Petition for Valetudo

It was announced two weeks ago that Valetudo was under petition. In the allotted two week time window, one petition was received and reviewed by the Carista Panel. Following is that petition. Vote only once with your player account. All information on the writer should be kept anonymous and there should be no replies to this thread or discussion of the petition or the writer's identity until after voting is closed. Any questions should be sent to Delilah or Saeyer.

If this petition passes with a majority vote, this plot will go into effect immediately under the petitioning player's command. The player would also gain a place on the Plot Panel and would be the sole decision maker for the Kingdom petitioned.

Voting will stay open for one week, closing Monday, February 18th, at 9pm EST.

Quote :

Kingdom Petitioning: Valetudo
Ruling Character's Name: Valentino Dante Ilda
Ruling Character's Element and Classification: Time Consular

Succession Plot:
Immediately following the royal wedding between Prince Elias Durant and Princess Noemi Ilda, there was a parade to celebrate their union, as was custom. Despite urgings to dispense with tradition in light of the current political climate, Queen Eufenia believed it must be done to show strength and bravery among the people. During the parade, a riot broke loose. What exactly caused the riot in the first place is uncertain, but multiple eyewitnesses testified that an unidentified man began with a missing arm began to exclaim obscenities and insults toward the royal family, angry with the fact that he had been nearly killed by Glacien invaders and nothing had been done to ensure his safety and that of the people. Others agreed and joined the man until things escalated. Though the situation and the riot itself was quickly contained by the royal guard and the Brothers of Ventus, in the confusion, ice arrows pierced through the air and found its way straight through the queen's heart and the heads of three Brothers guarding her. She died upon impact. The assassin escaped and a few accomplices were found amongst the rooftops, but they resisted "questioning" at the hands of the Brothers. They were imprisoned.

The entire nation was thrown into shock. For the past fifty-five years, Queen Eufenia had been an integral part of Valetudo, first as a beloved princess and then as queen. Her assassination unified the country like never before, but also brought to light a hitherto unknown bloodlust. Someone - or some nation - had to be held accountable. Valetudo had always been a peaceful kingdom under the rule of Ilda family - to have their leader so violently deposed insulted the people to the core and they began to see the Glaciens as monsters and savages who needed to be expunged. In editorials, the people cried for action. In taverns, the people burned with fury. Those who disagreed with the majority were dubbed unpatriotic and shamed into staying quiet.

Thus began the formal succession of the queen's first child and heir, Valentino Dante Ilda. The Valetudien succession process had traditionally been a long one, with rites and ceremonies, oaths and speeches. With Valetudiens being a generally healthy people due to the frequency of the Health element among the populace and the healthcare provided by the government, lifespans were long. Kings and queens usually passed their crowns voluntarily, allowing the luxury of time for inauguration festivities. The cabinet was at a loss as to how to properly instate their new monarch and they considered to have the consort ascend the throne while they developed a new coronation procedure for Valentino.

The Valetudien population, however, did not allow that consideration to come to fruition. Through use of media and protest, they made it clear that they wanted a new leader and they wanted him now. Valetudo was undergoing crisis and all the old men in the cabinet chairs could think of was tradition. They wanted a solid, stable leader; they wanted Valentino. Though Alessandro, Eufenia's consort and the father of the royal children, was well-liked enough, he had always been more of a background figure in the Valetudien government. Valentino, however, had been preparing his entire life for rule and was loved - even more so now in light of current events. At Queen Eufenia's memorial, Valentino had delivered a speech declaring that the people of Valetudo had to come together to eradicate this threat from their homelands, and honor his late mother's memory. The speech had resonated deeply with many and none had forgotten it.

The cabinet, afraid of more riots and protests, placed Valentino on the throne with a hasty coronation. The lack of established formalities did not bother the new king. Valentino had plans that were much more important than a few prayers and scripted oaths.

Play would begin shortly after Valentino is placed on the throne. The entire coronation process is shortened to a week in the interest of having a ruler on the throne as quickly as possible.

Overall Plot for the Kingdom:

Like Noemi, Valentino had felt that his mother had handled the Glacien presence badly. Unlike Noemi, however, he was not a pacifist. As a child, he had hero-worshiped the great generals of Ignis and Terra and played war games with friends. He had grown into a man of action. In his eyes, the ideals of peace and neutrality were outdated and ineffective. The fury of the people only motivated him further to do what he felt was right. Valetudo needed to change in order to shake off her invaders and Valentino was just the man to do it.

