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The Ordlandic War was a conflict that erupted on the 6th of January 317, after the fundamentalist group His Master's Army launched a terrorist decapitation strike using radiological weapons against the leaderships of both Ordland and Porto Capital. Although the Portocapitalian government survived the attack, the ruling Ordlandic parliament divided into two rival factions, each claiming to be the legitimate government of the country, while His Master's Army initiated a campaign to dominate all of Ordland. In the space of a few days, the conflict became a three-sided war, involving a coalition led by the People's Republic of Porto Capital and the Union Interim Parliament of Ordland in one side, against the fundamentalist His Master's Army, with both sides also fighting a rival claimant to the Ordlandic government, the royalist Provisional Federal Parliament.
Although primarily fought in mainland Ordland, the Ordlandic War also featured operations in the Transmauré Strait Islands, the Melanian Sea, Nova Luxa, Joos and Porto Capital. After xx of xxx 317, when the Greater Zartanian Empire announced its support for the Provisional Federal Parliament, there was a threat that the conflict could further escalate. Although Zartanian forces did actively participate in the war from xx 317 until xx 318, both sides avoided transforming the conflict into a true intercontinental war.
The conflict was declared over on the 31st of December 318. By that time, the territory controlled by His Master's Army had been reduced to a large patch of mountainous jungle in northern Ordland. By then, however, the Ordlandic protectorate over the former Maurestani Empire had been terminated, with Joos becoming an independent state, Nova Luxa annexed by San Patricio and Mauré and Costa da Prata absorbed by Porto Capital, while most of southern Ordland seceded to form the new Duality of Bodh-Mar and Ord - thus completely obliterating Ordland's status as a major power in the New Continents.
Operations against His Master's Army have since January 319 been reorganised as a low-scale, counter-insurgency police action led by Porto Capital and the Ordlandic Confederation, dubbed Operation Copernicus.
Names[]
The name most widely used by Portocapitalian media to refer to the war is, simply, Ordlandic Conflict. Other countries may occasionally use the term Ordlandic War or Ordland War. When referring to the UIP-PFP element of the conflict, certain media outlets prefer the term Ordlandic Civil War - a name first used by the Zartanian government.
Timeline[]
After the Surina Incident of 25th of October 316 - a nuclear terrorist attack against the government compound of the Greater Burovian Realm - several nations around Vexillium considered the possibility of further usage of atomic or radiological weapons in similar strikes.

The flag of the old State of Rio, a symbol of the Berenist far-right, set ablaze by protesters in Newton, on the 9th of November 316
By the end of 316, the Kingdom of Ordland continued its long economical recession, with rival political groups brawling in the streets and military officials threatening to take action against the weak government of prime-minister Ignatius Brandão. On the 2nd of November, far-right Berenists militants - followers of the extremist Berens, dictator of the former State of Rio - clashed with left-wing groups and trade union activists in downtown Newton - a scene that was repeated a week later, on the 9th of November. Berenist militants also attacked ethnic minorities elsewhere in Ordland, such as in the Bodimari neighbourhood of Alenia, in Galilei, on the 18th of November
At roughly the same time, intelligence sources and local media found signs of increased military activity inside the so-called Theocracy of Ordland, the rebel territory ruled by His Master's Army in northern Ordland. For years, Ordlandic security services had rumoured that nuclear weapons components, or even radioactive fissile material - inherited from the former State of Rio - could have been smuggled into Theocracy-held territory since its establishment in 301.
The government of Ordland arranged for an inspection of military sites inside the territory of the Theocracy, to be conducted by Royal Ordlandic Federal Police personnel. Civilian scientists, weapons experts and (unarmed) officers of Porto Capital's National People's Army were invited to join the effort, scheduled for the 18th of November.
Inspections in Copernicus[]
The international team of inspectors were received by HMA forces without much fanfare in Copernicus, capital of the Theocracy of Ordland. Although the accords between HMA and the government of Ordland which established the Theocracy in February 301 did mention the possibility of Ordlandic forces performing such inspections, this right was seldom used. The convoy inspected their first site, former Royal Ordlandic Air Force station Tycho, on the following morning.
On the 5th of December, at 15:12 local time, however, the inspectors came under heavy fire by HMA troops as they attempted to inspect the abandoned Royal Ordlandic Army station Ginsberg, in the northwest of the Theocracy - formerly one of the main launch stations for Rio's ICBM force. Of the thirty members of the inspection team, only two - Ordlandic Federal Police director Ryan Aparecido and National People's Army sergeant Nina Davida - survived the attack by hiding in the surrounding jungle.
On the next day, the air forces of Porto Capital and Ordland announced a joint attack operation against the Ginsberg site, dubbed "Operation Dusk". Eight Portocapitalian F-11 tactical bombers, as well as twelve Ordlandic UW-29 strike aircraft participated in the action. While, by 16:26, the Portocapitalian planes destroyed ten former Ordlandic DO-105 transporter erector launchers and DO-345 missiles, the Ordlandic pilots changed course roughly twenty minutes before reaching the Ginsberg base and announced their defection to the Theocracy.
Attacks on the Parliament[]


