Principality of Parnack
From FABT
  The Yahg Principality at its greatest extent in 2217 CE following the First War for Heshtok.
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| Political information | |
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Type of government: |
Pack-based patriarchy |
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Founding document: |
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Constitution: |
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Head of State: |
War Prince Ior;weth (first) |
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Head of government: |
War Prince Ior;weth (first) |
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Commander-in-chief: |
War Prince Ior;weth (first) |
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De facto leader: |
Anointed Prophet of the Titan Covenant (2200 CE - 2258 CE) |
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Executive: |
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Legislative: |
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Judicial: |
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Military: |
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| Societal information | |
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Capital: |
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Official language: |
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Currency: |
Stamp (2128 CE - 2200 CE) |
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Official religion: |
Apexism (2200 CE - 2258 CE) |
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Holidays: |
Day of First Blood |
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Anthem: |
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| Historical information | |
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Formed from: |
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Dates: |
9 October 2128 CE - present
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Preceded by: |
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- "Parnack, the unbreakable."
- — Unofficial motto of the Principality of Parnack.
The Principality of Parnack, simply known as the Principality, also known as the Yahg Princedom, the Yahg Empire and the Parnacki Principality, is the representative body of Parnack, its states and yahg colonies from 2128 CE to present. Yahg history prior to the founding of the global principality that would spearhead their species is drenched in a litany of bloodshed, fought between warring packs, later nations, for the sole reason that they were stronger than those they declared war on. The yahg mentality is one of subordinate conformity, with ideas of equality, equal opportunity and equity looked down upon with disdain and disgust: nations that promoted such ideology either collapsed under their own weight or were swiftly wiped out by their contemporaries. Yahg society is highly stratified as a result, establishing a clear hierarchy that is unwavering and aggressively strict, often to the point of cruelty: yahg viewed as weak were quickly killed, and the strongest yahg went unchallenged, expecting complete and total obedience from their inferiors, and those who didn't conform were either strong enough to become the new alpha, or were killed to make an example. Yahg society advanced somewhat steadily as a result of this conformity, and by 2117 CE they had already underwent an industrial revolution and had developed technology on par with that of 20th century Earth.
In 2125 CE, the yahg nation of Gwallawg launched its first satellite into orbit over Parnack, joining four other yahg nations who had already launched multiple of theirs: a Council survey team observed the launch, and the Council decided to send an official delegation to Parnack to open up talks with the yahg to join the galactic community. While initially fascinated by the surprise of learning that alien life existed beyond the stars, something many yahg scientists had theorized and which had largely been accepted as possible, talks collapsed when Gwallawg's alpha killed the peace delegation for what he believed to be the behavior of those viewing themselves as equals. Their first contact ending in a slaughter, followed by Gwallawg's court eating the remains of the representatives, the Council declared Parnack a no-fly zone and cut off all contact with the planet. However, the damage had been done, and the yahg were left with the knowledge of what awaited them beyond their world, and they had unwittingly been given plenty of time to prepare. Acting on this new information and already having already conquered hundreds of other packs, the alpha of Prys, Ior;weth, expedited his conquest, and by 2128 CE he had finally conquered the last of Parnack's independent nations, dissolving his own nation and uniting all of Parnack under a Principality, naming himself the first War Prince. The undisputed Alpha of the Yahg, a title not held since the Bis;mato of yahg legends, Ior;weth was free to focus all his efforts on the technological advancement of his species, with the ultimate goal of establishing a yahg presence in space. This process would take decades however, with the yahg lacking access to the prothean technology that had made the process of spacefaring so quick, and many failures were had. Ior;weth, already old, never got to see the culmination of his life's dream, and he was strangled in his death bed by his son, Saer;bit, although he would continue to pursue his father's dream, which was now the dream of all yahg. Their lack of prothean technology meant that the yahg passed beneath the notice of the Reapers during the Reaper War, as they were deemed too primitive. Perhaps as a sign of the future, the first yahg warship to travel through space was launched from Parnack just as the last Reaper fell following the successful firing of the Crucible.