His first courses of action as king was to hang the accomplices in his mother's murder in public and to dismiss the elderly cabinet his mother had kept. The only member he kept was Alessandro, more out of sentimentality than for any other reason. In a move the elder members of high society thought extremely rash, he invited foreign politicians from Unda, Ventus, and Ignis to his court as advisers, as well as the black sheep of the Valetudien court - militant men, extremist women, all bright, all inexperienced, and all sycophantic to the king.

Second, he began the task of securing the safety of his immediate family. Though an arrogant man, Valentino understood that it was important that he made sure his heirs survived, as he was not yet married. More than that, he deeply loved his little sisters. Noemi and her new husband, Elias, he sent to Unda. His mother had planned to do as much anyway. The second oldest sister, he sent to Ventus. The youngest, he shipped to Ignis. He began shopping for husbands for both sisters. Though it pained him to do so, he thought it prudent that he separate all of them so they would not be a collective target.

Thirdly, he sent out invitations to mercenary troupes from all over the world (excepting Glacies, naturally). The Valetudien army was still fledgeling and he needed experienced men to boost his numbers. He also extended Valetudo's hospitality to the learned scholars of the world, promising them free board, access to the famed royal libraries, and a place among his advisers. The country had its share of brilliant minds, but Valentino wanted new perspectives, new ideas, and new everything.

Then, the letters. He sent lavish gifts and envoys to Ignis, Unda, and Ventus, requesting their support in the times to come, though never clearly stating what he had planned. Most of his attention went toward Unda, considering they had the same enemy and a marriage between their royal families, despite the fact that it had been somewhat complicated by the fact that both parties chiefly involved had gone missing at sea. Their disappearance was quickly explained by the delivery of a ransom letter that claimed Elias was safe, but would not remain so unless the Undan treasury granted his kidnapper 20000 gold. The letter also apologized profusely for the assumed death of Elias' wife. Valentino was grief-stricken again and furious that he had lost yet another family member. He instated a strict anti-piracy law, detailing that all pirates found by the Valetudien navy be captured and taken to Conciliare to be imprisoned and put under trial. The trial was merely a formality - eventually, they were all hanged to make room for more.

With each new step, Valentino shielded his new regime in another layer of secrecy. The people did not know that the princesses had been sent away and were made aware of Noemi's apparent death a month after the fact. Though angry with the government for hiding such crucial information, Valentino, in his growing callousness, redirected their displeasure by insinuating that the Glaciens might have been involved in Elias and Noemi's ship being boarded. They only learned of his hiring of mercenaries when they began arriving in droves. All they really knew was that taxes were rising while tourist trade was vastly dropping. Valentino placated them with frequent speeches asking them for patience and strength in these trying times, but rumors were beginning to spread and they were growing impatient with the lack of action.

Finally, Valentino declared open war on Glacies. There was a surge of voluntary enlisters, but that hardly mattered - the king had declared the instatement of a draft as well. All able-bodied men and women over the age of eighteen without a family to support were to join the cause. This decision shocked everyone. The Valetudiens had been gung ho about going to war so long as they were not being forced to go. Many attempted to flee the consignment, despite the illegality of skipping the draft. Those who were caught were briefly imprisoned and put in the army anyway. Those who were not sometimes found refuge, but more often were boarded by pirates and Glaciens, leading to the immediate improvement of the Navy. The anti-piracy law, a result of Noemi's "death" was still in place, but now, anyone found in a pirate ship was not to be sent to prison, but executed on the spot.

Most recently, Valentino has strengthened the borders of his land and is requiring extreme amounts of documentation for Valetudien citizens to leave. The war has attracted the interest of pirates who are daring enough to enter into Valetudien waters, as desperate Valetudiens will pay quite a bit to be smuggled away. Arms dealers and other war profiteers are pouring in, as are scholars and humanitarians. More and more Brothers of Ventus and mercenaries are arriving every day. The greediest - and therefore bravest - of merchants will find that in the natural inflation of war, they will be able to sell and buy wares as much better prices. It seems as if more than ever, everyone wants in to Valetudo while many of the residents just want out, especially with the suffering of the once strong economy. Rationing is being enforced throughout the country as a means of easing the feeding and arming of the ever-growing military.

