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The section covers the Empire of Ursus, a northern Terran power founded a thousand years ago when the hero Igor led the Ursus to overthrow their Hippogryph rulers, Liberi Elders who had fled the Sarkaz and taken the Ursus as serfs. After the Nightzmora invasion exposed Hippogryph weakness, Igor—a rare non-Hippogryph officer—led a revolution; in year 31 Deity Grypherburg fell and Igor was crowned Tsar. His names, including the Hippogryph military title Lacitsar ("the Bear Raiser"), gave rise to the three-name structure of modern Ursine names.
Expansion defined the Empire for a millennium. Igor died campaigning against Hippogryph remnants in the east, a task completed under his son Aleksey the Young after nearly a century. Ursine conquests devastated many civilizations, forcing the Sami northward, but the First Ursus-Kazimierz War ended in defeat, prompting military, parliamentary, and legal reforms. Tsar Vladimir Ivanovich industrialized using technology taken from Gaul, won further wars against Kazimierz and the Sami, and planned attacks on Leithanien, Higashi, and Londinium. The Bloodpeak Campaign of 1072, a shocking defeat that forced retreat from Higashi, broke his health; he died within a year.
His son Fyodor curtailed the army's power, but in 1074 the Sixth Army executed a governorate council and, with other armies, besieged Deity Grypherburg, beginning the Great Rebellion, a civil war ending in 1076 with the annihilation of the Sixth and Eighth Armies. Millions died; the armies were disbanded or exiled, and the Empire faced political divide, Oripathy crisis, and inequality.
The Tsar heads the State Council and commands the Imperskaya Army, now seven Armies. Governorates and autonomous Army territories form the administration. Nobility stems from military merit (old nobles) or industry (new nobles). Military law is harshly enforced; the civilian judiciary lacks autonomy. The economy rests on the military-industrial complex and Originium mining worked by forced laborers. The Infected face persecution among the worst in Terra, drawing international attention only after the Chernobog-Lungmen Incident.
Chernobog, a nomadic city powered by a "sarcophagus" found by the noble Boris, grew amid military faction struggles; after the incident it was rebuilt as a Federal Territory under the Tsar, populated mainly by Infected. Ursus stands at a crossroads, its war machine halted and licking its wounds.
The section opens with an unnamed figure who, after going into exile in 1075, spent fifteen years traveling across Terra, passing away in Victoria in 1090 without ever returning to Ursus.
The Empire of Ursus is an established power in the north of Terra, known for its harsh environment, hardy folk, and strong military. The land once belonged to the Hippogryph Kingdom of the Liberi Elders. A thousand years ago, the legendary hero Igor led the Ursus to overthrow the Hippogryphs, and they named their new country after their own race. For a thousand years the Empire maintained a staunch military tradition under the descendants of Igor Velikiy, but today it stands at a crossroads, threatened by political and social crises.
The region's history predates Ursus. The first civilization in the northern mountains was founded by Liberi Elders fleeing the Sarkaz threat, who called themselves the Hippogryphs and established the Hippogryph Kingdom. Hippogryph nobles lived in hill-top castles, treating the "people down below" as "inferior races" and recruiting Ancients as servants and soldiers—in effect, serfs. The most prominent of these Ancients were the Ursus, who migrated north with the Liberi Hippogryphs, adapted to the harsh environment faster than their masters, and were "rewarded" with more, harder work. For centuries rage brewed, until the Nightzmora Khagan's armies set foot on Hippogryph land. The ragtag defense hastily organized from the already bled-dry Ursus collapsed, and the weakness and cowardice of the Hippogryphs became apparent. Scattered rebellions broke out after the Nightzmora moved on, led by the Ursus officer who would become Igor the Great.
Igor was one of the few non-Hippogryphs elevated to command. Conscripted young, he began as little more than an errand boy, but displayed extraordinary combat skill and talent for command, earning promotion into the officer ranks and reputation among the linemen and Ursus. When revolution broke out, he proved a charismatic leader, and more Ursus flocked to his banner with each victory. In the year 31, after four years of fierce fighting, Deity Grypherburg, capital of the Hippogryph Kingdom, fell to the revolutionary army. Igor was crowned Tsar with the full support of his officers.
Tsar Igor the Great is a legendary hero whose many names passed down over a thousand years. Some say he was a gift from Terra herself, hence "Igor Ursus"; others claim humble peasant origins, hence "Igor Borisovich". Old records suggest the Hippogryph King added a true surname to Igor's name, but Igor's son abandoned it after Igor's passing, producing the three-name structure of modern Ursine names. The best-known name is Igor Lacitsar, a military title bestowed by the Hippogryph meaning "the Bear Raiser"; modern Ursine invoking Lacitsar call for a fearless commander to lead them to victory. Upon taking the throne, Igor declared himself "Lord of the Empire of Ursus and the Empire of Hippogryph", "King of the Northern Land", "Ruler of the Tundra", "The First Champion", and "The Rebel". These titles established the practice of referring to the Hippogryph Kingdom as a constituent empire within Ursus, likely to legitimize the new empire, though in reality the Hippogryphs ruled a kingdom—only the Ursines call it the "Hippogryph Empire".
Expansion has been constant throughout Ursus history. The land Igor took comprised only the central hills; the rest came through a thousand years of conquest. Igor's first act as Tsar was to campaign against Hippogryph remnants who refused his rule; he died in his tent during this stalemate, which lasted more than two decades. His eldest son, Aleksey Igorevich—"Aleksey the Young"—made the eastern campaign the keystone of imperial strategy; it took three generations and nearly a century to eliminate the remnants. Aleksey ascended the throne at sixteen, and a plausible theory holds that real power early in his reign lay with Igor's generals, who drove the eastern expansion; still, Aleksey proved a capable warrior, and the practice of sending the Ursine heir for military training began with him.
Over the next millennium, expansion followed the mold of the eastern campaign. The sword of Ursus does not discriminate: invasion meant wealth plundered, land occupied, and culture destroyed; many civilizations were wiped from history, and the Sami tribes were forced to migrate to the northernmost part of Terra near the Infy Icefield to survive. Not all conquests went smoothly: against Kazimierz, the poorly trained, outdated Ursine armies suffered heavy losses against Kazimierz's elite knightly orders, and the outdated logistics system inherited from the Hippogryphs left the frontline undersupplied, leading to defeat in the First Ursus-Kazimierz War. That crushing defeat prompted sweeping military and political reforms, including a parliamentary system, administrative regions, and a code of law. Whether victorious or defeated, Ursus's thirst for expansion continued; the Imperial Army grew, and the power of the Nobles of Military Service increased.
Tsar Vladimir Ivanovich had fought in the War of the Four Nations, witnessing Gaulish Originium technology firsthand; technology taken from Gaul ushered in a golden era for the Ursine war machine. He built new Originium factories at breakneck pace, and economic and military strength grew rapidly, though old-guard military nobility resented the rise of "industrial nobles". He started the Ninth and Tenth Ursus-Kazimierz Wars, pushing Kazimierzian lines back a hundred kilometers; intensified attacks on the Sami; and had designs on Leithanien, distant Higashi, and even, rumor held, the siege of Londinium. The turning point was the Bloodpeak Campaign of 1072, where the Eastern Army suffered a shocking defeat that forced its retreat from Higashi. Shaken, Vladimir fell gravely ill and died within a year. The failed invasion deeply shook the Empire's social order and the Tsar's authority—authority that rested on war, since soldiers revere a victorious Tsar but quickly doubt a failing or indecisive one.
