"What Madness Is This?" Volume II: Prophecies in the Dark

[Napoleon53]

Members of the 69th Carolinian Paracorps strike a pose in Yonderland, circa 1965.

A 69th Paracorps gunship drops several troopers down into Carolinian Nyasaland.
The 69th earned a reputation as the most mobile fighting force on the Dark Continent.

Other slogans/unit names for CoCaro:

23rd South Carolina Cavalry "Saturday Night Special"
5th Jacksonland Mechanized Artillery "Flirtin' with Disaster."
8th West Carolina Women's Brigade "Mississippi Queens"

This is hilarious. Even better if at some point the Cokies begin referring to the Vulture as "The Free Bird." Which actually makes sense in-universe, considering how Europa and America both use eagles and the Illuminists use the Minervan Owl. Ol' Cackalacky is the only one with the "Free Bird."

The best dumb puns and humor of this TL happens at 5am while I'm eating cereal and deliriously tired.

 

[Proudly individualist]

Exactly, except instead of extolling awesomeness they're crying out for a long dead dictator. Totally normal! Here's another version with lyrics that's honestly perfect for the Pinnie era with all the synth stuff.

Speaking of synth, what do you think, guys, would be the most appropiate faction for synthwave music?

To me Loomie Russia seemed a good option with the cyberpunk thing, but the Illuminist sounding songs posted both here and in the expanded universe by more expert posters (yes, Kienle, I'm calling you an expert) are too typically russian/soviet for synthwave to fit in. Not sure if synthwave in illuminist scenes will fit better once the cyberpunk age begins, because most of the synthwave I know isn't sovietwave , which might be the best option.

I thought about Yankee America too, but that's going to follow the eternal 70s cyberfunk style. Can synthwave work in a cyberfunk setting?

 

[LordUltimus]

So what would cars look like in the different countries?

 

[pattontank12]

So I recently disconnected the tabletop game called Spirit of 1977 and dang if it doesn't have that Oswald feel.

https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/TabletopGame/SpiritOfSeventySeven

 

[Kienle]

Speaking of synth, what do you think, guys, would be the most appropiate faction for synthwave music?

To me Loomie Russia seemed a good option with the cyberpunk thing, but the Illuminist sounding songs posted both here and in the expanded universe by more expert posters (yes, Kienle, I'm calling you an expert) are too typically russian/soviet for synthwave to fit in. Not sure if synthwave in illuminist scenes will fit better once the cyberpunk age begins, because most of the synthwave I know isn't sovietwave , which might be the best option.

I thought about Yankee America too, but that's going to follow the eternal 70s cyberfunk style. Can synthwave work in a cyberfunk setting?

I agree that they are typically Soviets or Russian, but I was writing about them for the 1920s/1930s and since those decades are transitioning periods, with technologies yet to develop with enough sophistication and the cultural revolution is still in process. By the 50s the Illuminist should be a lot closer to whatever weird, hallucinating music that the Soviet produced rather than typical Socialist realism. I have been super busy (really need to get A’s in my courses) and switching focus so I kinda abandon the project.
Also I was on my physics lecture and the professor dropped the word “Illuminating” 😎 secret Illuminist confirmed?

 

[Roger Redux]

The condor doubles nicely as a Cokie buzzard.

Well considering that's all a condor is....yeah it does.
Growing up I always heard about the "tragedy of the endangered/near-extinct condor".
When I found out that the """majestic""" condor was nothing but a giant goddamn vulture I was thoroughly disappointed.

 

[Murica1776]

Someone with more skill than me needs to take my mockup below of a crest for Cokieland and turn it into something actually nice. lol I modded some weird Chilean COA crudely to get the concept down. The condor doubles nicely as a Cokie buzzard. CoCaro has always had smaller stars on each side of the central star, but in the 40s they are going to simplify to just the central main star to convey Chancellor Gamble's supreme federal authoritah. Anyone who cares to can make a totally different version and propose it, but this is my current personal vision. The wings look mega nationalist, almost Warhammer-esque, and suit the Cokies role as cartoon villains.

View attachment 600473

EDIT: Holy shit, I just thought of the greatest motto for the Cokies alongside "Hark the Sound."

"Southron by the Grace of God."

It's perfect. America has "E Pluribus Unum" and "In God We Trust," and CoCaro has "Hark the Sound" and the title of a Lynrd Skynrd album. lmao

I honestly think that COA is pretty much good as is unless someone can pretty it up. That's some ominous looking shit. I instantly thought of Nazi Germany when I saw it. Vis a vis the motto, I have a modification that I think will really sell it:

"Chosen by Birth, Southron by the Grace of God

It really ties everything together, and has that additional flex of their "chosen race." It's also based on the OTL slogan with Chosen substituted for American. I swear, half the rednecks in my highschool had belt buckles with "American by Birth, Southern by the Grace of God" on them.

