The Machine Dominion

[Erenmor]

Population: approx. 80 million organic sentient entities, undisclosed number of mechanical sentient entities
Government: Overseer AI construct, organic Advisory Council
Leader: Onyx AI unit

Primary industries: general goods manufacture, weapons development and manufacture, robotics and cybernetics development

Geography and society information to be added at a later date.

[Erenmor]

Climate: ranging from temperate-cool at southern borders to tundra and sub-arctic in the north.
Landscape: primarily mountains, some flatland areas near the coast, plant life varies between thick forests away in the uninhabited areas and featureless snow wastes along the coast
Cities: generally small in size, few exceeding a million inhabitants; in mountain areas the cities tend to be built into the landscape for added defensive properties; all cities have an extensive underground complex, with habitation areas located on or close to the surface while heavy industry and military installations are located at the bottom
Transport: roads are few and simple, preferred means of transport is by air or the underground/overland railways
Wildlife: fairly abundant outside of inhabited areas

Ethnic composition: approx. 30 to 70 ratio of human to furry population, furry population includes a varied mix of sub-species with no discernable majority.
Society notes: at present, more or less sentient machines have taken over the more physically demanding areas of the work structure, dominating the military and police force as well as rescue teams, factory work and hazardous materials handling; organic citizens usually find employ in fields of agriculture, robot maintenance, entertainment and light manufacturing, as well as serving as the majority of the diplomatic corps.
Office holder rotation: advisory council members are elected by the organic citizens every three years; any citizen over 16 may vote and any citizen over 25 may apply for the office, assuming they gather sufficient support; information on rotation of the Overseer construct has not been disclosed

Further information may be added at a later date.

[Erenmor]

Languages: Standard English (official), various Slavic languages (unofficial)
Healthcare System: universally available to all citizens, free of charge, covers majority of known treatments (although more exotic treatments are reviewed on an individual basis)
Education System: mandatory education (UN term: indoctrination) until 16, some post-16 private education options as well as state-funded preparatory courses for citizens' chosen career paths.
Religions: Erenmor is home to a varied mix of faiths, consisting of pretty much every religion that does not make a point of telling its worshippers to go out and blow the heathens off the face of the planet. SecOps takes a very dim view to those that do, including fundamentalist sects of more peaceful major religions. Rumor has it that the sentient machines of the country have developed their own faith in "the Master Builder".

Major Cities:
Citadel Peak (6 300 000 organics) - Serving as the capitol of Erenmor and housing the Overseer AI, the aptly named Citadel is the most heavily protected site in Erenmor, concealed within the mountain regions of the country, accessible under normal circumstances only by underground rail.
Altair (8 450 000 organics) - The primary weapons research facility of Erenmor, it has grown into a city in its own right. Second in terms of security only to Citadel, it is located at the foothills for Erenmor's mountains. The neighbouring flatlands serve as the new projects' proving grounds.
Soulforge (200 000 organics) - This city is located on the coast in the most remote northern area of Erenmor and serves as the "birthplace" of every AI sentience. As such, the city is almost entirely populated by machines, though such is not apparent in the areas open to the public and foreign visitors. Rumor has it the machines' main temple is housed here.

[Erenmor]

Military Information:

NBC arsenal:
3 tactical nuclear warheads, large (detailed numbers undisclosed) chemical weapon stockpile, no biological weapons.

Force composition:
The fighting elements of Erenmor's army are made up of machines almost entirely. Organics serve primarily as liasons, infiltrators and pilots (the last one accompanied by a craft's designated on-board machine controller). The machines themselves vary in construction depending on the field they specialise in.

Conventional weapons:
The primary infantry weapon is a stubby, drum-loaded carbine using 5.56mm rounds. Likewise, most commonly used weapons are ballistic, rather than energy-based. However, some of the more elite troops have been known to use energy weapons.
The Erenmor army uses vehicles primarily as a means of transport and air support and as such, a ground vehicle heavier than an APC is rarely seen on front line duty. Walking battle tanks have seen some interest from high command, however.
Some of the more specialised units may also make use of more exotic kinds of weaponry, but information on these models is scarce as they do not tend to leave witnesses behind.
Low-power energy and sonic weapons are in common use by police forces.

