Mundi is an isola in the world of Disco Elysium.
History[ | ]
Mundi was the first isola to succeed at interisolary travel[1] through the pale during the Interisolary Age,[2] quickly becoming a geopolitical superpower that colonized five of the seven isolas[3] under the reign of Irene La Navigateur, Queen of Suresne (modern day Sur-la-Clef). Eight expeditions were sent out into the pale; five disappeared entirely, while two returned, but had lost their minds due to the effects of the pale. This is thought to have been a cruel attempt to purge the queen's political rivals, admirals who would have led the teams into the pale, which was thought to be inpenetrable.[4] However, the eighth and final expedition returned, and had managed to discover a new continent; Insulinde. At this time, Dolores Dei was councillor to the queen.[5]
Mundi is known as the "Old Old World".[6][7] In the Dolorian era, the three Crown Cities of the Mundi isola were Deora, Rheasilvia and Advesperascit.[8]
Geography[ | ]
Mundi is the largest of the seven isolas,[9] located to the north of Insulinde.[10] The majority of the nations on the isola are a part of the EPIS-aligned Occidental sub-continent,[11] and include the Republics[12] of Vesper,[13] Messina,[13] Oranje,[14] Sur-la-Clef,[15] Meteo,[16] Königstein,[17] Gottwald,[18][19] and the island of Ubi Sunt?.[20] The remaining non-Occidental nations include Kedra[21] (which has been a candidate member since '21),[22] Saramiriza,[13] Mesque,[13] and Sao.[13] During the Dolorian era, there were fourty Mondial nations, half of which rejected Dolores Dei's rule.[23]
Corpus Mundi, a dormant volcano[24] holds the title of Elysium's highest point at 18.9 kilometres tall.[25] It is located on the Mundi isola, most likely in the Republic of Mesque. Mountaineer Cornelius Gurdi attempted to climb the mountain, but never returned,[26] though he is remembered as a national hero and is often associated with mountain goats -- the only creature fearless and agile enough to climb the mountain.[27]
Occident[ | ]
The Occident is a sub-continent[11] on the Mundi isola, located to the south of Kedra.[28] It consists of EPIS-aligned nations, with Sur-la-Clef as its "executive heart".[29] Notable geographic locations include Irmala, a plateau where the vast majority of the world's supply of cocaine is produced, typically by slave labour,[30] and the Staadskanaal, an artificial channel through the Occident that is connected to the Preto Grande.[31]
Vesper[ | ]
The Republic of Vesper, formerly a part of the Republic of Vesper-Messina, is an Occidental nation[32] on the Mundi isola.[33] It is situated partially on a peninsula on the southeast of the Occident and is close in proximity to the pale.
Vesper is a constitutional monarchy,[32] and a member of the Moralintern as well as the Coalition of Nations.[34] Its Department of Justice has published a paper on criminal profiling in former socialist states.[35] Systems analysts from Vesper have analyzed and expressed worries about the collapse of the Revacholian Zone of Control.[36] Its coat of arms is a lion and ostrich sitting upright.[37]
The Harmon Wowshi W02 is manufactured in Vesper, but designed in Seol,[38] and Averro, SRL, a chain of high-end pharmacies is found only in Vesper and Messina.[39]
The Dick Mullen series, as well as its titular character are both Vespertine,[40] and the nation is generally known for its police and spy novels,[41] influencing the RCM's aesthetic and culture as a result.[42] The Antistar was a Vespertine rock star famous for shooting morphine into one eyeball, and cocaine into the other.[43] He would later die as a result of his drug use.[44]
The Franconigerian boiadero culture adopted by Call Me Mañana is an appropriation of "Vespertine cool".[45] Vespertine proto-expressionism is a major artistic movement from the last century.[46]
Messina[ | ]
The Republic of Messina, formerly the Republic of Vesper-Messina, was once a dual kingdom on the south-eastern coast of the Occident. It used to take up most of the peninsula, before separating into the Republics of Vesper and Messina. An amicable parting of ways produced two constitutional monarchies.
Mesque and Messina share a border.[47]
Oranje[ | ]
The Sovereign Republic of Oranje (O-RAN-yeh) or Oranjenrijk is a democratic nation on the Mundi isola, north of Insulinde, over the sea and across the pale.
Oranje is one of the six major Occidental nations to hold stake in the continued occupation of Revachol (the Coalition). People consider it a reasonable superpower.
Much of its influence is derived from its alignment with Moralintern and participation in EPIS, where it contributes 28% of the organization's annual budget and takes care of the political side of things. Next to Sur-la-Clef, Oranje is probably the most prominent member of the international community.[48]
Oranje's economy is one of the most advanced in the world. It has successfully transitioned from heavy industry to advanced services, and generally acts as an engine for sustainable change in the international community.
Numerous customs are characteristic of Oranje. For example, the Oranjese Map of the Waterways. It is a sailor's tattoo worn by wayfarers of the Dolorian century, over 300 years ago. The sailors would mark their bodies to map their travels. As technology developed and evolved, the tattoo was slowly abandoned by sailors and adopted by mercenaries, as a way to showcase their military careers.[49] Vredefort, the capital of the Oranjese state, is traditionally placed on the right shoulder as the origin point.[50]
In some places in Oranje, like Staadskanaal and Vredefort, street parades occur.[51] Parade-goers are known to wear wooden shoes and hats with colored tassels.[52]
- Lelystad municipality has few boroughs and even fewer cities – it's made of agricultural plots near the border of Gottwald. Executive summary: cows, silos, and wheat.[53]
- Vredefort is the capital of Oranjenrijk, known for its parks, glass, duraluminium - a conference city.[54] It's known for its Ijsbrand Military Academy.[55]
Oranjese special forces are notorious for their prowess and lethality. Private military contractors are also common: One of the more infamous is the Corps de Pharmacie, a security firm contracted to protect the interests of Oranjese pharmaceutical companies in the Semenine conflict.
