The Great Federic Crusade

Bird... Did we start a war?

— Fyaril

The Merinos Crest, as it is called in the Federation, is often regarded as one of the worst things that could happen in modern days regarding the interspecific relations between Birdkind and Humans. Even though it is often considered as a single war, the Federic Crusade could be more accurately described as a more or less uninterrupted series of conflicts, sometimes only related to one another by the ideologies opposing each other: the human suprematists, often related to extremist forms of the City Anima Cult; and the transentient egalitarians, who fight for the right and recognition of Perrots and other sentient species everywhere.

Historical Significance

Over a case of a stolen relic, the Soul Observer of Beyforth, an army obeying to the Merinos Anima Cult attacks the Federation by itself. It promptly gets crushed by the federated forces.

This defeat represents a casus belli for a lot ofAnima Churches in the Temperate Band. Cities dominated by the Anima Cult either join forces to directly attack the Federation, or supply the Anima armies with food and weapons.

The all-out attack of the Bird federation causes a lot of tensions between bird and human communities in cities. A large schism occurs between Anima Cults that reject the sentience of Perrots and start enslaving them, and Anima Cults that don't. In some areas, bird rights that had been fought for are completely forsaken.

It was a small trip for a bird, but a giant leap backward for Birdkind.

— Fyaril

Merinos has become a land of urban warfare. Terror groups led by both birds and Anima cultists are fighting for the districts, the Merring delta watch is in shambles.

Over the years, the power balance shifts in favor of the egalitarians. Although it is weakened by the war effort, the Federation manages to survive its continuous assaults. At the same time, numerous local conflicts start in regions populated with defenders of the Anima attackers. Human supremacist groups are forced to spend most of their resources to deal with the local skirmishes. In both the Sheherp plains and the Middish Plains, birds start to organize themselves into independent groups. Joined forces of City and Tribal Birds use guerilla warfare to spread out their oponent armies.

5555 AR represents a tipping point for the war. While it hadn't taken side in the war, the Moving Town of Irr starts to openly defend the Egalitarians. Now supplied with metal weapons, groups of perrots in the Sheherp and Middish plains organize a massive bird exodus toward allied city-states, and form nations that are absolutely capable to directly hold against the opposing religious powers. What is more, several smaller nations are tired of the war, and follow suit to Irr to help the federation.

In 5556 AR, a consortium of belligerents from diverse Anima cults gather with representatives of the Great Bird Alliance, and sign a treaty of peace. Once again, Birdkind is recognized as sentient by the Anima cults everywhere, and the Perrot territories on the Temperate Band are declared independent. The Soul Observer is given back to the Anima Cult of Merinos. Anima leaders that still defend human supremacy are arrested, and executed.

Conflict Type

War

Start Date

5550

Ending Date

5556

Conflict Result

Military and ideologic victory of the Federation

Belligerents

Anima Humanists

• Guardians of the Circle
• Light Temple
• Merinos Common Cult
• The City Anima Cult

Transentient egalitarians

• Crescent Fly Federation
• Psilanos Mountain league

Strength

Anima cultists:

• 10,000 warrior-monks
• ~50,000 conscripted soldiers from Merinos and Sheherp city-states

Light Temple:

• 16,000 warrior-monks

Merinian terrorist groups:

• ~7,000-10,000 guerilleros armed by the Merinos Common Cult and other religious groups.

Other forces:

• ~10,000-30,000 mercenaries
• >50,000 guerilla troops

Federic armies:

• 5,500 highly trained professionnal soldiers
• ~80,000 conscripted Perrot soldiers from the cities and surrounding farms

Merinian terror groups:

• ~5,000 guerilleros, Human and Perrots

Independant guerilla armies:

• At least 100,000 people, Perrots and Humans.

Moving town of Irr:

• No soldiers, but a massive supply of modern arms, armors, and vehicles.

Casualties

• ~6,000 Anima warrior monks
• ~12,500 Guardians of the Circle warrior-monks
• ~5,000 mercenary troops
• >100,000 civilians and guerilleros

• 26,000 Federic soldiers perished
• 20,000 Federic civilians
• >50,000 independant fighters
• >65,000 other civilians

Objectives

Destruction of the Federation, increased control on intelligent birds in as much city-states as possible.

Self-defense, recognition of bird rights all across the Cylinder