His son Fyodor immediately weakened the army's influence, promoted civilian councilors, and proposed the "Territory to Governorate" reform. In summer 1074, soldiers beat a noble in a tavern in Gregorskaya Guberniya and demanded the governor's council punish the victim, sparking protests; that winter, the Sixth Army invaded the governorate under pretext of restoring order and executed the entire council for treason. Fyodor recalled the marshal, who defied him, mobilized the Third, Eighth, and part of the Fourth Armies to occupy three governorates around the capital, and demanded restoration of the army's authority and the Tsar's abdication. Negotiations broke down in late 1074; the Fifth Army reportedly attacked the Sixth at the Tsar's order, the Sixth and Eighth fought back and besieged Deity Grypherburg, and Fyodor decreed the four mutinous armies traitors. The Central Army defended the capital until the Second and Seventh Armies returned from the Kazimierzian front. The civil war lasted until winter 1076, ending with the annihilation of the Sixth and Eighth Armies. Millions died and countless factories were destroyed; the Sixth and Eighth were disbanded, the complicit Third and Fourth reassigned to remote regions, and loyal old-guard nobles demanded council seats. For the next twenty years, political division, the Oripathy crisis, and social inequality were exposed and magnified, forcing difficult decisions upon Tsar Fyodor.
The memoirs of Lieutenant Yuri Zaitsev of the Fourth Army record the army's negative attitude toward combat: his unit waited in position for weeks without orders, while the General Staff left unopened imperial orders in silk envelopes on their desks, leaving soldiers gripped by fear not of the enemy, but of witnessing a side of the Empire they were never meant to see. The returning, defeated Sixth Army found the Tsar's commissioned monument inscribed "Imperial Triumph", which the soldiers saw as an insult.
Geographically, the Empire's terrain rises from west to east—from open plains to central low hills to tall eastern mountains. The south is temperate, winters grow longer and colder northward, and the eastern mountains show alpine characteristics. Ursus borders Kazimierz, Leithanien, and Yan, with the Sami lands and the Infy Icefield to the north. Much of the conquered territory is undeveloped and barely governed, yet Ursus still strives to expand.
The Ursine absolute monarchy stems from its martial founding: the Tsar is to Ursus what a commander is to soldiers, and defiance of his will is high treason. The Tsar heads the State Council and is supreme commander of the Imperial Army; the council answers to him, governors answer to the central government, and major military actions require his approval. Virtually every living person in Ursus is a soldier of this army-state.
The official name of the Ursine Imperial Army is Imperskaya Army. It seldom acts as a single coordinated entity: while the Tsar sets general direction, each marshal determines specific strategy with large autonomy. There were nine Armies before the Great Rebellion; after the Sixth and Eighth were disbanded, seven remain, and official sources claim each can be bolstered to over a million men during wartime mobilization. Military nobles' authority rests on unit strength, and through Leithanian influence, Ursus integrated Originium Arts into conquest, with dedicated war-caster academies. On the front lines, the heavily armored Shieldguard Regiment and veteran Vanguards are followed by heavy drones marking targets for battleship bombardment; the army holds an almost fanatical belief in heavy armor and artillery, believing cold armor shields one's human self from the battlefield's inhumanity while flames burn away weakness.
State Council councilors are either noble representatives nominated by the Tsar or imperial representatives nominated by governorates' councils and appointed by him. The Council, the highest legislative organ, was established after the First Ursus-Kazimierz War along with governorates and local councils, its first members partly retired officers and partly active military nobles, which long gave the military significant influence. The rise of industrial nobles gave it actual authority; the present Chairman, Islam Witte, is one of these new nobles. The primary administrative division is the governorate, each with sedentary settlements and nomadic cities; the Tsar-appointed governor organizes councils of noble representatives. Army territories exist independently of governorates, comprising regular encampments and fiefdoms of Nobles of Military Service, with their own administrative and legal systems determined by the marshal and his staff; under Tsar Vladimir, land was often granted for military merit.
Ursine nobility originated in military awards: Tsars and Grand Dukes gave titles for merit, even within the imperial family status often rested on military service rather than blood, and commoners of extraordinary valor could be ennobled—over a millennium this meritocracy formed the "old nobility". Under Tsar Vladimir, Originium industry and nomadic cities brought "industrial nobles", or "new nobles", wealthy civilians who bought titles through huge payments; the Tsar called factory workers his "industrial soldiers" and measured merit in production. Yet the divide is not always clear: after the Great Rebellion, old nobles invested in mines and refineries through their Armies, while new nobles enlisted young relatives into the military to raise their status.
Military law is perhaps the only consistently enforced law. Martial merit is richly rewarded, violations harshly punished; offenders have committed suicide before tribunals could pronounce judgment, and in many cases "military law" is simply summary judgment by a high-ranking officer. Ursus also has a relatively comprehensive civilian judiciary with councils, courts, and police in each governorate and nomadic city, but it lacks autonomy, and the Tsar may intervene at any level—though in practice direct intervention is rare.
The foundation of the economy is the military-industrial complex, one of Terra's biggest and most advanced. Major cities became industrial centers packed with factories, with profits flowing to the rich and powerful. Deity Grypherburg is the most important industrial center, with the west lagging. Ursus also has robust Originium mining and metal processing tied to the military; most mineral deposits lie in the harsh western regions bordering Kazimierz and Sami, where the Armies hold the territories and mining rights. Forced laborers in the northwest mines work day and night in ice and snow, their output shipped to central and eastern factories. When Igor captured Deity Grypherburg in year 31, he retained its name and made it the capital; in 1033 Tsar Vladimir decreed the city and his palace relocated onto a massive mobile platform, and it became the Empire's industrial hub.
Ursus has roughly eighty million people, mostly in the central regions where terrain is flat, climate warm, and the Core near; nearly ten million live in Deity Grypherburg and its surrounding nomadic cities, while the northwest tundra holds almost solely mine laborers and the local Army. Tsar Vladimir promoted outsiders to prominent positions over objections; his tolerance sparked enthusiasm, with citizens of various races proudly calling Ursus home. (One margin note by an unattributed reader observes that race-based discrimination still exists in Ursus, though less severe than discrimination against the Infected, citing Buldrokkas'tee, a Sarkaz whose race prevented him from rising above Captain.)
Ursine culture, beyond the militaristic, hard-drinking image, boasts a rich tradition of literature, music, dance, and theater in which all social classes take pride. Under late Tsar Vladimir, works depicting Igor's rebellion pushed realist art off the stage in favor of war mythology. Recently, Columbia's and Kazimierz's culture—rock records and knight competition tapes—floods underground markets. The plight of the Infected, however, is among Terra's worst: long excluded from society, many are sent to tundra mines, while those in nomadic cities hide their identities to survive; nobles openly encouraged persecution, forming Infected Patrol Units to root out and dispose of them. Deity Grypherburg's decrees achieved little, and only the Chernobog-Lungmen Incident expanded the Infected issue beyond the Empire.
Tsar Vladimir once said, "Wheresoever my hands point, there stands Ursus." After a thousand years of bitter warfare, the war machine stands at a crossroads, licking its wounds, its next wielder and target unknown.