Gottwald and Oranje share a border.[56]
Sur-la-Clef[ | ]
Sur-la-Clef, formerly known as the Kingdom of Suresne, is an Occidental country[57] on the Mundi isola. It had a long and storied role in the history of the world. It is here that Innocence Dolores Dei came to power as the chief advisor to Queen Irene the Navigator[58]. Sur-La-Clef was also responsible for opening the Insulindian archipelago for colonization, three hundred years ago, and was the original owner of the city of Revachol. By the Current Century, it's a modern, urbanized country ranking high on the Human Development and Freedom index, a leading member of the Coalition, and the executive heart of EPIS.
Sur-la-Clef is one of the founding members of and hosts the headquarters of the major EPIS institutions. The nation focuses on the business side of things.[59]
Meat balls and mashed potatoes are popular dishes in Sur-La-Clef. It's also popular in some parts of Revachol, primarily those with stronger ties to its original colonizing power.
Meteo[ | ]
Meteo is a country on the Mundi isola.[60] It is one of the poorest first world nations today, but was once an ancient civilization.[61] Its capital city is Thylakos-by-Pisantic.[61] It is located near the Pisantic sea.[62]
The Meteoran name for the Founding Party is Ecclesiastes.[63]
Königstein[ | ]
Königstein (lit. Kingstone) is a country on the Mundi isola.[64] It is located in the central Occident.[65] It is a rich country[66] known for it's contributions to psychology in the Thirties.[67] The Dominion Police of Königstein are a mounted police force known for their distinctive uniform of scarlet breeches and cylindrical fur caps.[65] Feld Electrical started as a midway electronics outfit in Königstein two centuries ago[68] and the now defunct lift company Halter was from Königstein.[69]
Königstein is located in central Occident.
Gottwald[ | ]
Gottwald is a nation on the Occidental subcontinent of the Mundi isola, bordering Oranje.[70]
People from Gottwald are referred to as Gottwaldians or Gottwalders, or, derogatorily, Maun.[71] There is a Gottwaldian ambassador in Revachol.[72] Gottwald was a participant in the colonization of Iilmaraa.[73]
The language spoken in Gottwald is Walder. The accent is guttural and similar to an Oranjese accent.[74]
Gottwald is known for its industry. Companies and products from Gottwald include:
- Schneller, a fashionable stationary brand popular with architects and engineers[75]
- Mauer-Koshlai Mercury Group, a Gottwaldian-Iilmaraan mercury extraction company[76]
- Kristallsprach Model 9, a specialist radio transceiver[77]
Villiers & La Salle, one of the original 14 indotribes, was acquired by Gottwalders after the Revolution.[78]
Gottwald has a prestigious award for youth literature, the Kritikerpreis.[79]
Gottwald is the source of one of the two major strands of post-Revolution communist thought, the Gottwald School. Gottwaldian critical theory posits that intellectuals are a class incapable of performing revolutionary change, only capable of inspiring it in others through critique,[80] and is incompatible with infra-materialism.[81] They also seem to develop extensive psychological analysis.[82]
A last-century Gottwaldian philosopher coined the term “life-world,” referring to things that share in human history.[83][84]
- Knut Schmelling and Jörgen Stirneman, legendary pinball players who have managed sub-twenty minute runs on Gurdi's Goats.[85]
- Moritz Metzger, a children's book author and illustrator who won the Kritikerpreis in '26 for his book The Saddest Pig in the World.[79]
- Dr. Uwe Plattenkalk, an explorer and naturalist who claims to have sighted the eight-eyed teratorn in '21 while in Iilmaraa.[86]
Ubi Sunt?[ | ]
Ubi Sunt?, the only place in the world with a question mark in its name, is a small country near Vesper, described as both a peninsula and a island. It is a poverty-stricken country slowly collapsing into the Pale.[87][88] Its resident populace, the Ubi, are stereotyped as engaging in bestiality, especially with sheep.[89] Iraesh is a location in Ubi Sunt?.[90]
Mesque[ | ]
The Republic of Mesque[91] is the world's largest state by territory.[92] Magritte is a river in the great steppes of northern Mesque.[93] Villalobos is a peninsula on Mesque.[94] The dormant shield volcano Corpus Mundi, that stands as the world's highest summit at 18.9 km, is likely located on Mundi given the name.[95]
A rooster, commonly associated with Mesque.