The parliament building in Newton after the second salvo of missiles

A soldier of the Royal Ordlandic Army takes cover outside the Parliament
The defecting pilots changed course towards Newton, the capital of the Kingdom of Ordland, and at roughly 16:45, approaching from the northwest launched air-to-ground missiles against the Parliament building. The first salvo hit the western façade of the palace. Less than one minute later, more missiles were fired against the eastern side of the building. Ambulances and fire trucks were immediately dispatched to the scene, while the Army and Police took control of the streets.
As the planes entered Newton airspace, loyal fighters attempted to down them, but could not prevent the attack against the parliament. A battle over the skies of the capital ensued. Four of the attacking planes were destroyed, while two others crashed into a commercial building in Nicolau Road. Two loyal fighters were also destroyed in the battle.
The strike claimed the lives of at least eighty citizens, with two hundred more reportedly injured.
Shortly after, at 17:35, one lone DO-345 missile crash-landed on an open field outside of the capital. Anti-bomb squadrons secured the area, but discovered that the missile carried only a dummy warhead with trace amounts of radioactive isotopes - thus confirming the suspicions from Ordlandic and Portocapitalian officials that the Theocracy did possess weapons-grade radiological materials.


Fire continued to destroy the Ordlandic parliament into the night
Later, at around 18:35, five new explosions occurred inside the Ordlandic Parliament, completely destroying the building’s library and the communications wing. Is was later confirmed that HMA operatives had smuggled the explosives into the building several hours before the first attacks.
As there was no session of the Parliament that day, none of Ordlands 49 senators were killed during the attacks. Later the same night, the Great Council of Nova Luxa invited the Ordlandic Parliament to conduct its sessions from the territory for the time being.
Operation Brigitte[]
On the morning of the 10th of December, a wave of coordinated explosions rattled multiple neighborhoods across the city of Brahe, in southern Ordland, killing at least sixty people and wounding dozens more. Later, a radio message and a manifesto released through social media claimed responsibility for His Master’s Army.
Minutes after the attacks, Ordlandic prime-minister Ignatius Brandão announced an offensive against the Theocracy of Ordland and His Master’s Army, dubbed "Operation Brigitte". The operation's main objectives were the recovery of Ordlandic war material and vehicles which had been smuggled into the Theocracy over the past years - specially the six surviving UW-29 fighters that participated on the attack against Newton’s Parliament Building - and the destruction of communications and logistics infrastructure used by HMA. The attack would be performed primarily by precision strikes and bombing runs by aircraft of the Royal Ordlandic Air Force and paratrooper insertion by the Ordlandic Army Special Forces. Special Forces were also to perform assaults on an undisclosed number of sites suspected to harbor radioactive materials.
The results of Operation Brigitte were, however, dismal. Ordlandic Special Forces managed to reclaim mere ten armored personnel carriers, sixteen heavily-worn Ordcar Sylvestra jeeps, thirty-two heavy-load trucks and eleven UW Mk.36 tank, as well as a few hundred assault rifles and assorted small weapons. Ordlandic soldiers killed five HMA fighters during a raid near the city of Folsom Rapids. Two other tanks were found to be beyond repair and were destroyed using explosives.

Satellite imagery provided by Ordland's Space Force, showing damage to the Ginsberg site after operations Dusk and Brigitte
The Royal Ordlandic Air Force, however, was more successful. At least eighty sorties were conducted by strike fighters and tactical bombers against logistical and communications targets in dozens of locations across the Theocracy, flying as deep as Ginsberg Station. At least twenty-five HMA operatives were killed during the air strikes.
As Operation Brigitte was ongoing, HMA leader Colonel Celestial Mist made several speeches over radio, threatening enemy forces with “a rain of true fire with the strength of a thousand suns” and “the fury of all true sons and daughters of Ordland on the moment our enemies set foot on our soil sacred”.
The end of 316 and the first days of 317 were marked by a general strike of the public sector in Ordland, following a call by key military leaders for “a campaign of mass civil disobedience” on Cruismas eve, following prime-minister's Brandão weak response to the HMA attacks. The situation prompted the government of the Greater Zartanian Empire to evacuate its citizens from the Kingdom of Ordland and issue a travel ban to the country. Porto Capital also announced it would initiate an evacuation of “non-essential personnel” from the Ordlandic capital Newton on the 2nd of January.
Despite security concerns, Porto Capital decided to maintain its Ļa Setena celebrations - the long festivities marking the 15th anniversary of the People's Republic, between Cruismas and early January.
On the 2nd of January, the Ordlandic Parliament officially announced it would conduct all its sessions for the 317 legislative year from Nova Luxa. This would not be the first time the Ordlandic legislature was relocated to Nova Luxa: after the attempted coup of October 299 which led to the shelling of the Parliament by rebel tanks and an intervention by Arosian troops, the Ordlandic parliament relocated to the exclave, where it remained until January 300.
According to the plan, on the morning of the 6th of January, two Klagstein K-0660 airliners of the Royal Ordlandic Air Force were to transport the forty-nine senators and their staff from Newton International Airpot to Nova Luxa, with a refuelling stop in Rate, Porto Capital. Due to security issues, the vice-senators (appointed by the elected senators to replace them, temporarily or permanently) would remain in Newton until the 20th of January, when the new legislative year was scheduled to begin.
Decimation strikes[]
For the morning of the 6th of January, the Portocapitalian government had scheduled a final military parade, attended by president Carlos de Melo, to celebrate the end of Ļa Setena in the capital city of Porto Capital.
At 10:00 in Newton, Ordland, citizens were surprised as the eery sounds of the Emergency Alert System warned about an "imminent attack" on the city and urged all citizens to evacuate the region around prime-minister Brandão's offices.
At 10:09, following a hint by Ordlandic intelligence, the motorcade carrying president Carlos de Melo and National People's Army general Maryam Zubizarreta abandoned the parade at Porto Capital at high speed. One minute later, 10:10, a major explosion rocked the area around the Paļaz deļo Gobernimento, the Portocapitalian government building.
Simultaneously, a similar explosion occurred at the prime-minister's offices in Newton, Ordland.
In both countries, social media were flooded with reports that something had happened - from the sight of fighters suddenly taking off from an National People's Air Force station in Abybass, to sudden loss of signal on most television networks, to reports of thick columns of smoke in Porto Capital and Newton.
In the Orldandic capital, the blast wave knocked down at least a dozen helicopters that were attempting to make a rush to the prime-minister's offices, which where completely destroyed by the explosion, creating a crater five-meters deep and thirty-meters wide. Premier Ignatius Brandão was killed in the explosion. Up to 10 kilometres from the blast site, windows were shattered. Over 2.655 people died due to the blast.