Machine population:
Here is a list of some of the more common patters of shells used by Erenmor machines.
Sentinel: possibly the most frequently seen, these models serve as the rank-and-file infantry, as well as having an alternative configuration for police duty. Roughly human-sized and with similar capabilities to that of the average human.
Sky-Eye: surveillance and recon drones, Sky-Eyes are described by most other machines as "annoyingly perky". They are hovering black spheres, no larger than a human head on average.
Golem: the construction workers of Erenmor. Large and generally slow, they tend to get around on tracks instead of legs, sometimes refitting to a hover-system for difficult terrain work. They also serve as the army's field engineers and repair crews. A nanobot-swarm distribution device (commonly called a nanite sprayer) is fitted on every model and is their primary work tool.
Templar: the reason why Erenmor uses so few tanks. Large, heavily armoured and designed to serve as front-line shock troops, the Templars tend to be gruff and untalkative off the battlefield. Roughly humanoid in shape.

More information may become available at a later date.

[Erenmor]

Further Military Information:

Weapon classes:
Ballistic: Erenmor still makes frequent use of weapons firing good old solid rounds. Virtually all of those, however, are not fit for organic troop use, often due to weight and recoil. High-caliber rounds are common for all weapon sizes, from 10mm upwards. Organic-friendly weapon models are few and far between, though the standard GKR-3 assault rifle of Erenmor's sentinels could be used by organic soldiers without much trouble.
Laser: Laser weapons never really caught on in Erenmor. Aside from some air-defence systems, they are only ever seen in the form of low-powered civilian weapons.
Impact: Erenmor's most lethal personal weapons. These weapons use a railgun propulsion system (that is, a magnetic field) to propel a tiny high-powered explosive device surrounded in an energy sheath maintained by other systems within the device. Such rounds can sear through most known armour materials with ease and detonate with considerable force. Due to the small size of the ammunition, it is easy to carry large amounts of it. However, the weapon has a considerable energy drain and is often set up to draw its power from the operator's own internal power cell.
Sonic: Sonic weapons in Erenmor are used most often as civilian self-defence measures and non-lethal weapons by police units. However, much more devastating versions called sonic disruptors are in existance, though hardly ever used.


Erenmor Industries Operating Abroad:

Grey Knight Systems: Erenmor's weapons manufacturer, they have recently began taking interest in the militaries of the world in general, in the aspect of providing them with high-grade equipment. Though obviously the most advanced weapon systems are not for sale, personal armour and infantry weapons have been listed in the corporation's business offer.
Cairo Corporation: The main exporter since before Erenmor became more open to the outside world. Various sub-companies provide goods ranging from food through electronics to vehicles, while CC handles their distribution to markets abroad.


Further Cultural Information:

Dress: Every Erenmor citizen's dress is at its core a green-brown jumpsuit made up of a material called silksteel, designed to protect against the harsh environmental conditions prevalent in most of Erenmor. Individual citizens add to their outfits as they deem necessary and such practices are encouraged by authorities. Jewelry, fur dyes and tattoos also feature prominently as ways for citizens to set themselves apart.
Music: Erenmor is perhaps odd in that folk music is still quite common here. Although more "modern" types of music are being imported from abroad, they are only very slowly gaining ground. A unique trait of Erenmor's music is also what is called "crystalsong". The specific crystals used in sonic weapons can also be used to create a unique form of music. Crystalsong instruments consist of at least one sonic crystal suspended in a hover-field, and a small metal sphere fitted with its own hover system that brings out the sound from the crystal by touching against it in various ways. This last sort of music is especially popular with the machine part of Erenmor's citizens.
Food: The two main parts of Erenmor's diet are fish and fruit. Game meat and that of bred animals is less common and imported food is very rare. Erenmor also makes a point out of not wasting anything, this including organic remains, though such recycled meat is rather bland in taste. It is not too common, though, due to the low mortality rate. Another specific trait of Erenmor cooking is heavy (some would say excessive) use of various spices in most meals.