Ursine culture also reveres "Yurodstvo" (holy fools), those who seem raving lunatics yet express profound insight; tradition holds them blessed, but truth is closer to a curse. One becomes a Yurodstvo through a ritual, possibly originating in Sami but now practiced only on Ursine soil, granting abilities beyond ordinary people but shattering the mind and condemning the recipient to madness—which allows piercing the veil of reality and even binding demon fragments to mortal flesh. The Tsars kept the Yurodstvo a "guest of honor" in Deity Grypherburg, and using the Yurodstvo's power and demonic fragments from the north, created a unit whose bodies were destroyed in fusion with the fragments, surviving on life-support apparatuses, their minds "enlightened" into inhumanity. These "Emperor's Blades" heed no one's commands—not the Yurodstvo, nor the Tsar himself—and the mortal Tsar paid the price for his hubristic greed.
An account of the founding revolution describes Deity Grypherburg after the Nightzmora departure: defeated Hippogryph nobles imposed harsher rule, conscripting around 200,000 peasants and soldiers to rebuild the city with timber from Leithanien and stone from Victoria, hoping to symbolize the kingdom's rebirth regardless of Ursine lives. In TC 18, laborers missing the harvest killed their overseers and seized a half-constructed tower; thirty dispatched soldiers defected, forming a rebel force of 60 to 70. Igor, now titled "The First Champion" for fighting the Nightzmora, was sent with a construction unit to quell it. Finding the rebels fortified, Igor removed his armor, entered the tower alone—and emerged without a word, the ground behind him littered with bodies. Official records claim he executed over sixty rebels; a more credible account suggests he persuaded his countrymen to take their own lives. He cried for hours that night, according to those who later fought beside him. The Hippogryph rulers raised him to colonel by TC 25, though everyone knew Igor truly commanded the troops. In winter TC 27 he led a sweeping uprising, having secretly coordinated military and civilian groups for years; after three grueling years, with even some Hippogryph nobles aligning with the rebels, the insurgents triumphed in TC 31, preserving Deity Grypherburg as a symbol of reconciliation. Igor was crowned Tsar, and the Ursus Empire replaced the Hippogryph Kingdom.
Chernobog, though devastated by the Chernobog-Lungmen Incident nearly three years prior, has stubbornly survived. Once a colossal nomadic city of more than 30 plates, bustling and cosmopolitan, it excluded the Infected, who were sent to local nobles' estates for labor until their final days. The city arose from the rise of Originium industry and the industrial nobility's defiance of militarism: around 1070, the new noble Boris discovered the "sarcophagus" near the mining town, which could output significant energy without Originium. After the Bloodpeak Campaign broke the war-for-profit cycle and the Great Rebellion showed military factions tightening their grip, the Fourth Army forcibly entered Chernobog to seize the sarcophagus but failed. Boris, clashing with the Third Army over raw material pricing, appointed himself mayor and created a nominal council, but could not arm himself against the Armies.
Six months after the incident, Ursus and Yan reached agreement: Ursus compensated part of the damages, Yan forgave a portion for Chernobog's reconstruction, with Tsar Fyodor reportedly crucial in pushing it through. A smaller city was rebuilt for survivors; Chernobog became a Federal Territory under a federal council and the Tsar's direct oversight. Since most residents were destined to become Infected, this deviated from traditional harsh policies—prompting some opposition and the surrounding of the city by Armies to prevent mass escape. Today only about a dozen plates remain; checkpoints now ensure no Infected leave. Many Infected from elsewhere fled to Chernobog, judging these "privileges" better than dangerous mines; even some ordinary people chose to live there, and many district council members are local Infected. After the sarcophagus was retrieved, Chernobog became just another cold, oppressive town—yet unique: protected by the reigning Tsar, populated mostly by Infected, with the military forces' role, defense or encirclement, an open question. (A margin note by an unattributed reader claims to have helped the Ursines study the sarcophagi, mainly to control the pace of progress and prevent them being killed by their own curiosity.)
EPIGRAPH
My old friend, the poet Oleg Rublev spoke on his new book, Pad Oblakami (Under the Clouds), as we conversed before the fireplace:
We've arrived at a new era, with joy and apprehension in our hearts, paying respects to the beauty of the past and the glory of the future, even as we feel overwhelmed and bewildered. We seek to build a new era, to learn from the deeds of our forefathers. But the ghosts of the past linger with us. We haven't even distinguished the difference between them and ourselves. I have dreamt that I was I, and lit my poems to illuminate my surroundings, only to find nothing but broken blades and dead bodies; I have dreamt that I was a child, full of joy with my entire life ahead of me...
After going into exile in 1075, he spent the next fifteen years traveling across Terra, passing away in Victoria in 1090. He never returned to Ursus.
The Empire of Ursus is an established power located in the north of Terra, known for its harsh environment, hardy folk, and strong military. This land once belonged to the Hippogryph Kingdom of the Liberi Elders. One thousand years ago, the legendary hero Igor led the Ursus to overthrow the Hippogryphs. They named their new country the Empire of Ursus, after their own race.
For a thousand years, the Empire maintained a staunch military tradition, the saber of Ursus cutting a path through Terra, guided by the descendants of Igor Velikiy. Today, however, the Empire stands at a crossroads, threatened by significant political and social crises.
An Ursine Chervonets (gold coin), minted in 1034 by order of Tsar Vladimir Ivanovich. During his reign, the imperial power of Ursus reached its zenith.
The history of this region goes back much further than Ursus. The first civilization in the northern mountains of Terra was founded by Liberi Elders, fleeing the Sarkaz threat. They called themselves the Hippogryphs, and named their land the Hippogryph Kingdom. Hippogryph nobles lived in hill-top castles high in the mountains, taking the "people down below" as "inferior races" and recruiting the Ancients as their servants and soldiers: in effect, serfs. Most prominent amongst these Ancients were the Ursus, who migrated to the north with the Liberi Hippogryphs. These hardy people took to the harsh environment of the north quicker than the Hippogryphs. They were "rewarded" with more, harder work.
For centuries, rage brewed in the hearts of the Ursus, until the Nightzmora Khagan's armies set foot on Hippogryph land. The ragtag defense that Hippogryph nobles hastily organized out of the Ursus, whom they had already bled dry, quickly collapsed, and Nightzmora rampaged unchecked. The weakness and cowardice of the Hippogryphs was apparent, and at long last the Ursus realized that there was no future in serving them. Scattered rebellions broke out after the Nightzmora Khagan's armies moved on. The Hippogryphs recognized the unrest in their kingdom, but cared little about solving their domestic problems, nor did they have the capability to do so. Revolution began to brew beneath the noses of the Hippogryph nobles, led by the Ursus officer who would become known as Igor the Great.
Igor was one of the few non-Hippogryphs to be elevated to a position of command. Conscripted at a young age, he started out as little more than an errand boy, but soon displayed extraordinary combat skill and talent for command, earning him a promotion into the officer ranks. His military exploits won him the recognition of Hippogryph nobles, and reputation amongst the linemen and Ursus. His position was convenient for the revolution's early plans, giving him access to both men and information.
When revolution broke out, he proved a charismatic leader and outstanding soldier, triumphing over the Hippogryphs time and again. More Ursus flocked to Igor's banner with each victory, determined to take ownership of
the land that they tilled for the Hippogryphs. In the year 31, after four years of fierce fighting, Deity Grypherburg, capital of the Hippogryph Kingdom, finally fell to the revolutionary army. Following in the Hippogryphs' foot-steps, the Ursus named their new country after themselves, and the Empire of Ursus was born in Deity Gypherburg. Igor was crowned Tsar (Emperor) in Deity Grypherburg, with the full support of his officers.