The Confederate Republic of Mesque is a nation on the isola of Mundi. It is the world's largest state by territory. It is a confederation, petrostate, and a constitutional monarchy that has been experiencing a far-right shift in recent years, leading to isolation.[96]
Mesque has a long and complex history, tied closely to the Innocences. Franconegro, for example, is considered by many a father figure due to his militarism and nationalism. However, all things change: 300 years ago, the lands of Mesque and the Occident and even far-away Supramundi -- altogether twenty one of the forty Mondial nations of the time -- immediately accepted innocentic rule of Dolores Dei, even before her crowning. However, Dei's policies proved to be unpopular and eventually, the Mesque state tried to detach itself from innocentic rule. Parts of the world were experiencing whiplash from accelerating into secularism. Her mandatory education programs and mass resettlement of upstream Magritte were problematic as well. Dissenters were suppressed by a military force she called The Army of Humanity, leading to some modern thinkers condemning her treatment of Mesque reprehensible, and the many campaigns waged against it war crimes.[97][98][99]
The Mesque state seems to have reconciled its differences, as it was one of the members of the Coalition of Nations involved in pacifying the Antecentennial Revolution in Revachol. Occidental and Mesquite falangues - volunteers - were particularly infamous for their conduct in combat and bloodthirst.[100] To add insult to injury, the Mesque state was experiencing a golden age.[101] Fifty years on, Mesque is struggling: The golden age is over and the petrofascists are reigning supreme, isolating the nation on the interisolar stage.[102]
Marietti is a Mesque style of music and dance commonly seen at all manner of festivities -- especially weddings. It's delightfully quaint, owing to its peasant origins.[103]
Common Mesque legends are tied to Cornelius Gurdi, and his attempt to scale the world's highest peak, Corpus Mundi. National legend claims that Gurdi will return when Mesque is in danger, in order to save his people.[104]
Kedra[ | ]
Kedra is a large nation in the mid-northern area of the Mundi isola, north of the Occident, between the Irmalan mountain range and the Pisantic *mare interregnum*.[28] It is notable for Stepan the Despicable, who defeated and humiliated the false-innocence, Ernö Pasternak.
Kedra is a candidate member of EPIS that has been negotiating for membership since '21. Some Moralintern members believe this warm, pleasant country known for its mandarin trees and Supramundi dust storms will never become a full member (at least as long as it remains an emerging market).
Kedra is known for its aquarelle-blue tile work.
Saramiriza[ | ]
Saramiriza is a country on the Mundi isola.[105] Historically, Saramiriza acted as a vassal of the suzerainty of Revachol and provided Revachol with magenta cocaine.[106] Currently, Saramiriza is still associated with high-grade cocaine[107] and drug smuggling.[108] Also associated with Saramiriza is coffee[109] and communism.[110] The U41-A is the pale transport route from Saramiriza to Graad.[111]
Geographically, Saramiriza and Supramundi appear related, being managed as one entity by the colonial powers of Revachol.[112] The nation also appears to have cultural and ethnic similarities with Mesque, in particular with regards to language and tattoos.[113] Under the Moralintern, Saramiriza is considered a hotbed for PMC wafare and gang conflict.[114]
Sao[ | ]
References[ | ]
- ↑
YOU – Okay. When did she rule?
ENCYCLOPEDIA – Three hundred years ago, in the wake of the discovery of this isola -- the Insulindian -- by explorers from the continent of Mundi. She is, among other things, the innocence of interisolary travel and the connected world.
- ↑
JOYCE MESSIER – "Revachol," she says. "Those are the two constants: Vredefort on the shoulder and Revachol in the heart. They started the tradition of these maps right after the discovery of Insulinde, at the dawn of the Interisolary Age."
- ↑
JOYCE MESSIER – "The nations of Mundi proceeded to discover five more isolae -- or they discovered us -- all in the rush of the great interisolary reconnection..."
JOYCE MESSIER – "But these others weren't uninhabited. We had to kill people there, wipe out indigenous populations, gunboat economies. Or they came to do the same for us. Or had done to each other. But here..." she spreads her arms.
JOYCE MESSIER – "There was no one but the skua. The Liliacea. And the blood beech and the River Esperance. It was the New New World. The Mondials used it to amass the greatest concentration of wealth mankind has ever seen -- Revachol the Suzerain."
- ↑
JOYCE MESSIER – "The nations who colonized this isola called theirs *Mundi*. The World. It was all they knew, all they thought would be. That there would be something more was a gamble. Akin to another world -- or life after death."
JOYCE MESSIER – "The pale was thought to be impregnable, perpetual." She points northwest. "Irene La Navigateur, the Queen of Suresne, sent *eight* expeditions, one after the other, into the mass at the edge of the world. Five of the crews did not return. Two did, but had lost their minds."
RHETORIC [Challenging: Success] – Each of those expeditions would have been led by an admiral. Sounds like a purge. Like she was purging her political rivals.
YOU – "Sounds cruel."
JOYCE MESSIER – She nods. "There was no precedent for such an undertaking. People thought she was punishing the admirals, or had gone mad, or both..."
- ↑
JOYCE MESSIER – "The eighth expedition returned, sane and intact. They told of a new continent of matter. They told the queen and her councillor, Dolores Dei, that the pale had begun to condense, day after day, hour after hour, minute after minute."
- ↑
VISUAL CALCULUS – The pale. The Mundi isola. The Occident. And then -- *Oranje*. The Old Old World.
- ↑
YOU – "As an Oranjese yourself, didn't his lack of patriotism annoy you?"
KLAASJE (MISS ORANJE DISCO DANCER) – "No, there is nothing on Mundi. The Old Old World is dead and we both knew it. Come to think of it, maybe Oranje did bring us together -- in loathing."
- ↑
YOU – "What's 'White Deora'?"
KIM KITSURAGI – "Some kind of..." He looks around, thinking. "Inane pinball theme -- probably related to Messina during the Dolorian age. The *history themes* are the worst."
ENCYCLOPEDIA [Medium: Success] – Deora was one of the three *Crown Cities* of the Dolorian era, on the Mundi isola -- the others being Rheasilvia and Advesperascit. This theme is all about early airships and beautiful, sad, pearl-laden women. It's quite nice actually.