The thick column of smoke ascending from the Paļaz deļo Gobernimento area, as seen from a National People's Army helicopter
In Porto Capital, the explosion knocked over the convertible used by president Carlos de Melo, although he and general Zubizarreta survived the incident and were evacuated to a military hospital north of the city. The Paļaz deļo Gobernimento survived the explosion, albeit with all glass windows destroyed. Older nearby low-rise buildings in the area, some of them 200-years-old, were knocked down. At least 730 people were killed by the explosion.
The following minutes were of deep panic and confusion in both Porto Capital and Ordland, as rumours abounded in social media and both governments refrained from making any statements for nearly one hour. Across both countries there were numerous reports of rioting and looting. As the HMA was suspected of being behind the attacks, mobs attacked Helioselenite temples in Oran. Costa da Prata and Brahe.
Some groups also celebrated, such as Berenist gangs in the city of Galilei, who cheered for the "end of the weak Brandão government". Ordlandic media also reported cheering crowds taking the streets of Copernicus, capital of the Theocracy.
By 10:20, Ordlandic and Portocapitalian media were reporting that the explosions were indeed linked and had used "nuclear" or "radioactive" material.
At 10:32, the two Klagstein K-0660 jets, carrying the Ordlandic senators, touched down at Rate International Airport. As the planes were being refuelled, however, fuel trucks exploded, setting the front sections of both jets on fire. While survivors fled the burning airliners from the rear emergency exits, Portocapitalian soldiers reported gunfire from within the planes. Of the 390 passengers present in both planes, only 62 managed to escape, including 19 of the 49 senators.
First responses[]
It was only at 11:30, during a press conference hosted by brigadier Juan Menn of the National People’s Air Force and admiral Javier Shez of the National People’s Navy, that the Portocapitalian government would officially inform the public of the extent of the attacks of the prior ninety minutes. Brigadier Menn confirmed that the two explosions did employ radioactive elements, but were not nuclear blasts. Whether deliberately, by a failure in design, or by timely intervention of the Electra Mundi system, the nuclear material in both devices did not reach critically. Instead, the radioactive materials were scattered by a conventional, powerful non-nuclear explosion, irradiating several city blocks in both Newton and Porto Capital - creating, in effect, a radiological bomb.
Brigadier Juan Menn also confirmed that the attacks in Newton, Rate and Porto Capital were indeed the work of the Theocracy of Ordland and His Master's Army, while condemning the Ordlandic government for neglecting the clear threat represented by HMA, even after the attacks agains the inspectors at Ginsberg Station and the air raid against the Parliament building.
The brigadier then proceeded to announce the decision by president Carlos de Melo to initiate a military intervention in Ordland, "aiming on destroying the Theocracy and HMA and restoring the rule of law in the country and its dependencies". He also declared that the Portocapitalian government would remain in contact with sympathising elements within the Ordlandic military, security services and the remnants of its government.
By the end of the press conference, the entire military of Porto Capital had been put on high alert and all reservists put in short notice. The entire National People's Navy was diverted to the west coast of the People's Republic in order to conduct patrols on the Melanian Sea and the Rian and Transmauré Straits, while one squadron go bombers of the National People's Air Force was dispatched to the territory of the Theocracy in order to conduct bombing runs in several HMA targets near the city of Copernicus.
In both Porto Capital and Newton, government agencies and the military set up field hospitals and infirmaries in order to attend those affected by the explosions, conducting exams and decontamination routines. In Porto Capital, security agencies and the Ministry of Health ensured the evacuation of the blast area and began preparations for the cleanup of hundreds of city blocks.
Continuity of government[]
With prime-minister Ignatius Brandão and most of his cabinet gone, by the 8th of January two groups had claimed to be the legitimate government of Ordland: one group, composed of the nineteen senators who survived the HMA attack in Rate, named itself the Union Interim Parliament (UIP), while another, made of the 49 vice-senators who remained in Newton, took the name Provisional Federal Parliament (PFP). Both groups invoked different - and ambiguous - articles of the Ordlandic Constitution of August 300 to uphold their legitimacy.
While both groups retained representatives from the entire Ordlandic political spectrum, the UIP was dominated by a majority of eleven surviving senators from left-wing parties, such as the United People's Front, United Labour Party and the People's Movement for Communism, with the remaining eight representing center or right-wing parties - the Reform Party, the Agrarian Centre Party and the People's Movement for a Monarchical Ordland. In contrast, the PFP was controlled by a narrow centre-right majority.
On the 9th of January, the Royal Ordlandic Navy recognised the UIP as the legitimate government of Ordland, followed by the governments of Porto Capital on the 17th of January and Nova Luxa on the 18th.
The recluse king of Ordland, Philip I, had avoided public appearances since HMA’s attack on the Parliament, on the 5th of December and failed to make any public statements since the twin attacks in Newton and Porto Capital - his long silence putting the future of the Ordlandic monarchy in doubt. Only on the 23rd of January did the Provisional Federal Parliament confirmed its loyalty towards the monarch.
Taking advantage of the collapsed chain of command in Ordland - and with most commanders waiting before throwing their lot with either the PFP or the UIP - the HMA performed the first moves and engaged Royal Ordlandic Army (ROA) troops near the cities of Patricialende and Bauretes on the 8th of January.
Portocapitalian air raids, on the other hand, attacked HMA concentrations of troops and vehicles with little opposition other than eventual small-arms fire. On the 13th of January, the NPAF killed close to 150 enemy soldiers outside Patricialende.
Zartania gets involved[]
By early January, the Greater Zartanian Empire announced it would begin escorting merchant vessels through the conflict zone, with aircraft from the Royal Zartanian Air Force based out of Northern Thistland providing air cover above international waters.
On the 14th of January, at 11:30 local time, two Zartanian cargo transports, transporting Zartanian civilians out of Newton, were intercepted by two Portocapitalian F-11 fighter-bombers a few minutes after take-off. At one point, the NPAF fighters approached to a mere two hundred meters from the Zartanian transports. Portocapitalian sources claimed the transports were several miles off-course from designated evacuation corridors and, as the NPAF fighters were dispatched to investigate the situation, they were greeted with "arrogant threats" from the Zartanian pilots and warned of a possible attack by the Royal Zartanian Air Force. Zartanian sources, on the other hand, affirmed one of the transports suffered warning shots at its vertical stabiliser.
This, however, was only the first sign of Zartanian involvement in the Ordlandic War. On the 19th of January, Imperial authorities announced that a carrier task force center around the AMD T'liss was being dispatched to the eastern mouth of the Rian Strait. Porto Capital responded by sending the bulk of the National People's Navy, including the carrier NMP Invencible and the six Mars al’Kebir-class battleships, to western sector of the Transmauré Strait.
Still, official Zartanian recognition of the Provisional Federal Parliament as the sole, legitimate government of Ordland only came on the 31st of January 317. In a short statement, Zartanian foreign minister Randall Young did not rule out "direct intervention" against both His Master's Army and Union Interim Parliament forces in Ordland.
Occupation of Mauré and Costa da Prata[]
On the 19th of January, Portocapitalian forces initiated the occupation of the Ordlandic exclaves of Mauré and Costa da Prata. At 16:00, three mechanised brigades of the National People's Army crossed the border between the state of Guetaso and the Ordlandic territory, advancing through the local highways towards the city of Costa da Prata proper. As the first Portocapitalian units reached the suburbs, mayor Elias da Prata declared Costa da Prata an "open city", welcomed the advancing NPA forces, and openly recognised the Union Interim Parliament as the legitimate government of Ordland. He was followed by the commander of the local Maurestani Expeditionary Force garrison, colonel Arthur Camus.
NPA troops first entered downtown Costa da Prata at 7:00 on the 20th of January.
According to NPA general Maryam Zubizarreta, “not a single shot was fired by Portocapitalian forces”. Even so, there were conflicting reports of individual MEF garrisons at border posts attacking NPA troops during the first minutes of the operation.