Tsar Igor the Great is undoubtedly a legendary hero in Ursus. Over the course of a thousand years, his many names have been passed down through generations. Some say this great warrior was a gift sent to Ursus by Terra herself, which is why his name was "Igor Ursus". Others claim he was of humble, peasant origins, and thus he was named with the patronymic "Igor Borisovich". Old records suggest that the Hippogryph King added a true surname to the end of Igor's name, but the additional name was soon abandoned by Igor's son after Igor's passing, and that was the origin of the three-name structure of modern Ursine names.
The most well-known of Igor's many names is Igor Lacitsar, a military title bestowed upon him by Hippogryph meaning "the Bear Raiser". This title granted him command over the Ursine armies during the founding wars. Under this new epithet, Igor led his forces with unmatched strength. Later literary and artistic works would often refer to him by this name, cementing it in Ursus's collective memory. When modern Ursine invoke the name Lacitsar, they are calling for a fearless commander to lead them to victory.
When Igor ascended to the throne, he declared himself "Lord of the Empire of Ursus and the Empire of Hippogryph", "King of the Northern Land", "Ruler of the Tundra", "The First Champion", and "The Rebel". These titles established the practice of referring to the Hippogryph Kingdom as constituent empire within Ursus, likely to legitimize the new empire founded by a rebel army. In reality, what the Hippogryphs ruled was undoubtedly a kingdom, and only the Ursines refer to it as the "Hippogryph Empire".
Expansion has been a constant throughout the history of Ursus. The land that Igor took from the Hippogryphs comprised only the hills in the central region of the modern empire; the rest of its vast expanses came as the result of a thousand years of conquest.
Igor the Great's first act after taking the throne was not to rebuild the empire, but to lead a campaign against Hippogryph remnants who refused to accept his rule, in order to ensure stability and security for his people. The task was not accomplished in Igor's lifetime; he died in his tent during the long campaign against Hippogryph remnants in the eastern mountains, a stalemate that lasted more than two decades.
His mantle was taken up by his eldest son, Aleksey Igorevich. It was under "Aleksey the Young" that the eastern campaign became the keystone of the Empire's strategy, with the ultimate goal of eliminating the Hippogryph remnants that continued to harass Ursus. It took three generations and nearly a century to accomplish this goal.
Over the next millennium, the expansion of the Ursus Empire would follow in the mold of the eastern campaign, as the descendants of Igor the Great pointed their swords towards the rest of Terra. The sword of Ursus does not discriminate when the Empire's armies are on the march. An Ursine invasion means wanton devastation—wealth plundered, land occupied, and culture destroyed. Many civilizations were wiped from history, leaving nothing behind. The sword of Ursus cut them off at the source, until all that remained in the north of Terra was the Ursine war cry. In order to survive, the Sami tribes that once inhabited the northwest region of modern-day Ursus were forced to migrate to the northmost part of Terra, near the Infy Icefield.
Not all of the Empire's conquests went smoothly, as seen when they encountered Kazimierz during their expansion into the west. Kazimierz's origins were similar to Ursus's, but Ursus had no answer for Kazimierz's elite knightly orders. The Ursine armies, consisting of poorly-trained recruits equipped with outdated weaponry, suffered heavy losses on their first clash against Kazimierz. Moreover, due to Ursus's outdated logistics system inherited from the Hippogryphs, the supplies being transported to the frontline were significantly inadequate. These two facts combined led to Ursus's defeat in the First Ursus-Kazimierz War.
Consequently, this crushing defeat also led to sweeping military and political reforms across Ursus, including the formal establishment of a parliamentary system, administrative regions, and a code of law. With newfound vigor, the Ursine war machine would challenge Kazimierz repeatedly over the next several centuries.
Victory or defeat, Ursus's thirst for expansion would not be quenched, leading to a long and virtually uninterrupted legacy of warfare. Subsequent Tsars would reform the Empire and military in different ways, but certain things never change—the Imperial Army continued to grow, the Empire continued to expand, and the power of Nobles of Military Service continued to increase.
Even during the reign of the previous Tsar, there were telling signs of what would eventually become the Great Rebellion, an event that shook the Empire to its core. Tsar Vladimir Ivanovich had fought in the War of the Four Nations, witnessing firsthand the incredible productivity of Gaulish Originium technology. The technology that Ursus took from Gaul at the conclusion of the war ushered in a golden era for the Ursine war machine, which Tsar Vladimir hoped would fulfill his dreams of conquest.
"All at whom I point my sword are enemies of Ursus, and every desyatina that Ursine cannonfire may touch shall belong to Ursus". —Vladimir Ivanovich
Aleksey the Young ascended to the throne at just sixteen years old. How could someone so young, still on the cusp of adulthood, impose his will to guide an empire through war, let alone implement policies that would endure for a century? A more plausible theory is that, in the early years of Aleksey's reign, real power was in the hands of Igor's generals, and they were the driving force behind the eastern expansion strategy. However, Aleksey proved to be a capable warrior, securing the foundation for a long and stable reign at a very young age. The practice of sending the Ursine heir for military training began with Aleksey and was followed by future Tsars. They believed that this practice, drawn from the experience of their ancestors, would ensure the Empire's continued victories.
The curved sword passed down through generations of Ursine rulers is not only a symbol of imperial authority, but also a display of Ursus's enduring power.
Tsar Ivanovich built new Originium factories at a break-neck pace, and Ursus's economic and military strength grew rapidly. The old-guard nobility who dominated the military were unhappy about the rise of "industrial nobles" with no military background, but the military strength of Ursus nevertheless flourished under Tsar Vladimir's rule. He started the Ninth and Tenth Ursus-Kazimierz Wars, pushing back the Kazimierzian lines a hundred kilometers; intensified attacks on the Sami, forcing them towards even more frozen soil; he even had designs on Leithanien in the south and distant Higashi, and there were rumors that he had already drawn up plans for the siege of Londinium.
The Ursine war machine operated at full bore for decades under his rule, and the fires of war from the north ravaged Terra. With each victory, the Empire's power grew, as did the Tsar's renown. Ursus did not notice the crisis brewing beneath the triumphant reports, nor could the Tsar imagine that his ambition would be brought to an unceremonious end. The turning point was the Bloodpeak Campaign of 1072, where the Eastern Army suffered a shocking defeat that forced its retreat from Higashi. Severely shaken by the setback, Tsar Vladimir fell gravely ill and passed away in less than a year.
His son, Fyodor, immediately set about weakening the influence of the army upon ascending to the throne, promoting councilors from civilian backgrounds and imposing strict constraints upon the expansion of Army territory. He even proposed a reform plan called "Territory to Governorate".
In the summer of 1074, a group of soldiers beat up a noble in a tavern in Gregorskaya Guberniya near Deity Grypherburg, only to subsequently demand that the governor's council punish the injured noble, leading to a series of protests throughout the society. In the winter of that year, the Sixth Army invaded the governorate under the pretext of restoring order, executing the entire council for treason. Tsar Fyodor was furious and recalled the marshal of the Sixth Army, but the marshal defied his orders. Instead, he mobilized the Third, Eighth, and part of the Fourth Armies to occupy three governorates around Deity Grypherburg, demanding a "restoration of the army's authority" and Tsar Fyodor's abdication.