- ↑
JOYCE MESSIER – "An oceanic isola. It comprises mostly of water. Mundi is the largest, Katla the coldest, Insulinde the bluest. What can I say..." She stops. "Each is perishing and dear."
- ↑
MAP WALL – The ocean breaks apart into a tangle of cosines and azimuths, all pointing into pale nothingness. *Mundi* is the north azimuth; *Graad* is the northeast azimuth; *Samara* is the east azimuth; *Seol* is the west azimuth. *Isolas*, they're called.
- ↑ 11.0 11.1
ENCYCLOPEDIA – When he says Occidental he means white. originally from the Occidental sub-continent on Mundi.
- ↑
THE GREATEST INNOCENCE – Incorrect. Vesper-Messina is not a person, but a defunct state on the southeastern coast of the Occident. It used to take up most of the peninsula, before separating into the Republics of Vesper and Messina. Care to try again?
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 13.3 13.4
ENCYCLOPEDIA – As you read it you think: that leaves out dark haired Mesque, Sao, Saramirizian, Kedreatic... Lighter skinned Occidental means this man could be... Vespertine? Oranjese? Messinian. Those three are on the table.
- ↑
ENCYCLOPEDIA – The Republic of Oranje is a democratic nation on the Mundi isola, north of here, over the sea and across the pale. It is one of the six major Occidental nations to hold stake in the continued occupation of Revachol (the Coalition). People consider it a *reasonable* superpower.
- ↑
SUNDAY FRIEND – "The Occident is part of the normal world. Oranje, Sur-la-Clef..."
- ↑
ANDRE – "Meteo. A country. On Mundi?" He looks at you, squinting his eyes to see if you're kidding. "On the Mundi isola."
ENCYCLOPEDIA [Medium: Success] – One of the poorest of the first world nations today -- but once a great ancient civilization. Capital: Thylakos-by-Pisantic.
- ↑
TRANT HEIDELSTAM – "Me? Yes, at some point, I'm sure I have. There was this one rather, uh," he stops smiling at the reminiscence, "*memorable instance* when I had a chance to meet the head of Dominion Police of Königstein."
TRANT HEIDELSTAM – "And, as you know, they have this very distinctive dress uniform with scarlet breeches and little cylindrical fur caps, I think these are called..." You daze off, as Trant tells you about the peculiarities of mounted police forces in central Occident.
- ↑
MEASUREHEAD – "YOU KNOW THEM BY THE NAMES OF THEIR NATION STATES: *THE ORANJESE*, *THE GOTTWLADIANS* AND *THE KÖNIGSTEINERS*. MY PEOPLE SIMPLY CALL THEM *MAUN*."
- ↑
YOU – "Where is Lelystad? The place, I mean."
KLAASJE (MISS ORANJE DISCO DANCER) – "In Oranje, officer. It's a... I think *municipality* is the term? A nowhere-town there."
ENCYCLOPEDIA [Medium: Success] – The Lelystad municipality has few boroughs and even fewer cities -- it's made of agricultural plots near the border of Gottwald. Executive summary: cows, silos, and wheat.
- ↑
ENCYCLOPEDIA – The Ubi are known for their partiality to socialism and sheep. They come from an island called Ubi Sunt?, drifting in the pale off the coast of Vesper. It's the only place in the world that has a question mark in it's name. Things are not well there: It's an island of poverty and entroponetic collapse.
- ↑
THE GREATEST INNOCENCE – Incorrect. Kedra is a large nation in the mid-northern area of the Mundi isola, north of the Occident, between the Irmalan mountain range and the Pisantic *mare interregnum*. Care to try again?
- ↑
SUNDAY FRIEND – "Kedra is a candidate member of EPIS. But, between you and me, their potential membership is a more... *contentious* issue."
YOU – "What do you mean?"
SUNDAY FRIEND – "That it's never going to happen. They entered negotiations in '21 and it's been pending ever since."
- ↑
ENCYCLOPEDIA – As did we all. The lands of Mesque and the Occident and even far-away Supramundi -- altogether twenty one of the fourty Mondial nations of the time -- immediately accepted innocentic rule. Even before her crowning.
- ↑
ENCYCLOPEDIA [Medium: Success] – What you *do* know is: at 18.9 km, the dormant shield volcano *Corpus Mundi* is the world's highest summit; and the failure of the '38 single 'Et Puis Du Sang' to crack the Top 20 was the death knell of disco. But -- what a *field autopsy* is? You have no idea.
- ↑
ENCYCLOPEDIA [Challenging: Success] – Corpus Mundi, the dormant shield volcano on the Mundi isola is indeed the highest peak in the known world. At the height of 18.9 km it almost reaches stratosphere.
- ↑
ENCYCLOPEDIA – Cornelius Gurdi was a Mesque mountaineer, travel-writer and a national hero, known for his daring expeditions into the far corners of the world and perhaps even more daring statements in the public arena. He never returned from his final conquest -- Corpus Mundi.
- ↑
ENCYCLOPEDIA – Mesque culture holds a special place for the mountain goat, especially those on Corpus Mundi -- the only creature fearless and agile enough to climb the mountain. They are often associated with Gurdi.
- ↑ 28.0 28.1
THE GREATEST INNOCENCE – Incorrect. Kedra is a large nation in the mid-northern area of the Mundi isola, north of the Occident, between the Irmalan mountain range and the Pisantic *mare interregnum*. Care to try again?