Portocapitalian APCs on a road in southern Mauré
Further to the west, ten regiments of the NPA - totalling ten thousand troops - were dispatched from the outskirts of Oran and Espada and crossed the borders into Mauré, advancing through the thin coastal strips at the north and south of the peninsula, flanking the Frontera Mountains. By the end of the first day, advanced parties in mechanized brigades had already advanced 40 kilometers into the territory, meeting no significant numbers of Ordlandic or MEF troops. The small MEF garrisons encountered had thus far simply allowed NPA troops free passage, while local media reported local troops defecting "by the hundreds" and joining the Portocapitalian columns.
The first confirmed clash between Portocapitalian and Royal Ordlandic forces occurred on the morning of the 21st of January. As NPA forces approached the city of al'Simbala, in the west of Mauré, they were attacked by MEF and ROA troops. The 40.000-inhabitants city, at the intersection between important transport links between the east, western and northern areas of the Mauré peninsula, had been occupied over the previous night by close to two thousand MEF and ROA soldiers, quickly dispatched by rail from the territory’s capital, Fatamarina.
At about 6:40, as the column of Portocapitalian personnel carriers and other armoured vehicles approached the city from the south, they were greeted by artillery fire from inside the urban area. National People’s Army units then proceeded to occupy several city blocks in the southern and eastern suburbs, while also returning fire at the artillery positions.
At 10:00, the commander of the ROA forces in al'Simbala, colonel Bruce Carmapitaco, pledged allegiance to the Provisional Federal Parliament, while calling the rival Union Interim Parliament “a puppet of Portocapitalian socialist interests”.

