Weekly Flag Challenge: Discussion & Entries

Andrew Shelby was fascinated with the rise of Benito Mussolini and the National Fascist Party of Italy. Andrew attended the University of Idaho from 2017-2021 where he was a history and philosophy double major. He also fancied himself a natural born leader who was always the smartest person in the room. During the Trump presidency Andrew became convinced that the U.S. was ripe for an uprising from what he referred to as the "lesser citizenry" and he felt compelled to do whatever he could to prevent such an event. He was in Washington D.C. on January 6th, 2021 and participated in the storming of the Capital building where he picked up several shards of glass as keepsakes, and inspired the title of his his manifesto, The Shards, published in 2029.

Shortly after graduating from college Andrew Shelby became a high school history teacher in rural eastern Washington state. Shelby formed the "Youth Leaders of Tomorrow" which was a volunteer organization where high school students spent weekends and summers performing community outreach and providing services to poor citizens of eastern Washington and Idaho. The YLT was often criticized for only assisting the white poor of the region and in fact, in The Shards, Shelby referred to the Youth Leaders of Tomorrow as a counterbalance to organizations that assisted underserved communities of color. While the YLT operated as a peaceful organization with altruistic aims, Shelby used it to recruit many impressionable students into his Mussolini inspired Action Squad. His Action Squad carried out acts of vandalism against minority churches, local government buildings, and other targets determined by Shelby. It did not take long before the Action Squad began to target individuals who opposed Shelby's world view with violence. Beginning in 2023 Shelby's Action Squad carried out some of the most brazen domestic terror attacks the U.S. has seen.

In 2027, Andrew Shelby was imprisoned for assaulting his opponent in the 2027 Boise mayoral race. It was in his prison cell that Shelby wrote The Shards, a rambling, unhinged, "stream of consciousness", text where Shelby rails against minority groups, homosexuals, liberals, Jews, Muslims, Asians, Indians, and Native Americans. He argues for the need of an authoritarian take over at all levels of government and advocates for a "White haven where mankind can reach its zenith free of tainted and stained blood." It is also believed that while imprisoned, Shelby orchestrated the 2028 coordinated bombings of the Seattle Times, Microsoft Headquarters, three Amazon distribution centers, and the campaign headquarters of a democratic U.S. Senator. The attack resulted in the deaths of 673 people including 14 children. While no direct connection could be made to Shelby, the Action Squad claimed responsibility for the attacks.

Upon his release from prison in late 2028 he moved to a compound in the mountains of Idaho he named Purity and has declared himself to be the leader of the American Fascist Republic. While no official borders exist for this self proclaimed nation, Shelby's followers (numbering in the tens of thousands who regularly chant passages from The Shards at large rallies) claim "all lands from the Cascades to the Great Lakes to be the the nation of the AFR with the capital of Purity." (Shelby, 2029) The federal government of the U.S has listed the AFR and the Action Squad as domestic terrorist groups and has made several attempts to infiltrate the fortified compound of Purity with little success. Shelby can sometimes be seen in the rural regions of the claimed AFR dressed in a suit of all black with red trim surrounded by an enormous Action Squad security detail. Shelby's traveling convoy generally consists of large 4x4 black pick up trucks with the AFR national flag (nicknamed The Shelby) mounted in the beds.

The Shelby flag is described as a field of black upon which is a golden Eagle of Fascism within a golden ring.
Along the hoist is a red bar upon which are Gaelic runes that have been interpreted (by Shelby) to spell SHELBY.

The Shelby.PNG
 
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This place is a message… and part of a system of messages… pay attention to it!Sending this message was important to us. We considered ourselves to be a powerful culture.
This place is not a place of honor…no highly esteemed deed is commemorated here… nothing valued is here.
What is here is dangerous and repulsive to us. This message is a warning about danger.
The danger is in a particular location… it increases toward a center… the center of danger is here… of a particular size and shape, and below us.
The danger is still present, in your time, as it was in ours.
The danger is to the body, and it can kill.
The form of the danger is an emanation of energy.
The danger is unleashed only if you substantially disturb this place physically. This place is best shunned and left uninhabited.​
Oppenheimic Order of Yucca
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The Oppenheimic Order of Yucca is a military order of the Atomic Brotherhood. Based out of Yucca City, the Oppenheimic Order of Yucca takes the mainstream teachings of the Atomic Brotherhood to a extreme position.
While most in the Atomic Brotherhood teach that the god Atom and his prophets sent a curse upon humanity for their sins and placed certain areas where those who disobeyed him under such a curse that anyone who dug into those areas as unholy and certain to die. In addition, any attempts to replicate the powers of Atom are strictly forbidden by the Law and the Brotherhood. The Oppenheimic Order of Yucca holds the first part to be true, but say that the powers of Atom are a blessing upon his followers and should be harness, similar to how Atom's powers were first harnessed by the Prophet Einstein and the Holy Servant Oppenheimer. Thus the Oppenheimic Order of Yucca seeks out knowledge and tools to recreate Atom's Suns (Nuclear Bombs) and Atom's Towers (Nuclear Power Plants). Recently, they've taken to invading settlements around the Yucca region searching out the materials they need to clean the wasteland of the unholy and to protect their realms with such ferocity that none will approach the Fields of Horror, a massive complex of towering thorns, images of screaming souls painted onto massive walls, and the shadows of the sinful who have had their soul taken by Atom, surrounded by blue cacti and colour changing felines.
The mainstream Atomic Brotherhood try to keep those away from the area, but the Oppenheimic sects use the places under their protection as an execution chamber for any who dare defy the will and teachings of Atom.

