The War of the Imperial Succession

[Aerandariel]

@Mestra: The faction that honestly would be the one where our alliance treaty stands is with the Imperial Legion. Remember, they control the Imperial City of Cathedrium and the economic heart of the Empire in Westmarch City. They also have the largest army and navy, so a blockade of the Angirisian Empire as a whole would be quite difficult to accomplish unless of course you aim your blockade at one faction over another. I cannot see any other way unless the treaty is abrogated and a new one is negotiated.

I suppose the blockade i mentioned would have been of the narrow straight connecting Angiris to the ocean, I believe this is listed as the Angirisian Gulf on the map.  That would effectively cut off naval access.  Questionable how neighboring nations would react, namely Ustarya and Pythos, if this were to occur.  If carpathia choose to support a faction, and dependent on what it is, that may cause problems with the Imperials.  Questionable if Carpathia and Mestra were at odds in the south, would be  race to supply their northern allies.  hmm... up to you and others on that.  Of course you do have an island south of Pythos, what would become of that?  It could be seized as a forward operation base?  In such a case, the Imperium would be able to station and supply the island while it moved military assets to the north.  As for naval power, this perhaps should be considered.  I imagine it is more likely that Mestra's navy is far superior in many respects to Angiris.  Mestra is positioned on the cusp of the ocean and is a former colonial power and continues long range trade.  However, I am unaware of Angiris position in the world at this time.  Perhaps also, Angiris uses smaller more effective ships, such that could be used to easily navigate the gulf and to out run Mestran heavy ships making the larger navy less useful in the long run, this would likely drive the mestran navy to engage in tactics that allow that superiority to be effective, like blockading single ports and such.  Again all a matter of speculation on my part, just going with what can be potentially assessed from history.

As for the treaty, perhaps it wasn't a treaty between royal/imperial families but rather a treaty between the empires themselves.  By this, if the Imperium choose to do nothing and let this faction war play out, Mestra would side with the victor as this would be the faction now controlling the Empire.  In such a way, it would mean a debate would play out in I'valis as to whether the Imperium should get involved or not.  I suppose in the end, the risk of certain factions taking control could be a driving force for intervention?  Like what would be in the best interests of Mestra...   A stronger Angiris could be viewed as hostile to Mestran business interests by the Datiums, a stronger military oriented Empire may mean increased warfare in the north if that faction choose to be aggressive towards its neighbors, which in turn would potentially drag the Imperium into conflict or some other such thing.  Perhaps this could be why the Imperium chooses the faction it does?  Correct me if I am wrong any of this, trying to get back in the flow of things.

First, Angiris at this stage in history is probably as strong as it is in the modern era. It has been at least three hundred years since the end of the Third Civil War and there had been relative peace throughout the country. The death of Joseph II ended that peace. The Angirisian navy at this point is comparable to the RL English navy used against the Spanish Armada in the 1500s: small, fast ships capable of outrunning larger ships. However, many of these ships were seized by many of the different factions in the outbreak of war. So the Imperial Legion is left with larger ships capable of upfront battles with Mestran ships. The other factions, particularly the Aiurians and Virginians, would have the smaller ships.

Second, you mentioned Xiansai, the islands south of Pythos. That state is under nominal Arreatian control but its highly unlikely that they would have any troops or ships there. Considering that at this time most Angirisians didn't really see much use in Xiansai as a military asset like they do now it would have been easy to just concede the islands and focus on fighting on the mainland. So if Mestra or even Carpathia made a move for Xiansai they would not find much resistance.

Third, politically it might not be a wise idea for Mestra or even Carpathia to jump in right away. I would say at least Mestra would probably need to wait and see how the early war plays out before backing a faction. Carpathia? I don't know. But remember, historically the Aiurians end up winning this war and because of them industrialization begins to take place. So take that into consideration before making your next move.