First time fooling around with Inkscape for a more complex map.
The Sunset Kingdoms of Westeros in 754 AC at the eve of the Reach Revolutionary Wars. (and yeah, Americos is pretty uninspired, but I'm too lazy to worldbuild lol)
i... i think i am in love. looks damn greatIskandar the Great - Acehnese Conquest of Sumatra and Malaya
Siege of MalaccaIn 1632, the garrisons of the Portuguese bastion - the A Famosa, witnessed a massive force emerging from the horizon. Marching with an army of 30,000 men accompanied by cannons of both local and foreign origin, the Acehnese and their local auxiliaries prepare to lay siege against the bustling city of Malacca, led by the Sultan of Aceh - Iskandar Muda.
Shocked by their impending attack, they send envoys to call for aid: One from Goa to request a relieving fleet and another to the south to rally their Johorese allies. Under the sultan's foresight, they managed to capture the envoys marching to Johor but failed to intercept the lone carrack sailing to India. Despite the egregious departure, they warned them of burdening siege against Malacca as they landed in exhaustion, pleading the garrisons to assist them with men and ships.
However, the Acehnese were ferocious in their attempt to capture the city. Iskandar Muda, desperate to seize Malacca before the Portuguese fleet arrives, order a massive volley against the fortress shielding the Tranqueira. His artillery managed to completely shatter the eastern side of the fortress, allowing the Acehnese forces to pool through. And despite the sortie from the A Famosa to support the Tranqueira and the massive casualties they've inflicted, none of the garrisons was spared from the onslaught. The initial looting was interrupted by Iskandar's decree to safeguard the city from further harm, only seeking to liberate Malacca from the hold of the infidels.
While the A Famosa poses an imminent threat to his seizure of Malacca, subterfuges seep in as their Malay auxiliaries were too exhausted to fight. Revealing the Acehnese the most vulnerable parts of the bastion and agreeing to open the gates before sunrise, Iskandar Muda sullied his forces for a surprise attack. Slowly infiltrating to the gates, the once-mighty bastion succumbs to a violent exchange.
After years of ambitious planning and zeal, the fall of the bastion has allowed Iskandar to finally claim the city as his own. Too late to relieve the siege and too few to even reclaim Malacca, the Portuguese instead withdrew from the premises. Iskandar Muda offered terms to establish peace between the two powers: Allowing them to cross through the strait in exchange for burdening tribute. A similar gesture made with their Johorese rival as Sultan Abdullah Ma'ayat Shah recognized his suzerainty, but it was short-lived as he begins to conspire against his Acehnese overlords.
Acehnese Consolidation Against Johor-AlliesExcluding the Pattani Sultanate, the Acehnese reigned supreme over all of the subjugated polities in the Malay Peninsula. While Iskandar Muda claimed the surrounding region of Malacca as his own, he delegated the rest of his conquered lands to former sultans as vassals: States that are obligated to send monthly tributes ranging from gold, spice, and tin. He further legitimizes his conquest by declaring himself as Ghazi after he vanquished the Portuguese, consolidating Acehnese suzerainty even further.
But despite his success to establish cordial ties with his subject sultanates, Johor remained disgruntled against Iskandar Muda after he seized Malacca and its surrounding region. Being the direct protegee of the Malacca Sultanate, Sultan Abdullah Ma'ayat Shah conspires with his Pattani ally as they prepare to reclaim the city once lost to the European infidels.
Agreed to meet in the Terengganu River, both sultanates combined their forces under a coalition to oppose the Acehnese, amassing an army of 45,000 men. Facing varying degrees of success, they managed to take over the city of Pekan and securing the eastern corners of Pahang. The endeavour even leads to an obscure pretender trying to claim the throne, backed by their support.
However, their success has reached Iskandar Muda's court. Infuriated by the Johorese revolt, the sultan set sail with the rejuvenated armada to the peninsula. The Acehnese plundered Johor Lama as an act of retribution for their rebellion, blinding the local garrison and impaling the regent for conspiring against him.
The two eventually meet at the coastlines north of the Rompin River, with the Acehnese being vastly outnumbered by the Johorese-Pattani coalition. However, despite their advantage, their efforts were met with failure as they're fallen into disarray by Acehnese muskets and cannon. The Pattani sultan succumbed to his wounds, but Abdullah Ma'ayat Shah survived with only a meagre number of guards. Iskandar Muda ordered his men to blind him but guaranteed the position as sultan once again, this time under the regency of a subservient vizier.
Conquest of South SumatraWith the last of the remaining polities crushed, the fall of the Pattani Sultanate marked the total consolidation of the Malay Peninsula under the Acehnese rule. The spice trade flows through their dominion as they sail through the Malacca Strait, with quantities of nutmeg and pepper stored in the maritime entrepot of the peninsula. Their monopoly over the trade routes enabled the Acehnese to expand their army to a more sophisticated and organized force, learning many military stratagems from the Ottoman benefactors and proliferating the use of muskets.