Meanwhile, Valentino is slowly becoming a different man. While still hellbent on vengeance and victory, his surrounding himself with yes-men has negatively affected his ruling capabilities, making him more arrogant, yet impressionable by all the wrong people. Despite his father's high seat in the cabinet, he will not take his advice seriously. He refuses to accept his own naivete and inexperience, believing himself to be something of a prodigal genius in the art of warfare. While sympathetic to the plights of his constituents, he simply will not hold himself accountable for his own mistakes and believes that the end will justify the means. He cloisters himself away from the world, poring over maps and books, and takes his news of the kingdom from his associates who may or may not be telling him the entire truth - Valentino does not know how bad it is becoming out there. His hubris combined with his inexperience are making a terrible combination indeed.

A small group of conservatives - mostly composed of those who had been expelled from the cabinet upon Valentino's ascension - are quietly playing with the idea of deposing Valentino and instating either one of the princesses as a puppet ruler or making amendments to law to place Alessandro on the throne. Thus far, these ideas are less than half-formed, especially as Alessandro will likely refuse the proposition and continue to try and advise his stubborn son. Valentino has some inkling of these plans, but it is more a suspicion than anything else. Espionage and double-crossing is coming into play as it never has before in Valetudien society.

The relic is still an important priority for the new regime. He has issued an open invitation to bounty hunters and adventurers to find the relic with the promise of a great reward and the establishment of an honored place among Valetudien royalty. Conartists, people chasing honor, and greedy ne'er-do-wells are beside themselves at the prospect. Many are skeptic, however, that just anyone can find the relic, if it even exists.


Influence on Kingdom

At first, the Valetudien people were hugely supportive of King Valentino. Rallied by the assassination of their queen and frustrated with their impotence against the Glacien threat, they expressed a desire for change and the disposal of antiquated customs. When Valentino rid the cabinet of its older members, they rejoiced. Many were hesitant when they saw foreigners in the king's council, but they still had hope. With the influx of mercenaries, however, public opinion began to shift.

The mercenaries raised crime rates considerably, but with such a large population of them, the local peacekeepers were hardly able to keep up. As a direct result, the local hospitals and clinics began filling, requiring more funding that the government was not equipped to give. This increased the formerly mild Valetudien prejudice against foreign entities. Still, at this point, people were still generally supportive of the king, though many were becoming suspicious of the lack of transparency and the climbing taxes.

With the declaration of war, the kingdom once again renewed its faith in its ruler among most of the population. People literally raced to enlist. The draft, however, enraged a great number of people, particularly the vocal minority who did not want to go to war in the first place and those who supported the war but did not wish to participate. Conservatives began comparing Valentino to Julianna Kristia of Ignis. His popularity has severely dropped as a result of the draft and with the confirmed disappearance and suspected death of Princess Noemi, the morale is beginning to lower considerably. Entire towns have lost more than half of their population to the draft. Health Apprentices and higher have been pulled from their hospital and clinic work to heal - and kill - on the front lines.

The economy enjoyed a short boost when he began creating jobs, but has taken a sharp downward turn. Wars are expensive. Valentino has pumped a vast amount of the treasury into bribing other countries for support, building an army, building ships and weapons, buying ships and weapons, and paying mercenaries. With trade suffering from pirate and Glacien interference, inflation is at an all time high. Tourism has all but ceased. Many businesses have shut down, bringing unemployment to an all-time high and forcing the unemployed into the military. The state of affairs in the economy is the biggest motivator for Valentino's drop in approval and is causing many to reconsider their feelings on the war.

Valentino, driven by honor, revenge, and a ruthless belief in the end justifying the means, has largely ignored the complaints of his country. Those still at home are too afraid to rebel, though many are beginning to feel the stirs of revolution. Most of those preparing for battle believe in their cause, but not in the man who commands them. A small cadre of Conservatives are plotting to overthrow Valentino. He is trying desperately to find a wife and husbands for his sisters. Foreigners looking to profit from the impending war are wrestling to make their way in through the door. All in all, things in Valetudo are very busy.