Syltheim

Not to be confused with Sylvia or the Sylvian Union.

Overview

Sylthiem is a country on the western edge of the world, located north of kaab and south of Twiceland. It has no major population centers, but is currently growing at fast rate. Outside of mythic history, the country was officially declared a nation on December 21, 2020. Sylthiem has democratic principles, with their population making up the legislative branch. There are regular elections to appoint a Chief Diplomat (Sylthian head of state), meaning that anybody can potentially lead Sylthiem, provided they are convincing enough. The standard of living is low with only a few house-like structures, and most of the population is using a bed nearby the main plaza. Sylthiem is extremely undeveloped, and has little to no economy to speak of.

Geography

Most of Sylthiem is in a gravely mountains biome, which plays an important role in the nations culture and political ideas. Only a fraction of Sylthiem's land is fit for crop growth and animal husbandry.

History

The nation of Sylthiem was founded on December 21, 2020 by Terranelm. However, Terranelm spent a longer time on the Server than Sylthiem itself. Terranelm was born into Elgies on 09/04/2020. Almost immediately he found a spot sandwiched between what was to be Jugoslavijan Cascadia, and Twiceland. He looked upon the majestic cliffs, covered in gravel, and decided that this would be a good place to settle. Once he officially founded Sylthiem on December 21st and became the first Chief Diplomat, the population began to rapidly grow, which became a staple of his first term.

For the first few weeks of Terranelm's term, no notable events occured, but this would all change when he was given an offer by Chipt.

The Cascadia Purchase

The Sylthian Flag decorating the main plaza, with a larger version hanging from the cliffs.

Chipt made the offer to Terranelm to sell Cascadia, which was Jugoslavija's Territory at the time. He was willing to sell Cascadia for a discount price (32 diamond blocks), with the added prerequisites of maintaining at least one Cascadian National Forest, letting Jugoslavija keep the Squid farm, and an alliance. Chipt gave Terranelm a tour of Cascadia, and Terranelm accepted the offer, concluding that the purchase of Cascadia would present many economic opportunities. Sylthiem had little to no economy to speak of, with nothing to export(besides alcoholic beverages) in order to get the diamonds necessary to purchase Cascadia. What Sylthiem did have however, was an active group of players who were more than willing to mine for hours on end in the search of diamonds. Once Terranelm told the news of the Offer to the Sylthian public, Almost all Sylthian Citizens, including Terranelm, mined over the course of two weeks in a race to purchase Cascadia before any other, more wealthy country did. At the end of this two week period Sylthiem had the 32 diamond blocks necessary to buy Cascadia. The Cascadia Purchase was put into effect on 1/16/2021, when Jugoslavijan Chipt, and Sylthian Terranelm, goosejuic3, pdln, and Borg_Minion met in secret in Terra's Tavern. Understanding that Chipt had given the offer of Cascadia at a discount initially, the Sylthians present decided to chip in their surplus diamonds, which meant that Cascadia would be bought for the slightly steeper price of 45 diamond blocks total. A book titled "Cascadia Purchase" was signed by all people present at the meeting, sealing the deal and marking a new era of Sylthian growth. After Cascadia was bought and the Sylthian Citizenry saw what it had to offer themselves, they had a spur of patriotism, decorating many buildings with with the banners of Sylthiem.

Foreign Policy

The founder, Terranelm, has declared that Sythiem will attempt to stay neutral in most affairs. Most citizens of Sylthiem have expressed that they want Sylthiem to be more involved, and due to this, It is extremely likely that Sylthiem will form stronger relations with other nations in the future.

Demographics

All of the people within Sylthiem are natives of Sylthiem. In terms of Religion, at least 20% percent of the population has expressed that they follow Sylthiem's native faith, while the numbers are unknown for the rest of the population.

Government

The government is set to be made of the executive and legislative branches. The executive branch is made up of the leader and their cabinet, while the legislative branch is currently made up of the general population.

Political Parties

Sylthiems founder, Terranelm, has expressed that the existence of multiple political parties is something the nation should strive for. Right now, three political parties exist, as listed in order below:

Sylt Party (Dec 20th, 2020 - Jan 2nd, 2021)

Vocal Defense League (Jan 1st, 2021)

Green-Top Party (Jan 2nd, 2021)

Elections

The elections are going to be run when Sylthiem has enough citizens for votes to properly represent the thoughts of the citizen body. Elections will be run using the Alternative Vote method, in order to prevent two-party dominance. In-game ballots will be used for voting, since they were deemed the most secure way of casting votes during discussions on the topic. Borg_Minion counts the votes, and is unable to run for any elected office, despite being a founder of the nation.

Foreign relations

Sylthiem is neutral, and has little to no influence on world politics. However, some nations have sent aid.

Government Finance

The ideas of a Federal Reserve as well as taxation through labor have both been discussed, but neither have been implemented.

Military & Law Enforcement

Military

While the military does not exist yet, many players are willing to start organizing a military force. There has been discussion of this topic by other players interested in making a political party which will be primarily focused on building the nation's defensive capabilities.

Law Enforcement

No law enforcement has been implemented, but the general consensus is that law enforcement will be a branch of the military.

Economy

The prospect of exporting gravel has crossed the minds of a few individuals, but this would be difficult to maintain simply due to the fact that it is a non-renewable resource. Other things barring gravel exports are the words of the Sylt Party, who want to keep as much gravel as possible in Sylthiem. Farms will probably be the nations main economic drive, but members of the population have started to create breweries, possibly another economic drive. The Recent Purchase of Cascadia (1/16/2021) will likely reinforce Sylthiem's economy, though the Sylthian government has yet to make use of the resources available to them due to how recently the purchase was made.

Infrastructure

Transportation

While a rail-system may one day be implemented, the nation is currently using pathways and simple roads as it's main form of transport. Connections to other countries are available through the NELT, overland travel, and canals.

Energy

Dwindling amounts of coal are currently being used as our primary energy source. Sylthiem plans to switch to charcoal on the future, due to its renewability.

Culture

While no literature, philosophy, visual arts, or mass media has made any impacts on the population, Sylthiems native faith has started to gain traction within the nation.

Notable locations

- Wolf statue in the main plaza

- Animal pen Northeast of the Main Plaza

- Cliff tower