An NPAF F-11 attacking an enemy position in the outskirts of al'Simbala
By midday, F-11 fighter-bombers of the NPAF attacked the ROA artillery positions, while three NPN battleships - the NMP República, NMP Revolución and NMP Laborador - launched cruise missiles against Ordlandic and MEF troop positions in the northern industrial districts of al’Simbala, as well as on the surrounding countryside. Over the day, NPA advanced parties and special forces continued to enter the southern and eastern suburbs of the city, with the bulk of Portocapitalian forces preparing to surround al'Simbala, awaiting the order for a full attack.
On the early hours of the 22nd of January, five thousand NPA and one thousand defecting MEF forces streamed into al'Simbala, engaging two thousand MEF and ROA troops loyal to the Provisional Federal Parliament. Portocapitalian assaults cleared main roads out of the city, which allowed for over five thousand civilians to flee the combat area and seek shelter in tents built overnight by MEF engineers outside of the city. Low flights by National People’s Air Force (NPAF) interceptors also Frevealed hundreds of civilians attempting to escape on fishing boats.
A general offensive commenced at 7:10. While Portocapitalian forces spotted no heavy vehicles or massive troops concentrations, NPA forces fell to constant surprise attacks and hit-and-run raids by enemy soldiers.
By the next day, as PFP-alligned forces continue to harass NPA troops and its MEF auxiliaries, four thousand more civilians fled the city, bringing the total number of people on the makeshift camps close to nine thousand. Portocapitalian forces advanced slowly, sometimes also employing improvised tactics - in several occasions, Portocapitalian soldiers used captured civilian bulldozers, reinforced with steel plates into a makeshift armor plating, to flatten barricades and other barriers that Ordlandic troops had set up, opening the way for further advances.

Portocapitalian troops atop a captured building
After four days of battle, the NPA announced that al'Simbala had been "completely captured" on the 24th of January, after Portocapitalian forces forced the surrender of the bulk of PFP forces in the northern industrial districts of the city. Most NPA forces left al'Simbala by the end of the afternoon, moving towards Mauré's capital Fatamarina, while leaving behind close to one thousand MEF auxiliaries - dubbed the "West Mauré Force" to assume security over the city. The West Mauré Force was also responsible for coordinating the first reconstruction efforts and arranging for the return of refugees.
Close to ten thousand National People's Army troops, joined by over two thousand defecting MEF soldiers, reached the outskirts of Fatamarina, the capital of Mauré, on the 30th of January. Intelligence reported at least three thousand PFP forces held the city, including personnel of the regular Royal Ordlandic Army, Maurestani Expeditionary Forces and Border Guards, all under the command of ROA colonel Bruce Carmapitaco. The city, the last major PFP stronghold in Mauré peninsula, was also considered vital for any future operations across the Transmauré Strait and into mainland Ordland.

An NPA armoured vehicle guarding an important rural intersection
The first shots were fired at 9:00, while by 10:00 a Portocapitalian mechanised battalion pushed close to Gazzun Regional Airport, a civilian airfield about five kilometers from the city’s urban area. At 18:00, F-11s of the National People’s Air Force conducted sorties against the MEF naval station to the west of the city, targeting three docked Ordlandic Coast Guard cutters. One of the tactical bombers was reportedly hit by small arms fire.
Portocapitalian forward units entered the city proper on the morning of the 2nd of February, under heavy air support. While PFP troops resorted to sniper fire and hit-and-run tactics in order to force the NPA forces into close-quarters urban combat, the Portocapitalian troops advanced slowly. By then, close to fifteen thousand civilians had already fled the city.