Negotiations between the State Council and the mutinous armies broke down in late 1074, and it was said that the Fifth Army launched an attack on the Sixth Army at the Tsar's order. The Sixth and Eighth Armies fought back immediately and started the besiege upon Deity Grypherburg, with shells falling upon the imperial palace. Tsar Fyodor then issued a decree to the entire nation, denouncing the four mutinous armies to be traitors to the Empire, and ordering harsh punishment for the rebels. The Central Army defended Deity
Since the start of the war, the army's negative attitude towards combat had been readily apparent. My unit had originally been ordered to cover the Ninth and Tenth Defender Regiments, as well as the Seventeenth Artillery Regiment—my brother's unit—during an assault on an enemy-held town. However, even after being in position for two weeks, we never received the attack order from division headquarters. We assumed the operation had been canceled and waited at our post for another week, but, still, no orders came, neither to attack nor to retreat. Soon, we even started running short on supplies. My direct superior, Captain Andrei, was deeply puzzled. He told me that the last time he went to brief the General Staff, he saw stacks of silk envelopes on their desk, likely imperial orders sent from Deity Grypherburg, yet not a single one had been opened. The officers merely smiled at him and told him, "Hold your position." We lingered in camp for more than a month, waiting for nothing. The warships were practically sinking into the ground. We even heard rumors that the Sixth Army had been given orders to retreat and was withdrawing on a large scale—but that was impossible. Suddenly, fear gripped us, and it wasn't the enemy we feared. It was the unsettling realization that we were witnessing a side of the Empire we were never meant to see... —From the memoirs of Lieutenant Yuri Zaitsev, Fourth Army, Second Special Division, Fifth Artillery Regiment
■ Construction of the Monument to the Sixth Army began in 1072 and was completed in 1073. It was later torn down during the "Great Rebellion".
After their crushing defeat during the Bloodpeak Campaign, the Sixth Army returned to Deity Grypherburg in disgrace. In keeping with tradition, the Tsar commissioned a monument for the returning Sixth Army, inscribed with the words "Imperial Triumph" and "Victory Memorial". However, given the painful outcome of the campaign, the monument took on a different meaning—soldiers of the Sixth Army saw it as an insult from the Tsar, despite the fact that by the time the monument was completed, the Tsar himself had already passed away.
Grypherburg through the winter, until the Second and Seventh Armies returned from the Kazimierzian front in spring, engaging the insurgents in battle. The fires of war spread from Deity Grypherburg to the rest of Ursus, ushering in a bloody civil war that lasted until the winter of 1076, culminating in the defeat of the insurgents when the Sixth and Eighth Armies were annihilated. The impact of the Great Rebellion was far-reaching. Millions died in the civil war and countless factories were destroyed. As the primary instigators, the Sixth and Eighth Armies were completely disbanded, while the complices, the Third and Fourth Armies, were reassigned to remote regions. The territories controlled by these armies were redistributed to the loyalist armies, and old-guard nobles who had remained loyal to the Tsar seized this opportunity to demand council seats. For the next twenty years, the political divide, Oripathy crisis, and social inequality of Ursus were exposed and magnified, forcing difficult decisions upon Tsar Fyodor.
The Empire of Ursus's territory in northern Terra is expansive as a result of centuries of conquest and expansion. The Empire's terrain gradually rises in elevation from west to east: from the open plains of the west, to the low hills in the central regions, to the tall mountains in the east. The climate of Ursus is heavily influenced by the polar climate of the northern icefields. The southern regions are temperate; the winters grow longer and colder as one moves further north, while the mountainous regions of the east exhibit characteristics of an alpine climate.
In the vast, harsh tundras of northern Ursus, the climate is so unforgiving that most of Terra's common grain crops cannot survive. The people of the tundra rely on a crop known as "mossoat" to sustain themselves. This hardy lichen emits spores that resemble wheat ears which can be eaten before they mature. Once fully matured, however, the spores shrivel and become bitter, even slightly toxic. Due to its low yield and the strict timing required for harvest, mossoat is an unreliable food source, leading to frequent famines in the tundra.
The Empire of Ursus borders Kazimierz, Leithanien, and Yan to the west, south and east, respectively. To the north are the Sami lands, and the Infy Icefield beyond. A thousand years of conquest has brought vast expanses under the Empire's control, though much of it is undeveloped and barely governed. Nevertheless, Ursus continues to point her sword beyond the borders of the Empire, striving to expand her rule even further.
The Ursine absolute monarchy has its genesis in the martial nature of its founding. The Tsar is to Ursus what a commander is to his soldiers, his every decision the supreme will of the Empire. In the military, disobeying the commander's orders is the most serious offense. Likewise, defiance of the Tsar's will is considered high treason and subject to the most severe punishment.
The Tsar is also the head of the State Council and supreme commander of the Imperial Army. The entire council, from each councilor to the chairman, answers to the Tsar, and the governors of local administrative divisions answer to the central government. The Tsar is the supreme commander of the Imperial Army, and each army submits regular reports about its movements and planning. Major military actions require the approval of the Tsar.
The authority of the Tsar is founded upon war, thus virtually every living person in Ursus is a soldier. The success or failure of this army hinges upon its leader, the Tsar, as does the Tsar's own authority. Soldiers revere a Tsar who leads them to victory, but they are equally quick to doubt a leader who fails to do so, or one who is viewed as indecisive in battles. The failed Ursine invasion of Higashi and subsequent loss of territory in 1072 deeply shook the social order of the Empire and the authority of Tsar Vladimir Ivanovich, and set into motion the events of the Great Rebellion.
The official name of the Ursine Imperial Army is Imperskaya Army. It seldom acts as a single coordinated entity—a fact that should bring comfort to the rest of Terra. While the Tsar sets a general direction for each Army, the specific strategy is determined by its marshal in conjunction with his staff, referencing the Tsar's instructions, and operating with a large degree of autonomy. There were nine Armies prior to the Great Rebellion, but the Sixth and Eighth were disbanded for their role in the insurgency, leaving only seven remaining. Official sources claim that, during wartime mobilization, each Army can be bolstered to more than a million men on short notice.
Ursus has always had a strong military tradition. For military nobles, the strength of their unit represents their authority and influence. There is a comprehensive system of recruitment and training in place for both soldiers and officers, in order to put every sword and cannon into action as quickly as possible in support of Ursus's endless wars. Through Leithanian influence, Ursus has also integrated Originium Arts into their conquests. War casters are an important part of the army, with academies and instructors dedicated to the study and instruction of military Arts.
On the front lines of the Ursine army are the heavily armored Shieldguard Regiment and veteran Vanguards, followed by heavy drones that roar into the sky, marking targets for the Empire's battleships to pound with saturated bombardment. The Imperial Army has an almost fanatical belief in heavy
armor and artillery. Ursine soldiers believe that cold armor and shield can cut one's human self off from the inhumanity of the battlefield, while scorching muzzles and flames can burn away the last vestige of weakness and cowardice.
Perhaps someone can describe to you what Ursus used to crush civilization itself.
Councilors of the Ursine State Council may be noble representatives, nominated by the Tsar, or imperial representatives, nominated by the governorates' councils and appointed by the Tsar. The State Council, with the Tsar as its leader, is the highest legislative organ of Ursus. It was established in the reforms that followed the First Ursus-Kazimierz War, along with the governorates and local councils. The first councilors and officials of the governorates consisted partly of retired officers, and partly of active military nobles. For a long time, the Ursine Council primarily served the military, which gave the military significant influence within the Council. The Council's functions and actual power were vastly different from what they are today. It was the rise of the industrial nobles and their appointment to the Council that gave it actual authority. Islam Witte, the present Chairman, is one of these new nobles.