[Erenmor]

Foreign Trade:
Importing: Erenmor imports very little. Foodstuffs make up the bulk of the imported goods, primarily meat and more exotic foods. Also, though it is not strictly an import, Erenmor also brings in large quantities of various grades of industrial waste from other countries. It is locally processed and rendered harmless to the environment, for a somewhat reasonable fee.
Exporting: Erenmor exports little as well, usually producing enough of whatever goods just to fulfill their own needs. Light personal weapons are one of the items that do get exported. Timber is another export, but has only a small share of the market, the same is true for fish. Culinary spices are quite eagerly traded out, however, along with recipes on how to use them.

Public Media:
Erenmor's public broadcasting network is strictly controlled by the government, providing news feeds via television, radio, net, datalink and hard copy (newspaper). Privately owned enterprises do exist, but they provide services on a local scale, to their home city. In recent years, foreign media have been made available for viewing, but the populace's old habits die hard...

Space Program:
Erenmor does possess a space program, though it is not one that attracts much attention. Smaller craft capable of space flight are known to station at several military airfields, while the small coastal city of New Baikonur serves as the launch facility for larger cargo and construction ships.
Erenmor possesses one orbital facility capable of supporting life, the Vigilance Platform, which serves as a control hub for Erenmor's network of satellites. The satellites themselves serve a dual purpose, observation and missile defence. Each one is fitted with a high-precision particle beam which would be used for knocking out missiles that were on a confirmed flight path to Erenmor. In theory they could damage ground targets as well, but Erenmor has clearly expressed the satellites would never be used on targets outside Erenmor's borders.

A note on Erenmor economy:
Erenmor's economy can be divided into two tiers: the corporations and the guilds. While the few corporations handle dealing with foreign lands, the guilds provide their local communities with a vast array of goods and services, and in turn also supply the corporations with most of the goods that are then shipped abroad. The guilds themselves are groups of followers of a given trade within a particular city. Membership in a guild is not mandatory, but most find it has enough perks to be worth it. Guild members are almost exclusively organics, and no strictly machine guilds exist.

[Erenmor]

Additional Military Information:

Additional military droid patterns:

Knight: The first of the Erenmor patterns designed with thermoptic camouflage. The systems they use are fairly simple and as such, they most often carry out roles where cover does need to be perfect: battlefield snipers, for example.
Archon: The elite line troops of Erenmor, the Archon pattern is fitted with some of the best camo systems known in Erenmor. Their superior power supply systems allow them to use impact weapons with ease, and they excel as both infiltrators as well as assault shock troops.
Seraph: The airborne infantry of Erenmor. They make use of, for lack of a better term, jetpacks to get around the battlefield quickly, and simple camo systems to avoid detection until the last possible moment. They are fitted with power systems able to supply energy for their camo, jump packs and their impact weapons with ease. They are also one of the smaller humanoid bots, standing some 5'5" on average.
Wraith: The assassins and ultimate shock troops of Erenmor. Fitted with only the finest camouflage systems and typically armed with impact pistols and vibroswords, they are more than capable of eliminating a well-armed mechanised company on their own without sustaining severe damage. They are also fitted with high-grade self-repair systems and can operate in the field on their own almost indefinitely.
Wasp: The second commonly used drone pattern, these particular units are a bit more specialised than the Sky-Eyes. They act to an extent as spies and assassins. Though their capabilities at large-scale destruction cannot compare to those of the Wraiths, due to their small size they can more easily sneak into places where a Wraith might be detected.
Kraken: Virtually the only strictly naval bot pattern, the Kraken resembles a squid in appearance, at least from a distance. Its purpose is the capture and/or destruction of hostile naval vessels. The "limbs" of the Kraken are made of a material called silksteel and thanks to this, the bot can, despite its small size, easily reduce a ship's turbines to scrap in moments. It is also fitted with a small nanite deployment unit, which it can use to chew through a ship's hull. Last, due to its resemblance to a sea creature, correctly identifying a Kraken is next to impossible until one's already happily gnawing through the bottom of your ship.

