something like that just ends up sounding unintentionally offensive for a place not in an arctic climate. Keelpijpkolonie (Keelpijp Colony) sounds reasonable with the location of Herenthem being where it is, although I feel like that's a bit impersonal; after all, I don't expect people to live in a place for hundreds of years without wanting their own name. This could be circumvented a bit by just naming the area the Keelpijpkolonies and having smaller areas get their own names; this would also allow certain areas to get more foreign-names as places could have been founded by the other ethnicities. That'd also be somewhat close to what Saale intended for his nation, as far as I can tell.

In regards to history, I'm looking at the area being colonized relatively early in my history. This would be driven on by the rapid expansion of Variota proper, mostly along the coast as they'd have less experience working the land, and the influx of new clans and what not; the Keelpijpkolonies would serve as a way to get new fishing grounds and a way to trade for produce and other needed goods from the inhabitants. This goal of the Keelpijpkolonies serving as the breadbasket would continue on to modern times.

Beyond that, I feel that genuine integration of the area as an equal part of the nation instead of a colony would come after Klan Reierfer was integrated. Potentially, the start of the industrial revolution and such could be a reason for this as well; with Variota proper moving more towards urbanization and industrialization, the area's breadbasket status would become even more important. Their status would probably be semi-autonomous, higher than the various provinces but lower than, say, Lukinagrad or the Klan Reierfer

If anyone has any interesting ideas, feel free to mention them. I'm open to brainstorming in that regard. Also tagging @Valacia, @Girkmand, @Limonaia, @Iverica and @Beleareas in regards to their people being named as part of the area. In case you don't want any of your people in my lands, just say so.

[Tagmatium Rules]

Obviously you've got Lukinagrad on the opposite side of the Keelpijp, but do you have any reason as to why past-Variota wouldn't have just skipped across the other side of it, rather than colonised what is currently Saale?

I know that's a bit of an awkward question, since it's not so much of an IC matter as an OOC one, considering that you've been given the country due to recent events.

But I suppose it's an idea that needs an explanation, to a greater or lesser extent.

The idea of the area being a patchwork of colonies is pretty cool, though. It might reflect the varied nature of the ethnicities and influence of the countries that surround what was Saale.

[Variota]

I do, actually. The pre-written parts of my history fit even better now. Lukinagrad was the capital of a reasonably sized empire and had been so for a couple of hundred years by then. The empire situated there, even if their fleet could have been defeated, would have won if we had attempted to invade it.

The founding of ex-Saale would serve as an additional reason for us to attempt the Treaty of Ferrefaaierhafen, which ensured neutral waters in the Keelpijp and would lower the burden of both defending the colony and its trade. Similarly, the Lukan Empire's golden age was stopped by the Treaty as they declined signing it. Frijkaapers, our version of filthy pirates/gracious privateers, harassed Lukan trade and patrols so much that the empire ended up signing simply because the lack of trade increased unrest so much that they either had to sign or face massive revolts. In the end, the loss of ships and the existing unrest meant that the empire still saw the start of a decline that only ended when Lukinagrad had lost pretty much everything. 

Now, with these colonies being a breadbasket, it'd additionally explain the Frijkaapers. With other means of food coming in, there'd be a lesser need for ships to fish, etc. as well as spurring on population growth; plenty of food means there's one less worry for families so they might as well get a kid or two extra. Which, in turn, would end up as young adults looking to make their fortune on the ships that are now available due to a lesser burden on the fishing industry. 

In addition, it'd also exist as a reason why we never hopped over later on. Doing so would risk tearing up the Treaty, which was seen by Variotans as greatly beneficial throughout history. 

[Tagmatium Rules]

Will this effectively mean that you'll have to boost your navy, to help secure your far flung empire?

[Seylos]

There's a bit about this that concerns me. On discord this seems to have just been handed over, which feels fairly unusual. These are pretty substantial chunks of land and if both country's have relatively similar populations it's basically a 50% increase in Variota's population.  Are these nations going to stay the same? Or are they going to revert to some kind of proto colonial state to build them up?

If anything I just want to make sure there is quite a bit of RP to justify this very large expansion. Is there an RP in the works for this?