Current Chairman of the State Council, Islam Witte. Among the many chairmen who have served in the State Council, Witte stands out as somewhat of an anomaly. His facial expression often makes people think he is indecisive. When the artist painting his portrait suggested giving him more commanding features, Chairman Witte politely declined.
The primary administrative division of Ursus is the governorate, each of which boasts a number of sedentary settlements and nomadic cities. Governors are appointed by the Tsar. The governor organizes councils of noble representatives from nomadic cities and leads the governorate's administrative departments. The governorate's council is responsible for nominating representatives to the State Council, whose appointments are then confirmed by the Tsar.
There are also Army territories that exist independently of governorates and their governors and councils. Army territories constitute both the Army's regular encampments and the fiefdoms of old nobles (or "Nobles of Military Service"). These territories have their own distinct administrative and legal systems, largely determined by the constituent marshal and his staff. During the reign of Tsar Vladimir, land was often granted as reward for military merit, and Army territories grew rapidly with Ursus's expansion.
The origins of the Ursine system of nobility are closely linked to the Empire's military awards. In ancient times, Tsars and Grand Dukes would give noble titles to loyal soldiers and staff based on military merit. Even within the imperial family, it was often military service, rather than blood, that determined one's status. Commoners who earned the favor of the Grand Dukes through extraordinary valor in battle could also be promoted into the nobility. Over a thousand years, this system of noble meritocracy inspired the soldiers of Ursus to great deeds, and expanded the ranks of the nobility through the centuries, forming what would become known as the "old nobility".
During Tsar Vladimir's reign, the rise of Originium industry and nomadic cities brought new blood to the nobility. The Tsar included industry in his war plan, calling factory workers his "industrial soldiers", and measuring their merit in terms of production. Wealthy civilians could become "industrial nobles", or "new nobles", by making huge payments to the government.
While appearing to be in constant conflict, the separation between nobles of military service and industrial nobles, the old and the new, is not always clear and distinct. In the aftermath of the Great Rebellion, many old nobles began investing in mines and refineries through their Armies, while new nobles often enlisted young and fit relatives into the military, hoping to increase their status within the nobility.
The draconian military law of Ursus is perhaps the only law in the Empire that is consistently enforced. While outstanding martial merit is richly rewarded, those who violate military law are subject to equally harsh justice. Military justice is feared not only by the officers in the army, but within the nobility has well. The threat of military justice alone is sometimes sufficient punishment—on more than one occasion, an offender has committed suicide before a military tribunal could formally pronounce judgment, fearing the punishment to come. The deterrent power of Ursine military law depends on its enforcement, and military tribunals are controlled by military officers and powerful nobles. In many cases, so-called "military law" is simply summary judgment by a high-ranking officer.
To many people's surprise, Ursus also has a relatively comprehensive civilian judiciary, complete with legislative, judicial, and enforcement organs. Each governorate and nomadic city has its own council, courts, and police. However, the judiciary does not enjoy true autonomy and freedom from interference, and has close ties to the administrative branch. Aside from the noble officials involved in
the legal system's everyday operation, the Tsar also has the authority to intervene at any level, and at any point in the process, even passing judgment directly in the form of an edict. In practice, however, direct intervention by the Tsar in judi- cial affairs is a rare event, mostly occurring during mediation of noble factional disputes, or when the Tsar grants pardons to convicted criminals.
Rates at which Civil Courts Settled Cases in Gregorskaya Guberniya, Ursus, in 1092
General Cases Military-Involved Cases
■ The soldiers of Ursus are subject to strict military law, but they face little restrictions outside of the army. There are few civilian courts capable of effec- tively ruling on cases involving military personnel.
The foundation of the Ursine economy is, without a doubt, the military- industrial complex, one of the biggest and most advanced on Terra. The previous Tsar saw industry as inseparable from war and devoted considerable effort to its development, building the Ursine war machine with fervor. Major cities were transformed into industrial centers, packed with factories. Some of these were funded by old noble investment, while others saw their owners elevated to the nobility. One way or the other, the profits ended up in the hands of the rich and powerful. The pace of industrialization varies from area to area; the capital, Deity Grypherburg, is the Empire's most important industrial center, followed by other eastern cities, with the west lagging behind.
In addition to military industry, Ursus also has a robust Originium mining and metal processing industry, both closely related to military itself. The vast expanses of Ursus contain rich deposits of mineral resources, but most of these are located in the harsh western regions bordering Kazimierz and Sami. The Armies have an iron grip on these territories, and the mining rights that come with them. Forced laborers sent to the northwest mines work day and night in ice and snow, black ore in front of them and dark clouds behind them, the fruits of their blood and sweat transported to factories in the central and eastern parts of the Empire.
In the year 31, Igor led the Ursus Rebel Army to capture Deity Grypherburg. He walked through the gates of the city alongside his most trusted (allied) Hippogryph generals. Whether to thank them for their assistance or to demon- strate his ability to balance benevolence and authority, Igor retained the name "Deity Grypherburg" and made the city the capital of the Empire of Ursus. In 1033, to demonstrate his commitment to industrialization, Tsar Vlad- imir decreed that Deity Grypherburg, along with his magnificent palace, be relocated onto a massive mobile platform. Deity Grypherburg has since become the Empire's industrial hub.
The Empire of Ursus has a population of roughly eighty million, mostly living in the central regions, where the terrain is relatively flat, the climate is relatively warm, and the Core is relatively near. The difference in environment
and development across regions is particularly apparent in terms of population distribution. Nearly ten million people live in Deity Grypherburg and its surrounding nomadic cities, but the northwest tundra is almost solely inhabited by mine laborers and the local Army.
Other than the Ursus majority, there is also a considerable population of minority races in the Empire. When Tsar Vladimir reigned, he promoted many outsiders to prominent positions, even elevating them to the nobility over numerous objections. The continuous running of the war machine placed heavy pressure on manpower and resources, and the rulers of the Empire must utilize the advantages of every race that inhabits this land. Vladimir's tolerance sparked a surge of enthusiasm across the nation, with citizens of various races proudly calling Ursus their home.
—While the image of Ursus as a militaristic, hard-drinking people is deeply ingrained, it fails to represent the full spectrum of Ursine culture. The country boasts a rich tradition of literature, music, dance, and theater, with all social classes feeling a strong sense of pride in their national arts. During the late Tsar Vladimir's reign, in line with the Empire's military expansion policies, a wave of dances, plays, and literary works depicting Tsar Igor's rebellion were produced, pushing realist art off the stage for a time in favor of war mythology. In recent years, Ursus has improved relations with neighboring countries, and foreign culture from nations like Columbia and Kazimierz have deeply influenced the younger generation of Ursines. Rock music records and knight competition tapes flood the underground markets of Ursus's nomadic cities.
The plight of the Infected in Ursus is among the worst in all of Terra. They have long been excluded from society. Many Infected are sent to work in the tundra mines, while those in nomadic cities must hide their identities just to survive. Many nobles openly supported and encouraged the persecution of the Infected, even forming Infected Patrol Units to root out and dispose of them. Although Deity Grypherburg had issued a series of decrees in an attempt to ease the escalating tensions, the results were minimal. It wasn't until the outbreak of the Chernobog-Lungmen Incident, which drew tremendous international attention, that the Infected issue expanded beyond the Empire of Ursus.