Portocapitalian NPA troops in full equipment advance into Fatamarina

Civilians observe the results of NPAF strikes from afar
The battle of Fatamarina continued on the 6th of February, as NPA troops commenced a major offensive aiming on taking control of most of the city's residential districts, while opening the way for future drives into downtown and towards the MEF naval station and the ferry port in the western district. After an initial strike by F-11 fighter-bombers and gunships against PFP positions - which destroyed at least six UW-36 tanks - Portocapitalian troops advanced from its previous positions.
Still, advance was slow. Soldiers reported several ambushes by PFP troops, as well as a large quantity of landmines and improvised explosive devices. Even so, by the end of the day, close to eight thousand Portocapitalian troops had entered the city, countering, 1.700 and 2.000 PFP-aligned fighters.
Portocapitalian forces announced the end of the battle of Fatamarina on the 9th of February, as 95% of the city had been occupied. By 10:30, PFP forces launched a massive attack against a purported NPA concentration at the Medina, the historical old city of Fatamarina. In an episode known as the Massacre in the Medina, over 550 civilians and 120 Portocapitalian soldiers were killed on an artillery barrage which included field howitzers and mortar launchers.
By midday, as NPA forces approached the MEF naval station, the heavily outnumbered Ordlandic troops started surrendering. Close to one thousand soldiers were captured and transferred to POW camps in Porto Capital. The threat of a massive civilian uprising against the Portocapitalian troops, something that was highly feared by the National People’s Army, did not materialize - in total, only two hundred volunteered to fight with the PFP forces. By 14:00, the NPA declared the occupation of the Mauré peninsula concluded.
Occupation of the Transmauré Islands[]

Map of the Transmauré Strait Islands
The Portocapitalian advance against the PFP in Fatamarina was complemented, on the 4th of February, by the surprise occupation of the Transmauré Strait Islands, the archipelago located between Ordland and the Mauré peninsula. Apart from being crucial for any future operations into mainland Ordland, the islands are also located near the Rain Strait - the third largest oil fields in Vexillium - and also part of the main transoceanic freight route between the Old World and the New Continents.
According to the People's Republic's intelligence services, the main islands of the group - Phillip, Mauré, Alexander, Camoens, Shakes and Chav - were occupied by close to two thousand PFP-alligned troops, belonging both to the Royal Ordlandic Army (ROA) and Border Guard.