- ↑
SUNDAY FRIEND – "What's there to say? Sur-la-Clef is a modern, urbanized country that measures very high on the Human Development and Freedom Index. Mostly, though, it's known as the executive heart of *EPIS*..."
- ↑
ENCYCLOPEDIA – Or 'Irmalan Gold,' for the plateau on which most of the world's supply is grown and harvested, typically by slave labour...
- ↑
JOYCE MESSIER – "Then he made his way to the Preto Grande, through what I think is the Staadskanaal -- an artificial channel through the Occident. From the Preto he sailed to the Insulindic ocean. First the Semenese islands, then this..." She points to his heart.
- ↑ 32.0 32.1
ENCYCLOPEDIA – The Republic of Vesper, formerly the Republic of Vesper-Messina, was once a dual kingdom. An amicable parting of ways produced two constitutional monarchies. Vesper, the richer of the two, is an Occidental nation known for its proximity to the pale and its exotic financial derivatives.
- ↑
KIM KITSURAGI – "Mondial. Subgroup: Occidental -- as per your observation."
YOU – Write it down.
THE HANGED MAN – The pudgy mess looks neither *Mondial* nor *Occidental*. It doesn't even look human. The next line says:
ENCYCLOPEDIA – As you read it you think: that leaves out dark haired Mesque, Sao, Saramirizian, Kedreatic.... Lighter skinned Occidental means this man could be... Vespertine? Oranjese? Messinian. Those three are on the table.
- ↑
JOYCE MESSIER – "The Coalition of Nations. Graad, Mesque, Vesper, Messina, Oranje and Sur-La-Clef -- the armed centre of the world. They landed here and ended the Revolution. It was the *moralist* thing to do."
- ↑
TRANT HEIDELSTAM – "I don't know if you're familiar with this, but the Vespertine Department of Justice has published a rather interesting paper on the criminal profiling in former socialist states. Have you read it?"
- ↑
KIM KITSURAGI – "Perhaps..." He pauses, deep in thought. "There are people who say the Zone of Control will not hold up long. They're not on the radio -- yet. But there are parties out there..." TRANT HEIDELSTAM - "Yes." His face darkens. "I hear worries -- from systems analysts in Vesper and Messina. International risks departments in banks. People like that."
- ↑
JOYCE MESSIER – The woman is silent, smiling while the waves lap against the hull. In your hand, under the plastic -- a light blue passport saying *REPUBLIC OF VESPER*. The coat of arms has a lion and an ostrich, sejant.
- ↑
BIRD'S NEST ROY – "...is the Harmon Wowshi W02 -- made in Vesper, designed in Seol," he says. "Plays all reel-to-reel formats: 2mm, 8mm, 12mm. It's even got a little radio in there. It'll set you back 12 reál."
- ↑
ENCYCLOPEDIA – Averro, SRL, is a chain of high-end pharmacies found only in Vesper and Messina. They are *much* nicer than your average Frittte.
- ↑
SHELF OF CRIME NOVELS – Shelves filled to the brim with crime novels featuring the supposedly stalwart Vespertine detective, Dick Mullen.
- ↑
CALL ME MAÑANA – He shrugs. "It was alright. A little like something out of a Vespertine spy novel, but I must respect the effort."
- ↑
KIM KITSURAGI – "Many of the RCM's fashions, even weapon preferences, borrow heavily from classic Vespertine cop shows. My precinct alone has three officers who go by the name *Ace*..."
- ↑
SHELF OF BIOGRAPHIES – Next to Irw's life story, you see a slim biography of an Occidental rock star called "The Antistar". He's famous for shooting morphine into one of his eyeballs, and cocaine into the other!
- ↑
ENCYCLOPEDIA – The Antistar is (or was) a Vespertine rock and roll star, who liked to do drugs. He did so many drugs he eventually mutated -- into a corpse.
- ↑
ENCYCLOPEDIA – It all comes together now, the way he speaks about scabs, his general attitude. He's a follower of a 500-year-old Franconigerian boiadeiro code -- itself an appropriation of Vespertine cool...
- ↑
TRANT HEIDELSTAM – "There's an exhibition on Vespertine proto-expressionism that I can't wait to take Mikael to. We're working our way through the major artistic movements of the last cenutry."
- ↑ LE FUMÉE, VOL. 1 NO. 4 - You also skip over an article about heavy fuel oil smuggling along the Mesque-Messina border, something about bear wrestling in Samara, book riots in Yugo-Graad...
- ↑
SUNDAY FRIEND – "Oranje is an *exemplary* nation who, as a core member of EPIS, contributes 28% of our annual budget. Next to Sur-la-Clef, Oranje is probably the most prominent member of the international community."
- ↑
JOYCE MESSIER – "That makes sense to me. We have no more use for a Map of the Waterways. Just like we don't need sailors the way we used to. This is what the custom would morph into on the Occident -- mercenary tattoos."
- ↑
JOYCE MESSIER – "Quite a few. Vredefort -- the Oranjese capital -- traditionally stands on the right shoulder." She points to it on the photo. "He started somewhere near here, I think."
- ↑
MEASUREHEAD – "A RECEDING GENETIC POOL HAS LED THE MAUN ON REPREHENSIBLE STREET PARADES, IN MAUN CITIES LIKE STAADSKANAAL AND VREDEFORT, WEARING WOODEN CLOGS ON THEIR FEET, AND LITTLE GREEN TASSELS ON THEIR HATS."
- ↑
ENCYCLOPEDIA – In some municipalities of Oranje, people do wear shoes made of wood to street parades. Green, orange, and even yellow tassels have also been seen on hats.
