Population: ~27 million
Primary Language(s): Vitrian
Economy: Weak
Exports: Opium, cigars, fruits and nuts, handwoven carpets and clothes, cotton, precious and semi-precious gems
Civil Unrest: High
Borders: Closed
Leader: President Remedios Zapataro
Capitol City: el Espina
Government
Vitria has an authoritarian government in which all effective political power is in the hands of President Remedios Zapataro and his party whom has controlled the government since former President Ortiz was assassinated in 2274. The country is ruled by a committee composed of the military’s most senior leadership. Elections are not held and anyone who publicly questions the authorities puts his or herself at risk of summary execution. The average Vitrian’s standard of living remains at depression level.
Terrain and Climate
Mostly rugged and mountainous; some plains, coastal lowlands. Temperate; clear, hot summers in interior, more moderate and cloudy along coast; cloudy, cold winters in interior, partly cloudy and cool along coast. The wet season runs from May to November, when the rainfall is heavy and hurricanes are common along the coast. Up to fifty-three percent of Vitria is forested. It is also home to hundreds of species of butterflies.
Culture
Vitria’s national religion is a modified version of Catholicism and churches can be found in every community throughout the country – the Sign of the Cross is a national symbol. Vitria often also linked to the use of images, candles and music in worship so it is not surprising that most modern gypsies have roots here. The dead are highly regarded in Vitrian culture and have their own holiday devoted to them with the emphasis on celebrating and honoring the lives of the deceased through singing and dancing, rather than fearing evil or malevolent spirits. It is believed that these spirits reside in the Montañas Blancas del Humo, a "cursed" mountain range in the north. Stereotypically, Vitrian men are honourable to a fault and the women tremendous cooks with a penchant for spicy food.
History
Up until 2214, Vitria was an absolute monarchy ruled for centuries by the de Castaneda family. The majority of the nation was made up of small rural villages in the shadow of the Montañas Blancas del Humo (literally the Mountains of the White Smoke, named for a now-inactive volcano and the fog that covers the interior during the night and early morning) and two major costal cities, el Espina (the Thorn) and el Espada (the Sword). In late July of 2214, a group of soldiers calling themselves the Home Guard staged a coup d'état and overthrew the de Castaneda family. The general of the Home Guard, Esteban Ortiz, replaced the king as the country’s leader. Ortiz’s first order was the execution of the entire de Castaneda family by firing squad.
Initially, the new regime was welcomed by Vitria’s citizens with open arms, but in the fifty-nine years that Ortiz has been in power, countless revolutionary groups and terrorist cells have sprung up, all in opposition of Ortiz’s callous stance on political freedoms and civil rights. Most - with the notable exceptions of the Home Front and Sol Rojo - have since been wiped out by the military. Many Vitrians, fearing prosecution and death, fled the country, immigrating to Natherica so they could start new lives for their family.
Between the years of 2251 and 2268, Ortiz called on the Cornerian Alliance to send troops to help quash uprisings in the foothills of the Montañas Blancas del Humo, but when it was discovered that Ortiz’s soldiers had executed entire towns accused of harbouring terrorists, a political scandal erupted and forces pulled out. Most countries cut off foreign aid and Vitria’s economy imploded in the aftermath.
Today
Between 2214 and 2273, President Esteban Ortiz has tried to get the country up to speed, but much of Vitria remains technologically outdated. Diesel fuel is still used instead of crysilex, telephones instead of PADDs. Larger cities like el Espina and el Espada can be compared to isolated towns in Natherica like Devil's Shore or modern-day Paloma. There are no problems with running water or electricity, and higher taxes allow for universal, government-run health care. Castaneda is the only province wired for the Info'net but there are rumours that the Home Front has put up wireless towers in remote regions of Gaspard and Salvatora so they can use PADDs without being traced. Built in 2223, a railway runs through the country with stops in most major cities and towns along the southern coast and through the interior and the safest part of the Montañas Blancas del Humo.
Foreigners are allowed in and out of the country provided they are willing to go through intensive military investigation upon entry and departure. Because of Vitria’s poor civil liberties and political freedoms, most countries discourage their citizens from visiting but despite this, the costal cities are growing to accommodate a boom in the tourist industry. Esteban Ortiz assures the Cornerian Alliance that Vitria has changed since the political scandal in 2268 but his words don’t seem to be reaching their ears, deafened by train and bus bombings – an almost daily occurrence on Espina’s crowded metropolitan streets.