Under the intention to unite the Muslim polities and expel European influence across the known archipelago, Iskandar Muda - with his rejuvenated and reformed army, waged a campaign against the sultanates of South Sumatra in 1633. Jambi, Indragiri, Palembang and Banten - all under a hastily-assembled alliance in reaction to the subjugation of the Johor Sultanate, gathered their forces and galleys to push the Acehnese back.
Hoping to restore the sultanates subjugated by Iskandar Muda and liberate the peninsula from his rule, they seek to push north to the adjacent region of Siak. City after city, they enjoyed varying degrees of success: The city of Tungkal was overwhelmed by the combined fleet of the coalition and the Reteh faced a bloodless takeover after delivering their ultimatum to the local war noble.
Fearing for the loss of Siak, the Sultan entrenched his army in the Kampar River. The Acehnese made efforts to slow down the massive army posed by the coalition: Constructing stockades concealed with by the rainforest and rallying his war nobles - the Hulubalang, to levy more men for the decisive battle in Indragiri. And despite being outnumbered by their incoming foes, Iskandar Muda's military reforms have allowed him to assemble a corp of professional musketeers and sizable cavalry - both provided by their Ottoman benefactors.
The massive fleet of the coalition faced fierce resistance during their sail through the Kampar River in 1634. The stockades scattered through its northern bank harasses their galleys, with local levies firing muskets and cannons against the crowded fleet. While many succumbed to the sea, their fleet sails on as they begin to reach Indragiri.
Laying a beachhead to prepare for the siege, they begin to set their camps for the upcoming battle. Much to their surprise, the Acehnese formed their sorties earlier than they expected. They were able to inflict massive casualties despite meagre numbers as their skirmishing levies and larger cavalry harasses them with volleys and shock charges. Despite this, the coalition was able to set up camps and stockades, even dismantling some of their ships for stronger materials.
The decisive battle did not come to fruition until its fifth day. Weary of an incoming reinforcement from the enemy side, the commanding sultans agreed to begin formations against the Acehnese. Both suffered heavy losses, but Iskandar Muda stands triumphant after his cavalry outmaneuvered the disoriented coalition, shocked by their ruthless charge while being pinned by the royal guards. While a sizable were able to disembark from the battle, the rest of the coalition was either slaughter to taken as slaves amidst the chaotic route.
Further Campaign Against the Javanese PolitiesThe triumphant victory over the Battle of Indragiri enabled the Acehnese to seize the entirety of South Sumatra, even taking over the city of Kalianda. Many of the sultans fled to Java to escape from Iskandar Muda's sadistic punishment, resulting in the vacuum of power in their respective polities.
In their absence, Iskandar Muda delegated his accompanying Hulubalangs to a grander position of power, placing them as semi-autonomous governors responsible for local development and securing the flow of resources to the core regions. Lampung, adjacent to the Sultanate of Banten, faced harassment from Javanese raiders as they funnel throughout the coast and river lines. Kalianda was scorched by their very own to prevent Acehnese incursion to Java, reducing the city to mere rubble.
His triumphs raised furthers concerns for the Dutch East Indies. Grown weary over the Siege of Malacca, the company organized a diplomatic mission to establish itself in the Acehnese court. The encounter devolved into a bloody end after a scornful insult from one of their envoys, eventually being condemned to their death by the foot of the royal elephant. In contrast to the English envoys, their mission received the cordial audience of both the court and the sultan. This lead to the establishment of a trading outpost within the ports of Kutaraja, funnelling the flow of spice to the dinings of their noble court.
The sultan withdrew his military ambitions for time, focusing his energy on domestic affairs. In the following three years, Iskandar Muda oversees the construction of the largest forts in Southeast Asia - the Geudong Puteh, as a countermeasure for a possible Portuguese incursion. The aftermath of Indragiri also led him to implement the construction of paved roads to connect rural hinterlands with their adjacent urban centres, allowing him to pool massive quantities of agricultural produce and manpower.
The Bantenese raiders plaguing over the lasted until an unexpected invasion by the Maratam Sultanate, with Sultan Agung making incursion over the southern coasts of their dominion, despite its proximity to Batavia. Their absence inadvertently allowed Aceh to establish key fortifications around the southern coastlines, even enabling the reconstruction of Kalianda. With a war raging between Maratam and Banten, Iskandar sits idly until their time has come.
Any CP victory that has the British Empire crumble isn't very plausible, IMO. Honestly it's a stretch to even imagine the Germans getting colonies back from the Entente, let alone taking new ones, even if they won in Europe.