View attachment 600478

Members of the 69th Carolinian Paracorps strike a pose in Yonderland, circa 1965.

View attachment 600484
A 69th Paracorps gunship drops several troopers down into Carolinian Nyasaland.
The 69th earned a reputation as the most mobile fighting force on the Dark Continent.

Other slogans/unit names for CoCaro:

23rd South Carolina Cavalry "Saturday Night Special"
5th Jacksonland Mechanized Artillery "Flirtin' with Disaster."
8th West Carolina Women's Brigade "Mississippi Queens"

This is hilarious. Even better if at some point the Cokies begin referring to the Vulture as "The Free Bird." Which actually makes sense in-universe, considering how Europa and America both use eagles and the Illuminists use the Minervan Owl. Ol' Cackalacky is the only one with the "Free Bird."

The best dumb puns and humor of this TL happens at 5am while I'm eating cereal and deliriously tired.

*Set scene: A bar in Pacifica, with Americans, Nipponese, Brits, Kangas, Germans, Mittelafrikans, and Scandinavians all standing around the jukebox singing.*

*Door slams open. Cackalacks enter.*

"Y'all gotta jukebox?"

*Bartender sighs and points to it*

*Patrons groan*

"The hell are y'all waitin' for? Play Freebird!"

 

[PNWKing]

More Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. The Voorhees family is also pure Madnessverse. The adviser literally talks about how they would lure Irish kids into their factories.

 

[pattontank12]

The Oswald Era could best be described as Black Dynamite, Dukes of Hazzard, Smokey and the Bandit, Six million dollar man, the original Battlestar Galactica, James Bond and F is for Family all rolled up into a blender.

 

[Scrivener]

The more I re-read, the more I cannot understand. What does the ideology of the Republican Union ITTL currently entail, other than TTL Nazism.

 

[xwing@aliciousness . com]

The more I re-read, the more I cannot understand. What does the ideology of the Republican Union ITTL currently entail, other than TTL Nazism.

It's a fascist socialist protestant theocracy with American characteristics.

 

[Laserfish]

The Oswald Era could best be described as Black Dynamite, Dukes of Hazzard, Smokey and the Bandit, Six million dollar man, the original Battlestar Galactica, James Bond and F is for Family all rolled up into a blender.

In a previous post of mine in Volume I, I described the changing times of the RU as a transition from the "cold, efficient, and machine-like precision of the Steele era to the drug-soaked, Boogie-smoked, orgy-ocean of the Oswald era."

 

[Murica1776]

The more I re-read, the more I cannot understand. What does the ideology of the Republican Union ITTL currently entail, other than TTL Nazism.

I think the best way to understand the Union as a Herrenvolk Republic. The majority of the population lives in relative freedom and comfort by stepping on the "Inferiors." Aside from the federal level, it sounds like there are still elections. The economy is mixed, perhaps somewhere between Fascist economics and New Dealer policies. Also the lack of anti-Semitism is in of itself a huge divergence from Nazism. There are also policy differences from the Nazis on gun rights, drugs, and women's rights (might still have some Nazi elements regarding breeding but also more liberal).

 

[Napoleon53]

It's a unique mix for sure with honestly little in common with Naziism other than the totalitarian and superman aspects. They are very economically liberal, believing that the state-run church should help the poor and downtrodden and to build them back up into useful members of society. However, welfare leeches are likely taken to a reeducation camp or a redemption legion to prove their worth.

Most people love being a Yankee ITTL, with all the comforts and security it provides anyone far away enough from the frontlines. As long as you don't make waves, you don't have to worry about where your next meal comes from or not finding a job.

Even the Economic Clans, which seem super libertarian, are engaging in socialism and allow Better workers to unionize (more on this in future chapters). I highly doubt Joe Steele is allowing the Clans to shoot each other up anymore like the Goodyear-Ford debacle. So everyone is kept in check.

Elections are indeed held at the local level, although it's just various MDP candidates of slightly differing policies.

It's a unitary fasco-socialist occult theocracy in its simplest form. Nazi Germany was pretty irreligious or pagan at best, and they would loathe the ultraChristian culture of the Union, particularly their love of "Israelites." In fact, I'd wager that in a Yankee ISOT event to OTL WWII Earth that the Germans would decry this America as pseudo-Bolshevik Jewish puppets. Plus, a large number of Nazis were Catholic, and thus the Americans would ironically deem them subhuman false-Pinnacles.

 

[Murica1776]

These are pretty rudimentary, but I thought I'd take a crack at Cokie propaganda posters:

 

[ZeroFrame]

What are the Lommies position on LGBT people? And are there any ideologies or groups that actually accept LGBT people ITTL? The RU’s position is quite obvious.

 

[the Imperium of Canada]

It's a unique mix for sure with honestly little in common with Naziism other than the totalitarian and superman aspects. They are very economically liberal, believing that the state-run church should help the poor and downtrodden and to build them back up into useful members of society. However, welfare leeches are likely taken to a reeducation camp or a redemption legion to prove their worth.

