“What is a Veruzian anyways?”

Well, I am!

Veruzia (also spelled Verussia) is a nation. Specifically, an “imagi-nation”, which is a fictitious country. It runs in the vein of Ouargistan, Syldavia, Cagliostro, etc. The exact term for this, be it imagi-nation, Ruritanian romance, or even just plain worldbuilding is irrelevant. What is perhaps more important is where Veruzia originates, because I did not create it.

You see, Veruzia did not start out as a country for wargaming:

It began as a digital nation on a Minecraft factions server.

https://wiki.piratemc.com/Verussia

If you have any great interest in the digital history of Veruzia then please read the attached articles. Some are out of date, others unfinished, and a few biased, but taken together they paint a decent picture. It is my hope to one day knit together the information available in a better manner.

“Why Veruzia?”

Piratecraft is not a roleplay focused server. Rather, the specific combination of plugins it had encouraged immersive behavior. If you give players the ability to form factions, build ships, and siege each other’s claims, then it is almost an inevitability that great national epics will unfold. When the siege plugin ceased working many of these stories stopped, though I will note with hope that in recent months a replacement has begun development. In my prime there I lived through the story of Veruzia. It was not a tale where we were the victors, and certainly not the heroes. At the time I was disconnected from many of the higher-up decisions and mistakes which led to our wars, all I knew is that one day all I had worked to build was bombarded into rubble over hours. While the cannons roared we huddled beneath Pallidavia, conversing between the muffled explosions above. Because of how the siege plugin worked, if you logged off or died then the attackers could pillage your constructions further, so we had to wait and listen to the British guns. Did I say British? Yes, I did. The British Empire remains the oldest and largest force on the server, somewhat ironic considering the pirate theme. It was their presence which lent that imagi-nations feel to much of Veruzian history. We weren’t just fighting a fictional realm of Elves, we were a real nation who signed unequal treaties with the British and rattled sabres at the diplomatic table. Mind, there was also a nation of Elves we fought against. They did not follow the rules of war.

You may have gathered that I have an interest in history if you have glanced at some of my other posts. I enjoy more than just colonials, the Golden Age of Piracy and the Great War hold equal if not larger places in my heart. Veruzian history resembles all three periods. There were squabbles over who could settle where, bombardments of cities, new technologies and collapsing nations. I saw firsthand what happens when a bellicose empire is laid low and reshaped into a republic. I lived through the treaty of Versailles in miniature. If you cannot see why that might stick with a person you can stop reading here.

“How is Veruzia?”

Not well. Most of the players have moved on or been banned, so I find myself as the last man standing after almost a decade with the crew. Sometimes I see another show up, briefly, once a year or so. Even I don’t play the server very often anymore. When Veruzia was in its heyday I was not a major factor, and when I became a major factor it was due to being the only one left. We were never the most popular crew, and we certainly gave a fair share of headaches to the administrative team. But Veruzia took me in and never asked for any more than what I was willing to give. The crewmates put up with my occasionally insufferable banter and they complimented what I built even when it paled in comparison to what they made. When the wars started we were in it together, and when the last cannons roared we all felt the consequence. Sometimes I feel a deeper connection to Veruzia than I do my own homeland, strange as that may sound.

My end goal for the moment is to make a few Veruzian miniatures and a couple extra posts outside of the regular schedule, nothing exceptionally special. Having a wargaming force based off of a Minecraft faction is certainly original if nothing else, and I do enjoy an underdog. Is how David Helber feels when thinking back on Ouargistan? Do fictional nations normally inspire this level of nostalgia? I definitely have a long way to go before I can hope to resemble the Major General, that’s for sure.

Veruzia might have been a bit of an authoritarian, saber-rattling, tinpot mess of a country, but we defined those years on the server. When we were forced out of the cratered Veruzian continent the victors tore down Pallidavia to build a new city. It would never be finished or inhabited, the drab buildings forming an endless sea of similarity. But even in the copy-paste town that replaced our shattered capital a monument has been erected, breaking the monotony. A monument to Veruzia.

Viva Veruzi!