Ashina-Lothridge War

The Ashina-Lothridge War, also known as the Great Ashridge War, was a major conflict fought in Eastern Alathra. It was the largest conflict fought in Alathra before the Ashina-Kingdom of God War.

Background
Lothridge had already been infamous as something of a rogue state in Alathra. Its leader, Grandpa_boob, was known for committing various atrocities. Ashina had especially icy relations with the town, as Lothridge had attempted to enforce taxes on Ashina territory multiple times.

On May 5th, Grandpa_boob declared war on Ashina. He sought to conquer Ashina and enforce Lothridge's philosophy on its people.

The Kidnapping of Dizzeave
The day before the war, on May 10th, Grandpa_boob marched into Senza-Nome and kidnapped "Dubothy" Dizzeave, a citizen of Fare-Sesso. Grandpa_boob claimed that Fare-Sesso had promised to support Lothridge in the coming war, and attempted to pressure Dizzeave into providing troops. Unfortunately for Lothridge, Dizzeave did not actually have much power in his nation, stating that "senza-nome doesn’t treat me too well [sic]". The situation was tense, with Dizzeave having been imprisoned in Lothridge proper. Vasya and Hargreevs of Kais Kogong attempted to defuse the situation. Vasya got in a philosophical debate with Grandpa_boob, which promptly ended with Grandpa_boob burning her to a crisp. The kidnapping eventually took a lighter turn as Ripesack gave Dizzeave a scenic tour of Lothridge. Still, the reactions to the hostage-taking among the citizenry of Alathra were that of outrage and consternation. The incident only served to bolster the public opinion against Lothridge. Lothridge put Dizzeave to work on their wheat fields, he worked until the war ended.

The Conflict
By the time the war began, Ashina had built up an alliance that severely outmatched Lothridge's forces. This alliance included Fare-Sesso, Lothridge's attempt to make an ally of them having failed. Ashina had also received logistic support from Slavongrad, which produced items for the alliance forces. Unbeknownst to the rest of the alliance at the time, Slavongrad had provided illegal duplicated items.

While Hargreevs fought aside Ashina, Kais Kogong remained officially neutral in the war. Vasya, being a pacifist, ran a medic tent with Peridune of Benessere that served both sides of the war, believing that all who are hurt deserve to be healed.

On May 11th, the war began. As per Ashina custom, the fighting took place in the Cum Zone, a walled fortress built especially for battle. Fighting was fierce, but the tiny Lothridge forces were quickly overwhelmed by the sheer number of fighters provided by the alliance. The battle was made especially difficult by frequent lag spikes, caused by the load of so many people fighting at once. Peace was reached when KnightOfNotch and Shepsicle came to an agreement with Ripesack to give all of Lothridge's territory to Ashina. While he would later claim he knew nothing of the deal, Grandpa_boob ceded the town anyway. The last vestige of Acquendavia, once the most powerful nation in the world, had fallen.

Aftermath
The war was a turning point for the nation of Ashina. Once confined to a few towns in the northeast, it had now gained a new stronghold in the south. Emperor KnightOfNotch allowed Grandpa_boob to keep his title in return for serving under a new master. However, this would not last. Grandpa_boob began assaults and attacks on various peoples throughout Alathra in the name of his new nation, perhaps to curry more favour with his new emperor. Displeased with this campaign of terrorism, the Emperor and his accompanying forces confronted Grandpa_boob on his own territory. This led to a dramatic final showdown in Lothridge's giant pit. After the battle, Grandpa_boob was forced to relinquish his title as King of Lothridge and serve his empire as a normal citizen.

The war also marked the beginning of Slavongrad's brief significance in the geopolitics of the East. But Slavongrad's reputation would not last for very long. It would quickly become public knowledge that some members had duplicated items, and not just for the war. Tensions became high between the nation and the neighbouring Ashina town of New Ashina City, eventually leading to Slavongrad's disgrace and subsequent disbandment.