As of the Year of Atom 2002, the Atomic Energy Council has met to decry the Oppenheimic sects as heretical to the teachings of Atom and a holy war to be declared against them. The two religious orders are preparing for war, and the future of the wastelands will forever be changed as a bombing campaign of Yucca city has begun and an ancient evil is about to be released into the world.
 

Deleted member 108228

The poll is up!!

 
The poll is up!!

The reason I was asking about the timing is that I was surprised entries were still being taken, and I wanted to submit one, but the date and time was confusing. I figured, based on the fact that entries were taken this afternoon, that I had until 1 am Eastern time. Apparently not.
Annoyed.
😧
 

Deleted member 108228

The reason I was asking about the timing is that I was surprised entries were still being taken, and I wanted to submit one, but the date and time was confusing. I figured, based on the fact that entries were taken this afternoon, that I had until 1 am Eastern time. Apparently not.
Annoyed.
😧

Forgive me more my incoherent direction with this. I live in CST and am still new to hosting these types of challenges. :'(
 
Forgive me more my incoherent direction with this. I live in CST and am still new to hosting these types of challenges. :'(
Meh, no problem. A suggestion, if you want a midnight deadline, actually make it 11:59 pm. Much easier to figure out.
The time zone thing is no problem.
 

Deleted member 108228

@The Professor has won the flag challenge!
The Sons of Liberty
The modern Sons of Liberty are a terrorist organisation based primarily in the North American Provinces of the Imperial British Commonwealth.
Their primary aim is secure "independence" of what they call the American Colonies from the "British Yoke" despite all provinces essentially having self governance and representation in the Commonwealth Council & Parliament.
Other aims generally include white and male supremacy.
Their willingness to target civilians and refusal to engage politically have ensured most countries label them a terrorist group.
Their flag derives from that of the original late 18th century Sons of Liberty, an organisation aimed at promoting independence of the eastern coast due to lack of representation in British Government, that became defunct following the establishment of the Chamber for Colonial Affairs under King Frederick I. It consists of 5 red and 4 white stripes. The modern group have added a red ringed pentagram. Both the stripes and star are alleged to represent the 5 liberties but only Freedom from Tax, Freedom to Carry Arms, and Freedom of Absolute Speech, are consistently present in the various tracts sent out by members.
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Now it's your turn to give out the prompt.
 
Flag Challenge 247 : Sons of the Frankish Hydra

With the death of the August Emperor Charles the Great the brief 2nd Western Roman Empire fell. Though many among his sons and sons of sons would claim Caesar none would obtain August until centuries later with the rise of St Arnold who not only received recognition from the Eastern Empire but was effectively sole August Emperor during the East's Ducate Wars.


Your Challenge is to create a flag for one of the vassal/constituent kingdoms, of this Arnoldine Empire, that claims direct descent from one of the sons of Charlemagne.
Ideally this kingdom will not have the name of any long lasting OTL kingdom.
NB for clarification the St Arnold mentioned is an ATL figure who is credited with recreating the WRE.

Submissions Open: Now
Submissions Close: 18th May, 23.59 GMT
Questions & Suggestions welcome as always
 
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Who's St Arnold? There's more than one on the wiki, so I'm a bit confused.
Sorry, thought that was clear. He's an ATL character credited with restoring the "Roman Empire" in the West. Charlemagne come again type person.
I’m pretty dense when it comes to Middle Ages Europe so I will need a bit of clarity on this one or will be sitting this contest out.
Which part do you need clarity on?
Charlemagne's empire doesn't survive him TTL, someone else later restores it later than OTL. Design a flag for one of the later empire's constituent kingdoms.
 
Sorry, thought that was clear. He's an ATL character credited with restoring the "Roman Empire" in the West. Charlemagne come again type person.
That didn't help at all. ._.
Which part do you need clarity on?
Charlemagne's empire doesn't survive him TTL, someone else later restores it later than OTL. Design a flag for one of the later empire's constituent kingdoms.
So something like East, Middle or West Francia reclaiming the whole of the HRE/Francia?
 
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