NPA soldiers prepare to jump over Mauré Island

Three NPA soldiers jumping from a C-20
Starting at 4:00, thirty C-20 transport aircraft, each carrying 80 soldiers of the National People’s Army (NPA), departed NPAF air stations on the cities of Oran, Áuster and Espada under escort by F-1 interceptors . Simultaneously, the five battleships of the Portocapitalian National People’s Navy (NPN) initiated artillery and cruise missile attacks against forts and other military facilities in the islands of Mauré, Phillip, Camoens and Alexander. F-11s of the National People’s Air Force (NPAF) also attacked ground targets on the remaining islands of Chav and Shakes.
As the first NPA wave, comprising 2.400 soldiers, set foot on the first islands, the C-20s turned around and raced back to Porto Capital in order to refuel and prepare for a new wave of attacks later on. Nearly one thousand troops landed on the island of Mauré, closer to mainland Melania. Precision jumps delivered the NPA soldiers very close to forts and oil wells on the island. Local officers report that Ordlandic forces only delivered “token resistance” before surrendering. Portocapitalian troops then proceeded to occupy the many villages of the island.
A minor skirmish occurred at 7:00, when NPA troops attempted to gain control of a police station in the village of Felamine. Local police officers barricaded themselves in the building and threatened to open fire against the Portocapitalian batallion. Retreating Ordlandic Border Guards attempted to reach the precint and, via loudspeakers, encouraged the police agents to resist the Portocapitalian attack. As both sides exchanged arguments, shots were fired for over five minutes. Twenty Portocapitalian and twelve Ordlandic soldiers were killed before NPAF helicopters arrived on the scene. The Ordladic troops surrendered and the occupation was allowed to proceed.
The island of Phillip was occupied by five hundred NPA troops. The only significant target on the island, a small oil depot and harbour, was immediately occupied. Intelligence verified, however, that nearly one hundred ROA and Ordlandic Border Guard personnel fled the site and entrenched themselves on the interior of the island. Three hundred NPA soldiers advanced towards the enemy positions at 7:20 and came under heavy fire. After resisting for nearly one hour, the Portocapitalian troops retreated and called for air support. Four F-11s then attacked the heavily-forested area, killing most of the Ordlandic soldiers. According to NPA sources, “over forty” Portocapitalian soldiers were killed in the battle.
In comparison, Alexander Island saw a swift occupation. Nine hundred NPA soldiers landed on the island at 6:00. Immediately, the local ROA commander announced their support for the Union Interim Parliament (UIP), the legal Ordlandic government supported by Porto Capital. Ordlandic and Portocapitalian troops then proceeded to occupy the main village, Gatarazada, and important oil wells and refineries. The occupation of Alexander Island thus became, unexpectedly, the first joint land operation between Portocapitalian and UIP ground troops.
At 13:00, a new wave of C-20s delivered airborne troops to the remaining islands of Chav, Shakes and Camoens. One hundred troops landed unopposed on the small Chav rock, home of a naval station of the Ordlandic Border Guards. The token garrison, composed of just thirty soldiers, surrendered without a fight. Camoens Island was similarly occupied.
The larger Shakes Island, however, proved to be the fiercest target of the operation. Just seconds before jump, two Portocapitalian C-20s were shot down by shoulder-launched anti-aircraft missiles, immediately killing 145 troops of the NPAF and NPA. The remaining 2.200 National People’s Army troops landed in several sites across the island. Portocapitalian soldiers also reported being fired upon by Ordlandic troops even as they were descending in their parachutes.
PFP forces in Shakes Islands amounted to nearly 900 soldiers, most of them guarding the town of Sapobanjo, the largest settlement in the archipelago, inhabited by over ten thousand people. The Ordlandic garrison was equipped also with four UW-36 tanks and “several” artillery pieces.
A barrage of cruise missiles from the battleships NMP Bandira Vermana and NMP Unitáde attacked Ordlandic troop concentrations, while F-11s from the carrier NMP Invencible provided close air support. A small urban battle followed, with Sapobanjo only falling after midday. Internet users report heavy damage to the city.
In total, over the course of Operation Ivy, close to 700 Ordlandic troops were killed, including ROA, Border Guards and police forces. Portocapitalian casualties amount to “less than 300”. Close to 1.400 Ordlandic soldiers were captured and were transferred to POW camps in Porto Capital.
The entire attack, dubbed "Operation Ivy" by Portocapitalian authorities, was the largest airborne operation in Vexillium since the Dignanian Civil War of 299-304. The offensive did not cause any interruption for the freight traffic across the Transmauré Strait, although a 12-mile aerial and naval exclusion zone was enacted around the occupied islands.
Portocapitalian air crews reported that Zartanian vessels and aircraft observed the entire operation from afar.
The battle of Newton[]
On the 25th of January, as the Provincial Council of Newton voted on whether to recognise the Union Interim Parliament or the Provisional Federal Parliament as the legitimate government of Ordland, the 2nd Infantry Division of the Royal Ordlandic Army, under command of general Roger Pressler, started moving towards the city of Newton itself. Initially, general Pressler claimed to be acting under request from Frederick Blaine, governor of Newton - to which the governor denied. Later, he claimed to be under orders of the Provisional Federal Parliament - something that the PFP itself immediately denied as well.
Units of the Royal Ordlandic Federal Police and the UIP-aligned Naval Infantry occupied downtown Newton and the main entrances to the city. General Pressler's units clashed with Federal Police troops at 3:00 on the 26th of January near the northern suburbs of the city, while at 7:00 Naval Infantry units came under attack from 2nd Division soldiers on the west side of Newton, near the quarantined zone. Gunships from the Royal Ordlandic Navy returned fire, the skirmish leaving fifteen killed on both sides. Later, at 8:00 2nd Division troops advanced into a barricade manned by troops from the Royal Ordlandic Federal Police and Newton Provincial Police. Over twenty police officers were killed in the incident.
By midday, as both sides agreed on a 24-hour cease-fire - purportedly in order to allow civilians to leave Newton via the still intact eastbound highways - four regiments of the Royal Ordlandic Army, claiming allegiance to the UIP, approached the eastern suburbs of Newton, bringing over five thousand troops to the battle.