Most people love being a Yankee ITTL, with all the comforts and security it provides anyone far away enough from the frontlines. As long as you don't make waves, you don't have to worry about where your next meal comes from or not finding a job.

Even the Economic Clans, which seem super libertarian, are engaging in socialism and allow Better workers to unionize (more on this in future chapters). I highly doubt Joe Steele is allowing the Clans to shoot each other up anymore like the Goodyear-Ford debacle. So everyone is kept in check.

Elections are indeed held at the local level, although it's just various MDP candidates of slightly differing policies.

It's a unitary fasco-socialist occult theocracy in its simplest form. Nazi Germany was pretty irreligious or pagan at best, and they would loathe the ultraChristian culture of the Union, particularly their love of "Israelites." In fact, I'd wager that in a Yankee ISOT event to OTL WWII Earth that the Germans would decry this America as pseudo-Bolshevik Jewish puppets. Plus, a large number of Nazis were Catholic, and thus the Americans would ironically deem them subhuman false-Pinnacles.

So basically there's pretty much nothing like TTL American Fascism in OTL aside from perhaps some fringe third positionists?

They are the Pseudo-Mormon-Know Nothing-NazBol Gang.

 

[Napoleon53]

These are pretty rudimentary, but I thought I'd take a crack at Cokie propaganda posters:

​

One of my projects in my photo file is making old Clark Gable in a rhinestone cowboy suit for an aged Gamble.

What are the Lommies position on LGBT people? And are there any ideologies or groups that actually accept LGBT people ITTL? The RU’s position is quite obvious.

Not as obvious as you'd think. While it's far from progressive on the issue, the Union doesn't really care about gay people. I think I've mentioned several characters as being "openly closeted" but people ignore it. As said above "don't make waves" and you'll skate by. So not much worse than OTL USA at this point in time. Over time, I'm positive it will be officially decriminalized, not that the secret police likely enforce the laws unless you are already a political target.

I dare say that you're probably far worse off in Europa and especially the NHRE. Loomies social policies will get expanded upon in their own storyline, but I haven't decided about them.

So basically there's pretty much nothing like TTL American Fascism in OTL aside from perhaps some fringe third positionists?

They are the Pseudo-Mormon-Know Nothing-NazBol Gang.

To be honest I even thought about renaming Fascism ITTL into "Custerism" or something early on, but it doesn't have the same appeal to foreign puppets as the more universal fascist name. However, the fascist name still makes a lot of a sense as the Ancient Rome-copying Americans see their joined state like a fasces bundle, stronger together forever.

 

[Murica1776]

One of my projects in my photo file is making old Clark Gable in a rhinestone cowboy suit for an aged Gamble.

That's so cursed. I love it.

Also, a thought on elections:

In the future, it's pretty obvious that the Pinnies and Steelists are going to have a massive gulf. I also distinctly recall a part of Yankee ideology basically saying that if the government is weak enough for a Strong Man to overthrow it, it should be overthrown. So what if, in deeply and closely divided communities, every election becomes a mini civil war?

 

[pattontank12]

It's a unique mix for sure with honestly little in common with Naziism other than the totalitarian and superman aspects. They are very economically liberal, believing that the state-run church should help the poor and downtrodden and to build them back up into useful members of society. However, welfare leeches are likely taken to a reeducation camp or a redemption legion to prove their worth.

Most people love being a Yankee ITTL, with all the comforts and security it provides anyone far away enough from the frontlines. As long as you don't make waves, you don't have to worry about where your next meal comes from or not finding a job.

Even the Economic Clans, which seem super libertarian, are engaging in socialism and allow Better workers to unionize (more on this in future chapters). I highly doubt Joe Steele is allowing the Clans to shoot each other up anymore like the Goodyear-Ford debacle. So everyone is kept in check.

Elections are indeed held at the local level, although it's just various MDP candidates of slightly differing policies.

It's a unitary fasco-socialist occult theocracy in its simplest form. Nazi Germany was pretty irreligious or pagan at best, and they would loathe the ultraChristian culture of the Union, particularly their love of "Israelites." In fact, I'd wager that in a Yankee ISOT event to OTL WWII Earth that the Germans would decry this America as pseudo-Bolshevik Jewish puppets. Plus, a large number of Nazis were Catholic, and thus the Americans would ironically deem them subhuman false-Pinnacles.

Interesting. I actually had an idea about an Authoritarian American regime in an alternate timeline. That could best be described as Techno-corpratist Fordians mixed with some New Deal social welfare. Alongside not really caring if someone was Jewish or not and having a more "ship them off to Liberia" approach when it came to African Americans. Basically think something based primarily off the USA from Fallout.

Of course once the dictator dies the nation goes through something like the Carnation Revolution but sweeping all of the atrocities under a rug. With most citizens absolutely refusing to bring it or admitting to them.