The Ursine Tsar, Vladimir Ivanovich, once said, "Wheresoever my hands point, there stands Ursus." Beneath the heavy leaden clouds and amidst the biting cold snow, the Ursine war machine casts its dark shadow, standing silently in the northern lands. A thousand years of bitter warfare has stained its impenetrable armor with thick, scalding blood. Now, at a crossroads in history, this colossal war machine has finally halted its relentless advance to lick its own bleeding wounds. The will of Terra may have forced Ursus into a temporary retreat, but who will wield this sharp, gleaming blade of an empire, and where will it strike next? Whose hands now steer the fate of Ursus?
A poster from the commemorative performance of Sergei Katayev's classic work Igor Velikiy (Third Edition) at the Ursine Imperial Theatre. Playwrights are eager to retell Igor's story over and over again. Dozens of operas and ballets are entitled Igor Velikiy, and people distinguish them by the names of their playwrights—unless, of course, a playwright has rewritten Igor Velikiy three times.
In Ursine culture, there is a tradition of revering "Yurodstvo" (holy fools). Yurodstvo are those who, though they may look like raving lunatics out on the street, often express profound insights into the nature of the world. Ursine tradition holds that the greatest aspect of human nature is the ability to maintain deep love for humanity even in the face of suffering. The erratic behavior of the Yurodstvo is seen as a way of challenging others' love for humanity through disturbing means, their wisdom and perfection transcending worldly limitations.
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The Yurodstvo is often seen by the Ursines as proof of some blessing or enlightenment, but in truth, it is closer to a curse. One becomes a curse Yurodstvo not through some so-called "revelation" or "deep love", but through a ritual we have yet to understand. The ritual may have originated in the frozen lands of Sami, but now it is only practiced on Ursine soil. Only one person can pass the ritual at a time, and that individual becomes the Yurodstvo. This ritual grants the participants the ability to see and do things ordinary people cannot. However, the power it bestows far exceeds what a human can endure. It shatters the Yurodstvo's mind, severing their ties with the world and condemning them to madness. The madness imposed upon the Yurodstvo allows them to pierce the veil of reality and communicate with that which lies beyond it. It even imbues them with the ability to bind demon fragments to their own mortal flesh.
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The Tsars of Ursus, of course, would not allow such a powerful individual to roam free. For centuries, the Yurodstvo has been a guest of honor in Dirty Grypherburg. The Tsar, employing the Yurodstvo's power and demonic fragments from the north, created a military unit far beyond the control of mortal men. The creation of this unit was even more brutal than that of the Yurodstvo. Their bodies were utterly destroyed during the fusion with the demonic fragments, and they now rely on special life-support apparatuses to survive. Their minds were cruelly 'enlightened' by the self-proclaimed 'Holy' Yurodstvo, severing their thoughts and desires from all connection to the mortal world. The Yurodstvo turned them into beings of their same ilk - inhuman. They no longer belong to this mortal realm. Confronting them often feels like facing the nation of Ursus itself... It would be foolhardy to expect them to heed anyone's commands, not the Yurodstvo who created them, nor even the Tsar himself. But the mortal Tsar coveted power and strength. He arrogantly claimed as his own - 'the Emperor's Blades'. Ultimately, he paid the price for his hubristic greed.
By Terran Calendar 16, the formidable army of the Nightzmora Khagan had long since departed from Deity Grypherburg, but the echoes of suffering still lingered in this war-torn city. The defeated nobles of the Hippogryph Kingdom, crushed by the war, imposed even harsher rule over Ursus, forcibly conscripting more peasants and workers to aid in the city's reconstruction. Rudimentary tents sprang up outside the damaged city walls, housing stonemasons, carpenters, builders, and laborers who had no means of escape. Around 200,000 peasants and soldiers were compelled to partake in this extravagant rebuilding effort, transporting timber from Leithanien's forests to craft luxurious furniture and hauling fine stone from Victoria to serve as construction material. The nobles aimed to make the newly resurrected Deity Grypherburg a symbol of the Hippogryph Kingdom's rebirth and to recover from their past wounds, no matter the price—even if it meant countless Ursus lives.
As the laborers' lives slipped away in agony, the flames of resentment and fury in Ursus grew ever stronger. The simmering tensions finally erupted in TC 18. A group of Ursus laborers, pushed to the brink, killed their Hippogryph overseers and seized a half-constructed tower in Deity Grypherburg's central square. Working on this tower had forced them to miss the harvest, leaving their families facing a dire winter with little hope of survival. Thirty soldiers were immediately dispatched to retake the tower, but they defected on the spot, forming a small rebel force of 60 to 70 fighters within mere hours. At the same time, a palace construction unit was reassigned to quell the uprising under the leadership of Igor, the war hero who had earned the title "The First Champion" for his stellar performance in the fight against the Nightzmora. It took several hours for Igor and his hastily assembled troops to gather their equipment and march to the square. When they arrived, they found that the rebels had already fortified themselves in the tower and were locked in a standoff with the soldiers outside. Meanwhile, more laborers abandoned their work to join the crowd, and the streets surrounding the square were soon packed with onlookers. The rebel leader stood atop the tower, shouting to the crowd below about the years of enslavement and suffering he and his people had endured, inciting further unrest among the masses.
Sensing the situation was spiraling out of control, Igor removed his armor and instructed his men to clear the square and ensure no one got near the tower. Then, he approached the tower alone. The soldiers inside recognized the legendary Ursus hero. They opened the door and let him in, promptly shutting the heavy gates behind him. Once Igor entered, the half-finished tower fell into an eerie
silence. No sounds of an argument or struggle could be heard from within. As time passed, the crowd began to grow restless again; pushing against the line of soldiers. They were eager to witness how the Ursus hero would deal with his fellow countrymen. Just as the soldiers were losing control of the surging crowd, the tower's heavy doors creaked open, and a tall figure emerged. Igor stepped out, walking slowly into the square without saying a word. Behind him, the ground was littered with bodies. The crowd fell silent. The hero and the soldiers remained silent as well. The hushed crowd gradually dispersed, returning to their lives of painful servitude. Igor, his face calm and composed, left the square. Yet, according to those who would later fight by his side in the rebellion, he cried for hours that night.
The official records of the Hippogryph Kingdom claim that the loyal Ursus officer Igor swiftly executed over sixty treacherous rebels. However, a more credible account suggests that Igor persuaded his countrymen to take their own lives. To this day, we cannot say for certain what Igor told his unfortunate compatriots. Perhaps he convinced them that the Ursus were not yet strong enough to challenge the Hippogryphs. Perhaps he reassured them that he would one day end their endless suffering. Or maybe he promised them a brighter future. What we do know is that Igor's resolve becomes clearer as his story unfolds.
The Hippogryph rulers, having witnessed how Igor dealt with his own people, became even more convinced of his loyalty to the kingdom and increasingly relied on him to maintain control. As a result, Igor's military rank quickly rose. By TC 25, he had attained the rank of colonel. Though he was not the army's highest-ranking officer, everyone knew that it was Igor who truly commanded the troops. In the winter of TC 27, Igor, having fully secured the trust of the Hippogryph nobility, led the Ursus in a sweeping uprising that engulfed the entire kingdom. For years, he had been secretly coordinating with military and civilian groups across the kingdom, preparing for this monumental war. Finally, the moment for revenge had arrived.