At 3:00 on the 28th of January, UIP and Portocapitalian special forces embarked on four Cocoderijo gunships aboard the aircraft carrier NMP Invencible and, with support of Ordlandic Naval Infantry on the ground, rescued both the Caliph-Emperor of Maurestania and Ordlandic king Phillip I from their residences in Newton. One helicopter, carrying eight Portocapitalian soldiers, was hit by two missiles fired from 2nd Division positions.
Both the Caliph-Emperor and the Ordlandic monarch were transported to Costa da Prata. While King Phillip remained in a rural manor on the outskirts of the former Ordlandic exclave, the former emperor of Maurestania was transferred to the Great Mosque of Oran where, on the 1st of February, he issued a fatwa against the Theocracy of Ordland and His Master's Army.
By the 30th of January, all-out battles erupted between UIP and PFP forces all over the northern neighbourhoods of Newton. Drone footage showed the Royal Gardens “completely burned out” in the aftermath of a battle between Royal Guards and UIP-aligned Naval Infantry. While refugees continued to flee the city, local media reported “a few hundred” civilians hiding from the battle within the quarantined zone on West Side - the area affected by the 6th of January radiological attack. On the 9th of February, media reported over 120 thousand civilians had left the city, while several sections of Newton's West Side had been "leveled". The Provisional Federal Parliament, meanwhile, fled to the northern suburb of Azascara on the 6th of February.
The mainland campaign[]
While Portocapitalian forces were advancing in Mauré, His Master's Army continued to attack Ordlandic positions in the far north of the country. Despite being targeted by NPAF bomb runs, HMA forces continued to advance with little opposition from Royal Ordlandic Army troops, reaching the shores of High Lake by the 23rd of January.
This same pattern repeated itself on the southern theatre. By the end of January, despite a few victories by UIP-alligned forces backed by Portocapitalian air support, HMA troops kept the initiative on the Archimedes river valley and were a little more than one week away from the coastal city of Brahe. The town of Engelia fell on the 6th of February.
Joos and Nova Luxa[]
The easternmost territories of the Ordlandic Protectorate, saw limited action during the early phases of the conflict. Nova Luxa served as home for the Union Interim Parliament since the 14th of January 317, while Joos saw an increase in political agitation, including calls for greater autonomy.
On the 2nd of February, the UIP and the Grand Council of Nova Luxa issued a joint statement requesting “reinforcements from allied forces” to aid in law enforcement and guarantee the defense of the territory. There were fears that the MEF garrisons in both Nova Luxa and Joos could eventually side with the Provisional Federal Parliament. Two regiments of the National People's Army of Porto Capital reached the territory over the next week, together with F-1 fighters of the National People's Air Force.
Refugees[]
The issue of civilians fleeing the conflict in Ordland first became apparent on the 10th of January, when patrols of the National People's Navy rescued 90 refugees from stranded boats in the Transmauré Strait. In response, the Portocapitalian military launched Operation Lux, aiming on intercepting refugee boats around the conflict area and transporting its occupants to temporary camps in Porto Capital. In total, the operation intercepted over xx thousand civilians.
In total, over xx thousand Ordlandic civilians had to flee their homes due to the conflict. While international organizations - most notable, the Medhinou Pact, have since set up temporary camps with basic ammenities, it may take years or even decades before all refugees are able to return to their homes.
Cleanup efforts[]
In Porto Capital, 16.376 inhabitants of the most affected areas - designated "Zone One" by Portocapitalian authorities - were accommodated in makeshift camps at the Ļo Caişoto stadium, in the southern suburbs of the city, in the first three days after the radiological attack. Certain government activities, such as sessions of the People’s Senate, were suspended until the end of the cleanup efforts. Other government agencies were to conduct their business from other sites across the city, while the presidential offices were provisionally relocated to the NPA’s 1st Division HQ, in the nearby city of Abybass.
In the Paļaz Park, just in front of the Paļaz deļo Gobernimento, several meters of contaminated topsoil were removed by dump trucks and stored in huge steel and concrete warehouses outside the city of Rate.
In Newton, similar efforts began by the 9th of January.
Orders of battle (as of April 317)[]
PC-UIP Alliance[]
Costa da Prata[]
Joos[]
Nova Luxa[]
Nova Luxa Garrison, National People's Army (3.800 troops)
Eastern Squadron, National People's Navy
- NMP Paxfacer (Lideransa-class corvette)
- NMP Protetora (Lideransa-class corvette)
Mauré[]
1st Division, National People's Army (8.000 troops - Gen. Mouhammar Balboa)
2nd Division, National People's Army (3.000 troops)
Transmauré Strait Islands[]
Strait Garrison (3.500 troops)
- 20th-22nd Infantry Battalions
Wren Island Garrison (2.000 troops - Col. Ahmin dos Santos)
- 18th-19th Infantry Battalions
Strait Fleet, National People's Navy
- NMP Invencible (Crossbow-class aircraft carrier)
- NMP Bandira Vermana (Modernized Mars al'Kebir-class battleship)
- NMP Laborador (Modernized Mars al'Kebir-class)
- NMP República (Modernized Mars al'Kebir-class)
- NMP Revolución (Modernized Mars al'Kebir-class)
- NMP Unitáde (Modernized Mars al'Kebir-class)
- NMP Libertade (Lideransa-class corvette)
- NMP Lideransa (Lideransa-class corvette)
- NMP Valiente (Lideransa-class corvette)
- Assorted patrol boats
First Squadron, Eastern Delgamian Navy
- DRN Monturia (aircraft carrier)
- DRN Calivano (destroyer)
- DRN Redhammer (destroyer)
- DRN Telmarino (destroyer)
- DRN Filorro (frigate)
- DRN Hazzan (frigate)
- DRN Jemenho (frigate)
- DRN Kurusus (frigate)
Western Melanian Sea[]
Humanitarian Rescue Patrol
- NMP Victória (Lideransa-class corvette)
- DRN Cruishaven (transport)
- DRN Nordholm (transport)
Greater Zartanian Empire & Allies[]
Task Group 121[]
Task Force 4
- AMD T'liss (Warbird Class aircraft carrier)
- AMD Khiem'Ta Bazqynsi (Raider Class light missile cruiser)
- AMD Orkton Zaryodlovtchi (King Fredrik Class guided missile destroyer)
- AMD Palang'bahr (Seadragon Class guided missile frigate)
- AMD Espeon (Mystic Class guided missile frigate)
Task Force 13
- AMD Erei'Arrain (Command Class guided missile cruiser)
- AMD Qilich Royale (King Bruno Class guided missile destroyer)
- AMD Drokmir (King Fredrik Class guided missile destroyer)
- AMD Tyravubahr (Seadragon Class guided missile frigate)
- AMD Blaziken (Mystic Class guided missile frigate)
Patrol Group Blue
- Eilendorff (missile corvette)
- Muscalo (corvette)
Rian Strait Squadron
- UTS Shirley (C Class guided missile frigate)
- UTS Swordfish (S Class corvette)
- UTS Sea Eagle (S Class corvette)
Composite Wing 121[]
- Wing Subordinates
- Tactical Group
- Strategic Group