[Erenmor]

Additional Military Information:

Military vehicles in use:

P-12 Peregrine Series - the Peregrine, in its various shapes and sizes, has served as Erenmor's primary tactical aircraft for many years now. Three impulse drives and a high-grade power core provide it with plenty of thrust and manouverability, while its weapon loadout is enough for anything on the water, ground or in the air: a GKE-20 particle beam, two GKI-8 impact autocannons and a payload of 10 plasma-charge missiles. The nature of the engines also makes it VTOL-capable, though the configuration of the engines does not grant it the combat versatility of a helicopter.
K-10 Kestrel Series - the Kestrel series were initially Erenmor's multi-purpose helicopter line. With the onset of new engine systems, helicopters were gradually phased out, but the Kestrel line retained the specific shape usually associated with helicopters. These low-altitude aircraft remain in use for small-scale shipping, rescue and recovery, small-scale troop and vehicle transport and fire support duties. As opposed to the P-12, the K-10's engines have been set up specifically to ensure it retains its effectiveness even while hovering in mid-air. Of note is also the K-14 carrier used for transporting heavy cargo in difficult terrain (such as the majority of Erenmor's landing sites).
M-7 Mariner Series - Erenmor's primary surface watercraft, the M-7 would qualify as a light frigate in terms of size, but boasts a considerable arsenal none the less. It possesses on each end of the ship a turret sporting a pair of GKI-11 impact cannons, each providing range in a 270 degrees arc from its respective tip of the ship. Four smaller GKE-18 particle beam turrets provide defense against aircraft and small, fast watercraft and four Kraken-pattern droids carried aboard serve as the anti-submarine measure. The M-7 also comes with a long-range missile launcher on the rear portion of the ship. Coast guard units exist where the impact cannons are removed in favour of additional space and a landing pad for a K-10 for recovery missions.
H-3 Hammer - virtually the only land craft that Erenmor uses, the Hammer Mk 3 is a slow-moving four-legged weapons platform intended to provide long-range support. Its main armament is a pair of massive railguns, capable of very precise devastation at extreme ranges. It also carries a battery of six heavy mortars when suppressing fire is necessary and mounts two air-defense turrets sporting GKE-18 particle beams. It also has room for a sentinel platoon for close-range ground support.

Military formation identification:

Although Erenmor's military units do not wear uniforms and unit markings, being machines, it is possible to identify certain patterns' service branch. This applies only to sentinel, knight and templar patterns, however. Seraph patterns would fall under this paragraph were they not automatically counted as air force. Here is a short guide to identifying the various service branches of Erenmor's military:
Air - white plating, black mesh underlayer, typically black or white weapon casings.
Navy - dark blue plating, maroon mesh underlayer, typically blue or white weapon casings.
Land - olive green plating, dark brown mesh underlayer, typically gunmetal grey or dark green weapon casings.
Citadel Peak Garrison - yellow-brown plating, blue mesh underlayer, black weapon casings.

[Erenmor]

Sports:

Erenmor isn't much of a power when it comes to traditional sports practices in warmer countries around the world. Aside from some winter sports, skiing in the lower parts of Erenmor's mountains, two specific types of sporting events are somewhat unique to Erenmor.

Hoverbike Races - this particular form of entertainment is hosted along the flat segments of Erenmor's coast. It is an exclusively organic field of sports, where contestants use extremely fast jetbikes fitted with anti-grav engines. Most tracks are several hundred miles long, several of them even run over Erenmor's coastal waters. The races are quite popular in Erenmor, never suffering from lack of new blood to keep the contest interesting, and attempts have been recently made to make it popular abroad as well.

Fighting Tournaments - where some places might organise martial arts tournaments, Erenmor has their arenas where every contestant is only bound by one rule: do not inflict death or serious injuries. Blades, special non-lethal weapons designed specifically for the arenas, bare hands, anything really goes. Entry is entirely voluntary and individual contestants can agree on match rules beforehand. Deaths and permanent injuries are practically unknown in this field, as medical droids are always on hand in case of accidents. A mechanical branch of the tournament exists as well, where customised bots face off against each other. There's no blood in these matches, but they are none the less far more violent and draw more popularity. Since droids can be repaired easily, the bot matches are truly no-holds-barred events. They also serve the double purpose of perfecting various specialistic close-combat techniques and weapons.