Undergoing an illegal operation even in the eyes of the CMF, the Cornerian Elite Guard entered Vitrian lands and assisted in the Home Front to finally overthrow Ortiz's government. The Home Guard's Daniel Obloza took control of the government on the spring of 2274, but his rule was short-lived.
Provinces
Salvadora
Alternatively inhospitable and lush, Salvatora is the only Vitrian province with its own desert, north of the Montañas Blancas del Humo. The mountains themselves are shrouded in mysticism. Most of its population is deeply steeped in culture and legend surrounding the mountains, but for those brave enough to venture higher, they will find communities cut off from technological advancement where artificial light is only found in acetylene lamps. Old villas and farms lay low in hidden valleys or at the tops of windswept, heavily forested cliffs where wild howlers can still be heard at night. Military patrols through Salvatora often go missing, taken either by the white smoke or the revolutionaries hiding in the thick of it. South of the mountains are the provinces of Gaspard and Castaneda.
Gaspard
Gaspard covers much of Vitria's interior and is rolling plains, with rugged hills and mountains in the northwest. The province is suffering from deforestation despite that the vast thatches of lush trees are older than the country itself. At the heart of Gaspard are the ruins of many castles used by the de Castaneda family between 1600 and 2100. In the foothills of the Montañas Blancas del Humo, Vitrians suffer worst from the government's authoritarian regime. Hundreds of villages have been wiped out by Ortiz's soldiers who have accused them of harbouring terrorists belonging to the Home Front and Sol Rojo. Rarely is this true. It shares part of the Montañas Blancas del Humo with neighboring province, Salvadora. Vitria's military is based in Gaspard, but there are bases scattered throughout every province.
Castaneda
The largest of Vitria's three provinces, Castaneda is also home to the country's capitol city, el Espina and sister city, el Espada. Population is densest here. Castaneda stretches along the peninsula's southern coast where the lowlands are used for growing fruits, nuts and (in some places) the opium poppy. Villages are either fishing or farming villages, though President Ortiz is looking to commercialize these in the near future. Construction of the country's only spaceport has already begun in el Espina. The country's government is based in Castaneda. Islands off the coast include Arteaga, Arroyo and Delatorre (strictly used for housing dangerous and political prisoners). Interestingly, el Espina is located on Arroyo. Before President Ortiz rose to power, the country's capitol city was el Espada, part of the mainland.
Terrorist Organizations
The Home Front
Formally known as the Home Guard, the Home Front was established by soldiers who had been a part of Esteban Ortiz's coup in 2214 and disagreed with the way he handled the de Castaneda family and to a greater extent, the country, when he rose to power. Today, the Home Front is almost entirely composed of ex-military based deep in the Montañas Blancas del Humo and, despite sharing territory and a common goal, does not seem to get along with Sol Rojo. In Salvatora, the Home Front is known to the locals and soldiers as del Blanco de la Muerte or "The White Death" because often when they appear, their uniforms are dusted in volcanic ash. Their leader is General Franco Soledad, although Daniel Obloza became the President, a move that alienated several Home Front leaders.
Sol Rojo
In April 5, 2230, Sol Rojo created an international crisis by assassinating a Natherican ambassador in Espina, the capitol of Vitria. Condemned as a terrorist cell, the small organization scattered and hid amid the forests and mountains of their native country. Even though it never could reach the popular status of the Home Front, Sol Rojo still remains a threat to the welfare of foreign presence in Vitria. With a foundation of isolationism and xenophobia, they often murder and harass foreign tourists and diplomats in the name of nationalistic pride bordering on fascist idealism.
According to the most recent reports, there are a little over three hundred members, scattered throughout Vitria, but there are some pockets of high-density presence in the northern areas. The official leader is Ruben Marquez, but there are some rumors that he is nothing more than a decoy leader to international investigators, in the hopes of taking their eyes away from the real decision makers of Sol Rojo.
Miscellaneous
National Holidays
El Día del Año Nuevo (New Year's Day, January 1),
El Día de la Independencia (Independence Day, July 28),
El Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead, November 1-2),
Navidad (Christmas, December 25)