- ↑
HARRIER DU BOIS – "Where is Lelystad? The place, I mean."
KLAASJE – "In Oranje, officer. It's a... I think *municipality* is the term? A nowhere-town there."
ENCYCLOPEDIA – The Lelystad municipality has few boroughs and even fewer cities -- it's made of agricultural plots near the border of Gottwald. Executive summary: cows, silos, and wheat.
- ↑
HARRIER DU BOIS – "A bad memory of what?"
KLAASJE – "Of lilacs and lightning." She squints her eyes as if to see them in the distance. "Parks, glass, duraluminium -- Vredefort is a conference city. It's always autumn there. And night. At least it was for me."
- ↑
ALICE DEMETTRIE – "This is what the ICP knows about him: He was raised by foster parents, entered the Ijsbrand Military Academy -- in Vredefort -- at 17, then served in the Oranjese forces till he was honourably discharged in '41, just a year before the Semenese conflict. Then the armour followed him to Semenine -- or at least I assume it did. And that's it. There are no records of his employment in Krenel. Or any of its other incarnations. Or him even entering Revachol."
- ↑ KLAASJE (MISS ORANJE DISCO DANCER) - "In Oranje, officer. It's a... I think *municipality* is the term? A nowhere-town there."
ENCYCLOPEDIA: The Lelystad municipality has few boroughs and even fewer cities -- it's made of agricultural plots near the border of Gottwald. executive summary: cows, silos, and wheat. - ↑
SUNDAY FRIEND – "What's there to say? Sur-la-Clef is a modern, urbanized country that measures very high on the Human Development and Freedom Index. Mostly, though, it's known as the executive heart of *EPIS*..."
- ↑ ENCYCLOPEDIA - Many things. You know she was a woman of the court, the wife of an influential *marchese*, and eventually the principal advisor to Irene La Navigateur, Queen of Suresne (modern day Sur-La-Clef).
- ↑ SUNDAY FRIEND - As founding members they are *both* very EPIS. Oranje carries a lot of political weight, while Sur-La-Clef takes care of the business side of things -- Sur-La-Clef hosts the headquarters of the major EPIS institutions.
- ↑ ANDRE - "Meteo. A country. On Mundi?" He looks at you, squinting his eyes to see if you're kidding. "On the Mundi isola."
- ↑ 61.0 61.1 ENCYCLOPEDIA - One of the poorest first world nations today -- but once a great ancient civilization. Capital: Thylakos-by-Pisantic.
- ↑ MEASUREHEAD - "THE VESPERTINES AND MESSINIANS OF VESPER AND MESSINA; THE ANCIENT METEORANS OF METEO BY THE GOLDEN PISANTIC SEA, THE SURESNE OF SUR-LA-CLEF AND EVEN THE NORTH-KÖNIGSTEINERS -- ALL HAVE TYPE A RACE PROPENSITIES."
- ↑ ANDRE - "Oh yeah, that's a Meteoran name for the Founding Party. Thought it'd be cool to use it."
- ↑ MEASUREHEAD: "THOSE ARE THE SEMENESE, THE AREOPAGITE, AND THEOCCIDENTALS -- EXCLUDING THE *MAUN* OF COURSE. THE MAUN ARE RIDDLED WITH ECZEMA TO THE POINT WHERE THEY FIND IT IMPOSSIBLE TO SMILE. THEY ARE ALL LACTOSE INOLERANT -- A COMMON RESULT OF INBREEDING..."
MEASUREHEAD: "A RECEDING GENETIC POOL HAS LED THE MAUN ON REPREHINSIBLE STREET PARADES, IN MAUN CITIES LIKE STAADSKANAAL AND VREDEFORT, WEARING WOODEN CLOGS ON THEIR FEET, AND LITTLE GREEN TASSELS ON THEIR HATS."
YOU: "Wait -- who exactly are the Maun?"
MEASUREHEAD: "YOU KNOW THEM BY THE NAMES OF THEIR NATION STATES: *THE ORANJESE*, *THE GOTTWALDIANS* AND *THE KÖNIGSTIENERS*. MY PEOPLE SIMPLY CALL THEM *MAUN*." - ↑ 65.0 65.1 TRANT HEIDELSTAM: "Me? Yes, at some point. I'm sure I have. There was this one rather, uh," he stops, smiling at the reminiscence,, "*memorable instance* when I had a chance to meet the head of Dominion Police of Königstein."
TRANT HEIDELSTAM: "And, as you know, they have this very distinctive dress uniform with scarlet breeches and little cylindrical fur caps, I think these are called..." You daze off, as Trant tells you about the peculiarities of mounted police forces in central Occident. - ↑ ACELE: "You know: the psych thing they've got going on there. Rich people like it. People in Königstein are mostly rich."
- ↑ TRANT HEIDELSTAM: "What *am* I?" He taps his foot. "I was asked to share my take on some of the more *fringe academic* theories developed in Königstein in the Thirties. Regarding partial psychotraumatic amnesia. Group personality theory..."
- ↑ TRANT HEIDELSTAM: "They started out as a midway electronics outfit in Königstein two centuries ago. After an aggressive move to Revachol, Feld became a global player in the emerging personal electronics market of the pre-Revolutionary era."
- ↑ ENCYCLOPEDIA: A small steel plaque reads 'Halter 800'. Halter is a Königsteiner lift company who went out of business a long, long time ago.
