Rostrum Independence Movement

Rostrum Independence Movement
Location		Lavesk, South Littorial, Pegan, Rostrum
Result		{{{treaty/outcome}}}
Belligerents
Strength
Casualties and Losses

The Spice Independence Movement, more colloquially known as the Lake Periphery Conflict, was a war between the aligned states of southern Zeraor and the Zeraoan Union. The war saw extensive global involvement, with the nations of the world aligning on one side or the other over the central issue of which side was the legitimate government following the 2070 elections. The war led to the formation of the state of Rostrum.

☀From left to right, top to bottom: Remains of Reciprocity Heavy Assault Guns after a battle, 2nd Anti-Aircraft Division in formation for an air assault, Vihor civilian repurposed attack aircraft bombing Spice units, M6 Rhodie aflame after being hit, 1st Armored Battalion in formation, 4th Light Tank Battalion in combat against Spice.

Prelude

Only shortly after revealing themselves as a legal political party, the Spice Independence Movement won the election within the state of Meridonalis in 2069 with nearly 95% of the popular vote. Following this came victories in Lavesk, Littorial, Pegan, and Rostrum leaving over half of the nation within independence seeking electorates..

Global Distrust and Treaty

Worldwide nations began closing their borders to the Reciprocity, fearing the new party would cause instability despite repeated statements of their desire to remain inward-oriented.

In 2069 Fegeland and Aquaria blockaded Zeraor in its entirety, citing multiple arms purchases by the movement as their reason. This blockade was lifted following the nonaggression pact signed between Fegeland and representatives of various Independence aligned states..

The Spice - Fegeland Treaty of 2069

First Airborne Division

The integration of the Siligo region into the movement resulted in the defection of the Technocracy's First Airborne Division to Aquaria. Claiming they were not loyal to the expanding Spice Independent States they sought asylum in Aquaria, nearly running out of fuel before cleared to land. The incident harmed Aquarian-Spice Relations and put further tension on the region.

The Occupation of Noval

The spark that started the Lake Periphery Conflict was the forced integration of Noval into The Independent States sphere, following the alleged shoot-down of a Spice passenger jet while over the state.

"To put it simply, this is the last straw. We will not wait while Noval does more harm to our civilians and economy. The occupation will most likely be temporary as we check on what had happened to the aircraft." _{-Spice Independent Senator}

War in Zeraor

Following this event Spice units rolled across the border and began occupying the state of Noval. Zeraror National Army forced were slow to respond as the conflict entered overt hostilities.

Ground War in Pagan

Dust Harvest armor quickly overran Spice units in Laveska and pushed east along the coast, while units from Meridionalis faced tougher resistance along the southern frontier.

A Spice Assault gun lies torn open as a Dust Harvest Rhodie IX Cruises by.

Reciprocity units were beaten back again and again by Armored cars of Dust Harvest, which gave them a tactical advantage. By February 2071 dozens of Spice vehicles had been knocked out and Dust Harvest continued dominating in the air and on land. The leader of the Reciprocity, Untes Kerman, gave the order to begin evacuating civilians while ordering a defensive war to its military. The purchase of 25 M6 Rhodie Heavy tanks from Zokesia facilitated a counterattack in Littoral, which made headway and forced Dust Harvest to divert troops north.

Spice army units engage Dust Harvest Armored Cars at range, early in the war.

Sinking of RMS Alisa

April 2, 2071, the pride of the Blytheian passenger liners, RMS Alisa, sank while doing an important mission for trade to spice and for picking civilians up as part of the international attempt to relocate Reciprocity citizens fleeing from Dust Harvest. Sunk by an unidentified vessel in what is presumed to be waters of Dust Harvest, the loss of thousands of innocent lives was a foreshadowing of the darker turns ahead for Spice's citizens.

Destruction of Spice Cities

Dust Harvest began launching flying bombs toward Spice cities around the same time the Alisa was sunk. A wave of flying bombs flew to strike the cities of Blaenau, Gingiva, Uguis, and many other cities within Pagan and Rostrum. The unannounced surprise airstrikes alongside the seemingly large payloads of the flying bombs killed an estimated 1,500 Kerbals, most of them civilians. These attacks prompted the international community to further condemn Dust Harvest.