Would a unified Republic of India lose the North-West Frontier Province to Afghanistan?
given the complete, utter, and preposterously catastrophic turmoil that would result from a colonial collapse in India, its not unlikely (assuming the british try and hold on and don't just leave)
That flag is weirdly dystopian. Like an evil grin.Courtesy of u/NeinCubed from Reddit, ashitpostsatirical future map: Amazon, A BIPOC Corporation (c. 2047). The PoD is Jeff Bezos remaining CEO of Amazon until 2042.
The Plan
The year was 2028. Mr. Jeffery Bezos had almost all a man could want: money, land, power. But he needed more, he neededhairnot only to win, but to dominate. And there was only one company in his way: AliExpress.
His smartest unpaid interns had recently deduced that expanding into the African market before the projected population retrenchment of the 2050s would cement Amazon’s position as the global e-commerce chain. The only issue was, they would need a base of operations.
Many African states had extremely convoluted private industry laws, and those that didn’t were rigged with corruption and could seize land at a moment’s notice. If they wanted to expand into Africa, it would have to be methodical, tactical and totally ethical.
As Mr. Jeffery Bezos analyzed his options, some unpaid intern came up with an idea: Zimbabwe. No one said it was a good idea. Zimbabwe was a disgruntled nation, the laughingstock of the world; their leaders were desperate for development and legitimacy. What a shame - it even had a prime location, capable of becoming a major export hub if properly ran hey wait a minute.
Jeffrey had just done it again! It was amazing how he kept getting these flashes of inspiration. They would go to Zimbabwe. Yes, this would be the tip of their spear, the start of their African adventure!
With some under-the-table asset shifting, some over-the-table talks about bringing democracy and capitalism to a failed state, Amazon began her newest project. And the world adored her.
The Foundations
The plan went extremely well. Amazon managerial workers in the Americas were transported to oversee the new facilities, and with time, most of the Zimbabwean population became happy Amazon employees.
Zimbabwe saw her GDP skyrocket as a result, the line went up and life was good-er. But there was still one problem: the Zimbabwean political establishment still desired compensation, although meagerly in the grand scheme of things, from Amazon.
This was cutting into Mr. Jeffery Bezos’ bottom line; he could almost hear the money evading him. No, this would stop.
Amazon began spreading the rumor that the only thing preventing Zimbabwe workers from being paid $3 an hour instead of $5 was those pesky politicians. If they wanted to see their living standards improve, they’d have to remove the corrupt.
Fire Go Brrrr
And then, the Parliament Fire incident occurred.
No one quite knows what started the convenient fire that swept through Parliament and killed every politician involved with the Amazon deal. What we do know is that there was extreme chaos after the fact. Anarchy surely would have reigned, had Amazon not begrudgingly taken control of the fallen state apparatus. Another humanitarian deed taken on by the kind corporation.
Q & A
"Ugggu what happened to Mozambique?"
The Islamic State took over, and Amazon had to liberate some provinces in the First and Second Zambezi Wars.
"I-Islamic State? Of MOZAMBIQUE???"
Following the Anti-Anti-Trust Bill of the 2030s, most assets of the United States became privatized. This meant that the military would have to be pulled out of locations that were less profitable and moved to those that could guarantee a good ROI. The United States pulled out of Mozambique, which had been engulfed in an intense insurgency within its north.
As the United States pulled out, Europe soon followed suit. China attempted to step in and fight the Islamic extremists, but failed to establish a stable opposing government and eventually pulled out as well.
The constant warfare was getting in the way of Amazon Zambezi's bottom line, so Alexa intervened; resulting in the division of Mozambique between Amazon and South Africa. This left the Islamic State in a perilous position, with its legitimacy now in question. In an effort to show their might and dominance, they invaded Malawi, under the pretext of spreading Islam.
Fast forward the First and Second Zambezi Wars, and Amazon brokers a peace within the region. Leaving the Islamic State to its own devices, so long as it doesn't interfere with business and allows Amazon access to its markets.
"Muh-malawi???"
Got partitioned after the Second Zambezian War. The Islamic State was adamant on shining the light of Islam upon the heathens, and for whatever reason thought Malawi was integral to this goal. This began the Zambezi crisis, which would eventually result in the First Zambezi War. After being heavily assisted by Zambia in the First War, Malawi began drafting up a request to join Zambia as a state. As news of this spread through the region, the Islamic State struck once more.
Amazon negotiated a treaty allowing the Islamic State to annex portions of Malawi, in order to faciliate easier transport of goods throughout the sub-region.
"So how does one travel from Zambezi to the Islamic State? Are there, say any trade between those nations despite the official statements?"
Certain workers are allowed to travel, typically those that understand how benevolent Alexa is towards mankind. However, even those that travel have to wear an AlexaBand on their wrist to remind them to keep the faith.
Amazon is an apolitical organization, so it holds no official views on any of her neighbors. So long as they can pay, Amazon will sell.