Despite still being technologically behind by modern galactic standards, the yahg had officially established a permanent spacefaring civilization by 2189 CE, relatively beneath the notice of their neighbours, and were slowly expanding. Within a year, the yahg had trialed a rudimentary version of FTL that they used to begin spreading to other systems faster, which was only improved after the capture of a Covenant ship in 2200 CE during the Illium-Covenant War, where they reverse-engineered the technology from the ship to further improve upon theirs. While the stolen ship was attributed to being captured by Illium by the Covenant, the Leviathans quickly deduced otherwise, believing the nascent yahg to be responsible, having kept an eye on them using an orb they have on Parnack. A month after the fall of Illium, a Covenant delegation spearheaded by the Tilthan Sacrosanct arrived on Parnack to welcome the Principality into the Covenant. The current War Prince, Caro;phie, was killed when he challenged Sacrosanct, with Sacrosanct becoming alpha according to yahg law. Sacrosanct instead argued that Bellerophon was their new alpha, and with the power of indoctrination, the yahg leadership were, over the course of a year, slowly converted to Apexism, who then proceeded to convert their population. Initially willing or not, the Principality joined the Titan Covenant, and with this came a massive boost to the Covenant's military strength, who now boasted powerful legions of yahg troops to counter those of the krogan. The battle barges and man o' wars of the yahg navy were upgraded with modern technology, which included shielding, plasma weaponry and more sophisticated FTL drives. Becoming the muscle of the Covenant military, the Principality benefitted greatly from their membership in the Covenant, and they were committed thousands of troops and hundreds of ships during the Post-Apocalyptic War. In 2216 CE, shortly after the PA war ended, the Principality invaded Heshtok and conquered the vorcha, quickly enslaving them and using them as a labor force. During the Terra-Rannochian War, the Principality continued to grow and expand, and it likely would have continued to do so if it wasn't for the Leviathans holding them back. The Principality at one point had plans to invade the Galactic Sanctum, and was the strongest proponent for an invasion of the Dominion, but none of these plans would ultimately come to fruition. Despite this, the Principality was able to expand briefly beyond the rim of their own galaxy, being one of the first to colonize several worlds contained within the void known as dark space.
The Principality, whilst operating within the confines of a conventional autocracy, has a government that is something of an oddity in the galaxy. Having evolved as their planet's apex predators, possessing no natural predators of their own, the yahg were a strong species, but also incredibly intelligent, possessing an intellectual capacity on par with a salarian and three times the strength of a krogan. The yahg operated within packs, with an alpha male and female controlling the pack and their subordinates below them. A yahg alpha commanded absolute authority, and while a contender could challenge them for the position of alpha, they mostly commanded complete obedience and subordination, a concept that is rigidly and unwaveringly accepted within yahg society. This stratified way of life means that the yahg view the concept of equality and equity as corrupt and dishonorable, and treating others as your equal is disrespectful and punishable by death. Yahg government largely evolved around this pack mentality, with the term "alpha" merely evolving into what became known as princes. Most yahg governments were principalities as a result, but while the term "prince" is what roughly translates from the yahg term for the title, it is not wholly accurate. The War Prince of the Yahg Principality commands total obedience from every yahg in existence, as they are effectively one pack under one alpha, hence why the War Prince also carries the secondary title "Alpha of the Yahg". The War Prince must be killed to be replaced, but this often occurs through assassination or direct challenges, which means civil wars are not common. The War Prince is the first and only leader of the yahg people: no government beyond this exists. The term "politician" means nothing to the yahg, and the War Prince rules alone and without compromise.
When the Dominion Civil War broke out in 2253 CE, the Principality was at the height of its power. It was here the Covenant geared up to declare war on the entire galaxy all at once, believing that the Dominion would now be vulnerable to attack and the Sanctum would fold once the Dominion was destroyed. The Principality mobilized its forces and fleets (those that weren't currently tied up on Heshtok trying to suppress the vorcha uprising) alongside the rest of the Covenant's legions, but before they could be sent to war, the Citadel-Ark was deployed against Titan by the Dominion loyalists without warning, wiping out the entire Covenant leadership in a single blow and sowing confusion across Covenant space. The Leviathans, isolated on their world and only able to reach out through their orbs to control small pockets of forces, were unable to control the majority of the Principality anymore. As the Covenant began to splinter as new leaders leapt into the power vacuum, among them the War Prince Amar;zen, the Principality was itself splintered among numerous warlords. Instead of marshalling his forces against the Dominion and Sanctum, Amar;zen spent more time crushing his rivals: even as the Dominion Civil War came to an end and the rest of the galaxy was uniting under one banner, Amar;zen was still fighting to regain control over the entire Principality. As the war continued, the UGR became involved as it moved to crush the last of the Covenant remnants, and Amar;zen himself was defeated in a series of battles with UGR forces. Finally, Amar;zen succeeded in reuniting the Principality in its entirety, although much of his military strength had been exhausted doing so, leaving the yahg incapable of waging any further war. The UGR knew this and forced the Principality to the negotiating table, where Amar;zen had to sign the Treaty of Parnack. In it the Principality had to surrender its claim to any of the worlds it conquered (including Heshtok), limit the size of its military, ban the practice of Apexism, immediately abolish slavery and release any and all POWs it had captured. Despite this, the Principality was allowed to keep much of its territory, and in 2260 CE, was formally welcomed into the UGR and granted an embassy: despite this, the Principality remained largely indifferent towards the UGR, and even neglected to supply forces for the GAE fleet, instead adopting an isolationist policy and never expanding its influence again. In 2350 CE, the Principality closed its embassy and further pulled back from galactic affairs. The Principality remains a member of the UGR to this very day, but in name only, as its very existence seems to be forgotten about by the larger galaxy, and the yahg seem to prefer it that way. Outside of a civil war and potentially a second, and the odd border dispute, news from the Principality itself is scarce, with few knowing what goes on within their borders. As such, the Principality is an enigma.