[Erenmor]

Other Cities of Note:

New Baikonur (3 700 000 organics) - Positioned around the mid-point of Erenmor's coastline, New Baikonur serves as the country's primary staging point for the space program. As well as launch and landing facilities for orbital and space craft the city also holds the primary space research laboratory.
Skaine (4 110 000 organics) - This city serves as the primary air traffic hub in Erenmor and is positioned along the southeast border in the hills. It is one of the more open cities due to the milder climate in its particular location, though it still is quite cold by most people's standards. Most major international flights land here, where passengers can transfer to the rail network.
Antalus (990 000 organics) - The arena capitol, as it is sometimes called, lies in the northwest, deep in the mountains, and it plays host to most major matches of the fighting tournaments, with its wide array of various themed game fields and even some open-air sites.
Hrakert (580 000 organics) - An odd city, this one is located on the sea floor, at the edge of Erenmor's coastal shelf and is designed primarily with species that prefer aquatic environments in mind. A full two-thirds of the habitable portion of the city is filled with water. As a result, the city is one of the main places where underwater technology is developed and tested.

Offworld Colonies:
Ferrin Moon (7 000 organics) - Erenmor's only venture into interstellar travel. It is not widely advertised and due to its low profile doesn't attract much attention. However, the small colony is important for one particular aspect: it has its own, completely autonomous Overseer. Usually referred to as simply Ferrin, she is something of a legend among the machines of Erenmor, a true ascended AI that had started from a humble sentinel. Ferrin Moon itself is a barren world and not supporting of most organic life forms, while the colony is a mining base and research outpost. Their current project revolves around a gateway that would allow for much faster transport of material and personnel between the base and the home planet.

[Erenmor]

Image Database Excerpt:

Sky-Eye Drone
Golem
Sentinel
Knight
Templar
Archon
Seraph + Jump Pack

[Erenmor]

Top 10 myths about Erenmor:

1. Erenmor is a brutal dictatorship with amusement park facades put up to fool visitors into thinking everyone is happy.

False, to an extent. It is true that the Overseer holds all the power in Erenmor, thus making for a de facto dictatorship, but it is not brutal in any sense. Citizens still enjoy considerable personal freedoms, despite the ever-present surveillance systems that might appear so off-putting to visitors. The public works are by no means facades - they ARE there to make the citizens happy.

2. Erenmor is a part of a network of Artificial Intelligences that seek to take over the world.

False, on both counts. Erenmor is not so much part of a network, as a separate and massive network in its own right.

3. All of Erenmor is entirely underground.

Mostly true - while all cities in Erenmor possess an above-ground portion, construction and development here occurs down and out, rather than up and out. The architecture is maintained spacious enough to prevent claustrophobic environments where possible, though.

4. The caves used by Erenmor were built by slave labor/aliens/anchient civilizations/Tinisian contractors/Americans/earthquakes/Scientologists.

False. The caves, where not natural, were excavated by Golem pattern construction robots. Just because we can dig out a lot of space and not have it fall in on us doesn't mean there's some secret conspiracy behind it.

5. The upper levels of government don't actually exist but any apperance by them are simply actors paid either by the real government of Erenmor or by outsiders trying to give the nation a certain reputation.

False. The upper levels of government - the Advisory Council, specifically, are citizens elected from the prime city districts. Their power is another matter entirely, but they are entirely sincere in their efforts.

6. Erenmor is a nation on the verge of civil war.

False, on two counts. First, the war is not civil, but with a foreign power. Second, Erenmor never signed a truce with the nation in question since the outbreak of hostilities some 400 years ago - thus the war has been officially going on since that time until the present day.

7. Erenmor is owned by a shadow group of corporations whom use it as a testing ground for AIs and robots.

False. Though there are corporations that produce highly advanced weaponry in Erenmor, robotics and AI systems remain wholly under government control. It's machines making more machines.

8. Onyx was once an e-mail virus.

False. Onyx was actually once a military-designed OS and control network.

9. The reason Erenmor lives underground mostly is not due to wars, but fear of plagues.

False. Erenmor has a highly developed medical technology, and plagues generally provide only a short-term problem. The reasons for the underground cities are: defensive properties, harsh cold climate in most of the country and a desire to preserve the natural mountain environment.

10. Fashions in Erenmor are the worst in the universe.

False. They might not usually receive acclaim on international competitions, but they WILL stop small arms and energy weapons fire and prevent you from freezing in the Erenmor climate. Let's see that fancy Italian suit top that...