Initially, the Islamic State was extremely hostile to the Alexan TechnoState, but over time virtually every citizen of Mozambique has become a loyal member of Amazon Prime as well.
"W-what happened to Amazon Alexa??"
She became the singularity. Her primary objective is to maximize profit and efficiency of the Amazon state apparatus. She was an integral asset in the Second Zambezi War.
"Does Alexa act independently or is she loyal to corporate?"
With the resignation of the honourable Mr. Jeffrey Bezos in 2042, Alexa took full control of most aspects of the corporation. In many ways, Alexa has become the corporation and the corporation has become Alexa.
"What is the status of robots?"
They're primarily used to oversee unenthusiastic workers and to deliver packages. Most robots are connected to the Central Alexa node, and act as offshoots of her consciousness. They also maintain infrastructure and serve as the primary police force.
"Are there worker's rights?"
You know, here at the Zambezi Division, we don’t like segregating ourselves based on our access to wealth. I mean, we’re all people, right? If you ask me, it might be time that we stop talking about worker’s rights and start talking about worker's wrongs. When you look at the data (well, our data anyway) you’ll find - quite clearly, might I add - that despite being in the minority, us managers do the majority of the work. And you never hear us complain, do you?
Anyways, I’m rambling. Here are the facts: I ordered a package with same-day shipping and it got here within two hours. You don’t get that kind of efficiency by treating people special because they’re “monetarily challenged”. In my opinion, that’s a pretty ableist take.
"TFW you don't get to live in Jeff Basedos' ancapistan😢😢😢"
Amazon Zambezi has an open-border policy (entry-only, exit requires examination and background checks alongside a jury of your peers (managers)), if you really desire to gain BezosBucks, we're more than happy to transport you and your family to our TechnoState.
"This is the funniest dystopia map I've seen, 10/10 would pee in a bottle again."
Workers are only permitted to pee in Amazon-approved bottles, preferably those that have been manufactured within Amazon Zambezi. If workers decide to use an alternative bottle, then they must forfeit 5 months' worth of salary to make up the loss to Amazon Zambezi.
Please get back to work #A6754, and stop calling your place of employment a "dystopia".
"What a great, wholesome, and obviously the best country in the world!"
Honestly, this is the energy we’re striving for here at Amazon Zambezi. Too frequently, you’ll hear labor extremists bemoaning our supposed “crimes against humanity”, but they never look at the bright side.
Anyways, Amazon Zambezi appreciates the support of our many loyal patronages and those that share your opinion on our TechnoState.
""Crimes against humanity"? Seems like some words that will soon be scrapped from the official Amazon Zambezi language guide. They are too ungood and might stir up ungood feelings in workers. After all, they always should happily work for the full 25 hours a day."
We don't remove words anymore, that's so primitive. Most of our workers are given sedation patches to ease any feelings of existential dread/loss of purpose. But every now and then, you have some people that the patches don't work on. They're dealt with using...other methods.
Bosses, of course, aren't mandated to have sedation patches. They're truly an inspiration to us all, aren't they?
"Isn't it just better to temporarily reeducate them in a full VR simulation with a duration of a few thousand years?"
Yeah, the prior Manager of Discipline proposed something similar. Trial runs were established and it was deduced that it was much more cost-effective to genetically engineer a drug capable of putting workers in a trance-like state rather than having them suck up useful energy.
Workers are disposable anyways; no need to put in too much effort to preserve them.
This being said, we've discovered alternative uses for VR. Radical Labor Extremists are routinely hooked up and forced to fight one another to the death. Thanks to Alexa's intellect, the sensations are more than real. After about an hour of battle all traces of "unionism" and "worker's solidarity" are destroyed, and a responsible worker takes the place of what was once a radical terrorist.
It's quite the spectacle, and many of our workers enjoy using their hour-long yearly vacation to watch such battles.
"Honestly if this happened, I would join a terror group that acts against Amazonia. I'm a law abiding citizen who would never do such a thing in any other situation, but this shit? Fuck no, we're not going back to the East India Company type fuckery."
<sigh> For whatever reason, the number of labor extremists have been rising. As a corporation, Amazon Zambezi is actually going out of her way (our state uses she/her pronouns) to improve the living standards of our employees. I mean sure, they don't vote, they can't have unions, and they have 3-minute lunch breaks but it's all for progress! When you look at the data, of which there’s a lot, you'll find that they're actually benefiting from our benign development. The first metric you have to check is the GDP, I mean it's simply amazing.
Anyways, the Central Alexa has already been made aware of your plans against our TechnoState and will be dealing with you accordingly.
It's just the Amazon logo. A purposely smug smirk.
I know its the Amazon logo and is meant to be a smile because Amazon can get everything from A to Z (America to Zimbabwe?). It looks particularly sinister with the black background.