An artist's rendering of a Dust Harvest ICBM in flight

The flashpoint of international intrest was when Unguis, capital of Rostrum, was struck by hundreds of ballistic weapons. A massive amount of flying bombs and ICBMs, all of which were still filled with extremely flammable and explosive fuel, flattened entire sections of the city and set fires in what remained.

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The bombing of Spice cities, April 2071

Untes Kerman, president of Rostrum and the only leader of the Spice Reciprocity, was killed in the massive strike. Over 10,000 Kerbals were also killed in the massive attack.

It was also confirmed that a Valsang evacuation tanker that was in port at the time was hit either by a projectile or by collateral damage. The ship itself suffered damage to parts above the waterline, mostly to the superstructure. Nobody on the ship was killed at the time. Dust Harvest claimed it was payback for the landings in Littoral, but the nations of the world were outraged and began confederating against Dust Harvest.

The wrecks of over a dozen Wo'vian armored tractors, in the aftermath of battle, May 2071.

International Support of Spice

By late April it was obvious the Reciprocity was in full civil war, and Dust Harvest was winning that war. As a result, Wo', Owlia, Blythia, New Grestin and Elysium stepped in and began sending troops to Rostrum. Over 200 ground units and aircraft from the world's nations began deploying in Rostrum, driving towards the front in an attempt to prevent the encirclement of the remains of the Spice Reciprocity's military. Dust Harvest was still enjoying a huge kill to loss ratio over Spice's units in both the air and on the ground.

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July 2071. The nations of Wo' (Pink) and Elysium (Yellow) landed troops to support Spice while Owlia provided air support based in their home nation. Blythian units (purple) overran the neutral state of Zaror on their way to the border with Dust in the east while Zimori units began landing to support the assault in the east (White and Gold).

The Littoral expedition was halted by Dust harvest Armored Cars and the pocket was beginning to close around Spice's military. 100 Wo'vian tractor tanks and 20 Elysium Heavy Tanks went up against Dust Harvest groups with mixed success; Wo' suffered horrendous defeat while Elysium was able to prevent further encirclement.

The July Offensive

The surrender of three divisions of Spice units came as a beginning of the end for the Reciprocity. The state of Pagan was nearly entirely under Dust Harvest control and Dust units were poised to move into Rostrum. Zimor began actively supporting Dust, while in the west Blythia overran the neutral state of Zaror to invade Dust Harvest in Stagnum. casualties mounted on both sides as the number of units fighting increased and the loss ratio began evening out. With aid arriving from Zokesia, Dust Harvest activated the Harvest Legion comprised of the 1st and 2nd Zokesian Armored Corps, clandestinely flying Dust Harvest colors. These units participated in the defense of Melohyne against Blythian divisions until the end of the war.

Peace in the Reciprocity

The End of Dust War Treaty, signalling a formal end to the conflict.

In late July the fronts stagnated, and New Grestin began a diplomatic push for the war to come to an end.

Timelapse of the war.

The night of August 19th, 2071, Peter, New Grestin's Commander in Chief, and Unni Kerman, New Grestin's Head of the Office of Foreign Affairs met with Dust Harvest leaders to discuss ending the Spice-Dust war. Though New Grestin had fully been committed to the war, and was armed and ready to fight, when officials heard the radio calls of one of the last military officers of Spice call out their woes and wounded capacity, New Grestin Foreign Affairs advisers came to terms with what the war would mean if we continued. Terms were made, and an agreement was formed. Formalizing the official end, to the Dust Harvest War.

Dust Harvest formally became the Dust Harvest States Upon the Lake's Periphery (DHP) and consisted of all previous Reciprocity states save Rostrum. A strip between Algiza and Rostrum and the eastern part of Rostrum became the Reciprocity State of Rostrum, an independent nation where Reciprocity loyalists live and take refuge from Dust Harvest.