- ↑
ENCYCLOPEDIA – The Lelystad municipality has few boroughs and even fewer cities — it's made of agricultural plots near the border of Gottwald. Executive summary: cows, silos, and wheat.
- ↑
ENCYCLOPEDIA – *Maun* is a derogative term for first-world people of Gottwaldian descent. They do not *all* have eczema. Also, people of Katla, like the Suru and the Uuhu, are much more lactose intolerant.
- ↑
ESPRIT DE CORPS – "Remember that guy, Ace Ulsterberg?" the redheaded officer asks. He leans against the doorframe while his bald companion is hunched over an open filing drawer...
ESPRIT DE CORPS – "The guy who got canned for trying to arrest that diplomat?" the bald man asks. "Well, *technically* he got canned for being shit-faced on the job. But yeah, trying to arrest the ambassador from Gottwald *while* shit-faced was probably a contributing factor..."
- ↑
ENCYCLOPEDIA – Interestingly, this is more or less what happened in real life as well. To this day, if Iilmaraans want to see their nation's priceless treasures they have to visit Revachol or Gottwald or Sur-la-Clef.
- ↑
DRAMA – This young man adds a capital *G* before the *H* in his *YEAGHs* and *AAGHs*. This produces a guttural, *Gottwaldian* accent and makes him sound more animal, more *in it*.
ENCYCLOPEDIA – Or maybe it's not Gottwaldian, maybe it's *Oranjese* -- probably an homage to Oranje, where Arno van Eyck is from, judging by his name. Could you be listening to an Arno van Eyck creation *right now*?
- ↑
ENCYCLOPEDIA – Schneller is a stationary brand from Gottwald beloved among architects and engineers.
CONCEPTUALIZATION – She's got good taste and must have taken whatever she recorded here seriously.
- ↑
YOU – "What is Mauer-Koshlai Mercury Group?"
MEGA RICH LIGHT-BENDING GUY – "It's a Gottwaldian-Iilmaraan company that specialises in extracting mercury. It's seen massive growth lately due to the discovery of rödfärg mercury."
- ↑
BIRD'S NEST ROY – "A Kristallsprach Model 9. Gottwaldian engineering at its finest. This is a specialist's model, ideal for picking up foreign signals..."
- ↑
JOYCE MESSIER – "Villiers & La Salle was one of the original 14 indotribes of Revachol, did you know? Artillery and ballistics. Before the Revolution of course, they belong to some Gottwalders now."
- ↑ 79.0 79.1
ENCYCLOPEDIA – Incidentally, 'The Saddest Pig in the World' is the title of a popular Gottwaldian children's book, written and illustrated by Moritz Metzger. In '26 it received the prestigious *Kritikerpreis* for youth literature.
- ↑
STEBAN, THE STUDENT COMMUNIST – "The Gottwald School believe that intellectuals as a class are incapable of sparking revolutionary change, so all they can do is *critique* capitalism from inside itself."
- ↑
STEBAN, THE STUDENT COMMUNIST – "We've tried recruiting new members, but unfortunately the *current intellectual climate* is pretty hostile to infra-materialist thought. These days, if you're on the left, the ascendent schools are the Gottwaldians and the Econoclards."
- ↑
STEBAN, THE STUDENT COMMUNIST – "They're the most depressing school of communism. They love writing long books with a patina of Mazovian theory to cover up their cheap psychologising."
- ↑
LILIENNE, THE NET PICKER – "Our things are a part of our life-world. They're made with human sweat and they share human history. We should care about them as we care about humans. To some extent at least," she adds.
- ↑
CONCEPTUALIZATION – Life-world? Someone's been reading up on last century Gottwaldian philosophers. Play it cool now.
- ↑
ENCYCLOPEDIA – The Greats like Gottwald's Knut Schmelling and Jörgen Stirneman, Mesque pinball legend Iara Flávia Jandiroba and Zsiemsk-born phenom, Ludek Smolka, have all managed a sub-twenty minute run.
- ↑
LENA, THE CRYPTOZOOLOGIST'S WIFE – "The eight-eyed teratorn, the largest flying avian ever discovered -- with a wingspan of 11.5 metres. It was thought to have gone extinct 3,500 years ago, some even doubted the *fossils* were real. A mutation, they said. Until..."
YOU – "Until?"
LENA, THE CRYPTOZOOLOGIST'S WIFE – "Until it was *sighted* by renowned Gottwaldian explorer and naturalist Uwe Plattenkalk in '21."
- ↑
ENCYCLOPEDIA – The Ubi are known for their partiality to socialism and sheep. They come from an island called Ubi Sunt?, drifting in the pale off the coast of Vesper. It's the only place in the world that has a question mark in it's name. Things are not well there: It's an island of poverty and entroponetic collapse.
- ↑
ENCYCLOPEDIA [Trivial: Success] – The accent is so thick it's impossible not to notice he's Ubi. From the vanishing peninsula of Ubi Sunt? (sic) on Mundi.
- ↑
EASY LEO – "People say us Ubis are up to all sorts of trouble with sheep and other animals and what not -- I just want you to know there was *never* any of that where I come from. No sir. Those are just nasty rumours."
- ↑
YOU – "You're Ubi, right?"
EASY LEO – "Oh yes, born and raised in Iraesh, mister."
- ↑
ENCYCLOPEDIA [Medium: Success] – The Republic of Mesque is a massive confederation on the isola of Mundi, the world's largest state by territory. It's a petrostate, a constitutional monarchy, and as of recently an outcast due to its tilt to the far right.