Over the next three years, Igor's rebel forces engaged the Hippogryphs in a grueling and protracted conflict. As the war raged on, more and more Ursus joined the struggle to overthrow their Hippogryph rulers. Eventually, even some Hippogryph nobles aligned themselves with the rebels. War, and the famine that followed, claimed countless lives, but in TC 31, the rebels triumphed. As a symbol of political reconciliation, the capital of the Hippogryph Kingdom, Deity Grypherburg, was preserved by the combined Ursus and Hippogryph forces. That same year, Igor was crowned Tsar in the city, and the Ursus Empire was born, replacing the Hippogryph Kingdom as a new and formidable power.
Nearly three years have passed since the infamous Chernobog-Lungmen Incident, and the feared full-scale war never came to be. Despite the devastation, the former industrial stronghold has stubbornly survived. Chernobog, along with its people, perhaps reflects a certain truth about Terra: this land may suffer, again and again, but life will always go on.
I once visited Chernobog in its prime.
At the time, the city consisted of more than 30 plates, making it one of the few colossal nomadic cities on the vast plains of Ursus. Towering buildings and sprawling industrial complexes could be seen everywhere. On the streets, vehicles powered by Originium roared by, most of them loaded with industrial materials and products. As they sped past, you could feel the deafening roar of the machines as the smell of industrial fumes assaulted your nostrils. The streets were lined with piles of Originium slag, likely kicked up by the constant winds and movement.
However, the pervasive "grayness" of the Originium industry had not yet swallowed Chernobog whole. I still remember that fleeting summer of Ursus, right before dinner time, when girls who had just finished their school day would flock to the nearby record shops and bookstores, wearing short skirts and chattering excitedly about the latest rock music and novels. They were the most vibrant scene on the streets.
In a restaurant that prided itself on being "the most Ursine", I saw a drunken Leithanian merchant brawling with a Columbian businessman, all because the latter had the audacity to speak ill of the Witch King. After they were pulled apart, an Iberian musician resumed playing a cheerful tune from his homeland.
Back then, Chernobog was bustling and cosmopolitan.
Of course, the Infected did not share in the prosperity. Outside the city, checkpoints manned by Ursus military police rigorously inspected every person's identity and health status before allowing entry. If any Infected were found, they were immediately sent to a local noble's estate, and assigned various forms of labor—until their final days.
Looking back on the history of Chernobog, we see that the city emerged as a result of two factors: the rise of Originium industry and the Ursine industrial nobility's ongoing defiance against the Empire's long-standing militarism.
Around 1070, a new noble, Boris, discovered the "sarcophagus" near the mining town of Chernobog. At that time, Boris's estate relied heavily on the mines and refineries controlled by the Ursus military. Naturally, the capabilities of the newly discovered device sparked Boris's idea of freeing himself from their control. After some research and experiments, people found that the sarcophagus could consistently output significant amounts of energy without a need for Originium.
Meanwhile, Ursus's established pattern of war for profit was disrupted when the Armies were utterly defeated during the Bloodpeak Campaign of 1072. The old cycle, by which Ursus distributed the spoils of each successive war amongst its nobility, was broken. The subsequent "Great Rebellion" also demonstrated that the Ursine military factions were tightening their grip on internal resources. During this time, they even attempted to oust the sitting Tsar Fyodor from Deity Grypherburg and replace him with a new sovereign who would support their expansionist agenda.
Amidst this turmoil, Chernobog, with its miraculous sarcophagus, became a prized target. The Fourth Army acted first, forcibly entering Chernobog in an attempt to seize the sarcophagus and exploit its energy potential. However, their efforts ended in failure.
Chernobog continued to thrive, powered by the sarcophagus's low-cost energy, once again drawing the attention of the military factions. Boris, who had clashed with the Third Army controlling the Farscope Refinery over raw material pricing, refused to allow any military presence within the city.
In an effort to protect Chernobog from external interference, Boris appointed himself mayor. The city council, formed at the behest of the State Council, was entirely created by Boris and served only as a nominal institution, essentially a tool for him to share power and secure alliances with his collaborators.
However, Boris failed to realize he was challenging forces so powerful that even Tsar Fyodor approached them with caution. The sarcophagus brought Chernobog economic growth and energy, and the council provided some order, but none of this would arm Boris against the Armies.
We promise all citizens of Ursus that there is no risk of the Infected spreading beyond the Federal Territory of Chernobog. This action reflects His Majesty the Tsar's mercy toward those suffering in this situation.
-Ursine Central Army Spokesman Kaptain Makarov
Six months after the conclusion of the Chernobog-Lungmen incident, Ursus and Yan reached a final agreement. Ursus agreed to compensate Yan for part of the economic damages caused by the incident, and in return, Yan forgave a portion of that amount, returning it to Ursus to aid in Chernobog's reconstruction. It is said that Tsar Fyodor was crucial in pushing this agreement through the State Council.
As part of the agreement, Ursus rebuilt a smaller nomadic city in the Chernobog Region to house the survivors of the incident. Chernobog was
reclassified as a Federal Territory, with its federal council serving as the highest administrative authority, under the direct oversight of the Tsar. The Tsar appointed a commissioner as an observer, ensuring that, at least in theory, no local nobles could exert influence over Chernobog.
Given the catastrophe, the vast majority of Chernobog's residents were destined to become Infected. Therefore, the reclassification of Chernobog actually deviated from Ursus's traditionally harsh policies towards the Infected. In fact, there were indeed a few voices against the plan, and the Tsar had to dispatch the Armies to surround Chernobog and prevent any mass escape of Infected.
I once asked a friend in Ursus to pass through the Army's stringent checkpoints and enter this rebuilt city to document its current state.
Today, only about a dozen city plates remain in Chernobog. Traditional Ursine architecture is now caked with industrial dust. Guard posts, barbed wire, and Originium-powered searchlights are spread across the city's outskirts. The checkpoints, once used to manage outside threats, are now used in reverse to ensure no Infected can leave the city.
For easier management, Chernobog's gates are only open during the day; at night, they're sealed shut. Most of the shops still primarily sell goods related to the Originium industry, but the once relaxed atmosphere has vanished. Now, the streets are mostly filled with Infected hurrying about or business clients passing through. The busiest spots are the Infected clinics and supply depots—the former providing rare solace to the Infected, the latter distributing desperately needed food in the name of the Tsar, specifically for the Infected within the city.
As a result, many Infected have fled from other parts of Ursus to Chernobog, reasoning that living under these "privileges" is far better than toiling away in dangerous mines "outside". Even some ordinary people, having run out of options, choose to live in the city. Since the Ursus military stationed outside the city is reluctant to get involved in an area teeming with Infected, and no figure from the imperial government is willing to assume leadership, many members of the district council are local Infected. As for the nominal council secretary, that position is simply a formality filled by a member of the State Council.
The Chernobog-Lungmen Incident was merely a small crack which released a tiny bit of the mounting pressure within the Ursus Empire. This city, which grew through its struggle against the military, was Ursus's price to pay. The signing of the agreement between Yan and Ursus was also the first step toward softening Ursus's treatment of the Infected.
It is hard to say what future lies for Chernobog.
After the sarcophagus was retrieved, Chernobog lost the element that once made it extraordinary. It became once again just another cold, oppressive town, like most others in Ursus. Yet, Chernobog remains unique; it is under the protection of the reigning Tsar, and the vast majority of its population are Infected. As for whether the military forces are there to defend the city or encircle it—that remains an open question.