- ↑ ENCYCLOPEDIA - The Confederate Republic of Mesque -- the world's largest state by territory -- has fallen into an especially nihilistic strain of nationalism lately.
- ↑ ENCYCLOPEDIA - A*boiadero* (*boia* for short) is a cow herder from upstream Magritte, the great steppes of Northern Mesque. He is a rugged individualist and explorer.
- ↑ ENCYCLOPEDIA - That accent is Villalobos -- a peninsula on Mesque *and* a district in Jamrock. There's a sizable contingent of Villalobos-speaking mesques in Revachol.
- ↑ ENCYCLOPEDIA - What you *do* know is: at 18.9 km, the dormant shield volcano *Corpus Mundi* is the world's highest summit; and the failure of the '38 single 'Et Puis Du Sang' to crack the Top 20 was the death knell of disco. But -- what a *field autopsy* is? You have no idea.
- ↑
ENCYCLOPEDIA – The Republic of Mesque is a massive confederation on the isola of Mundi, the world's largest state by territory. It's a petrostate, a constitutional monarchy, and as of recently an outcast due to its tilt to the far right.
- ↑
ENCYCLOPEDIA – As did we all. The lands of Mesque and the Occident and even far-away Supramundi -- altogether twenty one of the forty Mondial nations of the time -- immediately accepted innocentic rule. Even before her crowning.
- ↑
ENCYCLOPEDIA – The Mesque state tried to detach itself from innocentic rule. Parts of the world were experiencing whiplash from accelerating into secularism. Her mandatory education programs and mass resettlement of upstream Magritte were problematic as well. Dissenters were suppressed by a military force she called “The Army of Humanity"...
- ↑
ENCYCLOPEDIA – She was the most socially secluded and least self-aware of all the innocences. Some modern thinkers would consider her a war criminal for the campaigns she waged against the Mesque state. And then there were the resettlement programs...
- ↑
THE DESERTER – "I've seen their kind during the Landing. Those Occidental and Mesque falangues weren't conscripts -- boys, like us. They were wights. All they know is to destroy and hurt."
- ↑
PALEDRIVER – "While *you* people were tearing each other apart over your petty little Revolution, in Mesque it was a golden age."
- ↑
JOYCE MESSIER – "Not in this case, no. That sounds more like something the Mesque petrofascists might say..." Her gaze wanders.
ENCYCLOPEDIA – The Confederate Republic of Mesque -- the world's largest state by territory -- has fallen into an especially nihilistic strain of nationalism lately.
- ↑
ENCYCLOPEDIA – "Marietti" is a Mesque style of music and dance commonly seen at all manner of festivities -- especially weddings. It's delightfully quaint, owing to its peasant origins.
- ↑
CORNELIUS GURDI AND THE MOUNTAIN GOATS – Above the painting of a moustached man climbing a hill, a column reads: 'Inspired by the legend of Cornelius Gurdi taking on the world's tallest peak, Corpus Mundi. The Mesque legends holds that when the nation is in danger, heroic Gurdi shall return and save his people.
- ↑ KIM KITSURAGI: "Mondial. Subgroup: Occidental -- as per your observation."
THE HANGED MAN: The pudgy mess looks neither *Mondial* nor *Occidental*. It doesn't even look human. The next line says:
ENCYCLOPEDIA: As you read it you think: that leaves out dark haired Mesque, Sao, Saramirizian, Kedreatic... Lighter skinned Occidental means this man could be... Vespertine? Oranjese? Messinian. Those three are on the table. - ↑ SUZERAINTY: THE BOARD GAME: In the centre is the crown of Revachol. Radiating outward are her colorful vassals, each one supplying some raw material desired by the suzerain.
SUZERAINTY: THE BOARD GAME: Apricots from Safre, archaeological treasures from Ile Marat, sugar from the Semenine Islands, and magenta cocaine from Supramundi and Saramiriza... - ↑ IDIOT DOOM SPIRAL: "That's right. Two-hundred fifty grams of blow had *accumulated* in there over the years. We're talking high-grade Saramirizian pure, not that cut-rate shit your grandma does."
- ↑ RACIST LORRY DRIVER: "You know where that shit comes from? Saramiriza, Safre, Iilmaraa. They take money from our local junkies here and then use it to out-compete us in the manufacturing sector."
- ↑ ECHO MAKER: "I would commit war crimes for some real Saramirizian coffee."
- ↑ STEBAN, THE STUDENT COMMUNIST: "Unlikely. That's real Saramirizian twill. Only old Saramirizian communists and drug smugglers wear those anymore."
- ↑ PALEDRIVER: "Just this month I made half a dozen trips from Saramiriza to Graad, on the U41-A. What do you think they take from Saramiriza to Graad, lawman?"
- ↑ SUZERAINTY: THE BOARD GAME - In the centre is the crown of Revachol. Radiating outward are her colourful vassals, each one supplying some raw material desired by the suzerain... SUZERAINTY: THE BOARD GAME - Apricots from Safre, archaeological treasures from Ile Marat, sugar from the Semenine Islands, and magenta cocaine from Supramundi and Saramiriza..
- ↑ ALAIN - "Let Dennis enjoy his fucking, man. We don't mind." You notice gang tattoos; the man must be either Mesque or Saramirizian.
- ↑ EVRART CLAIRE - "I'm talking *beasts*, hardened killers from proxy wars in Yeesut, Semenine, Saramiriza -- you name it, they've done it. Raping, killing, burning villages -- killing little children for the Señorita Pineapple company, Harry..."