View source for Megatrine Civil War

The '''Megatrine Civil War''' was fought between three factions from 1964-1980 in [[The Republic of Megatridimensional Order]].  In 1958, the Megatrine government halted the [[Megatrine Southern March]] rather than displace or assimilate the Comdantri Nortellus civilization. The decision to end the March was a key component of the Civil War.  Disagreements stemmed from whether the Republic should continue to expand national borders, and, if so, how to go about it.

===Belligerents===

'''The Ascendancy''' (or '''Ascendants''') was the faction advocating national expansion at any cost; unconcerned with cultural/physical displacement of smaller tribes and nations - argued that Megatrine culture was superior and those displaced were better off under [[The Republic of Megatridimensional Order]] rule. 

'''Rationalists''' also wanted to continue to expand the Megatrine borders but without human rights violations; they believed in purchasing territory (though not always for a fair price) and "the sport of normalized war" - advocating military action if necessary, but adhering to code of honor: no killing of women and children, limit civilian casualties, accept surrenders vice execution, etc.

'''The Universal Rights Defense Front''' or '''URDF''' was more widely known (derisively) as '''Suicidalists''', seen by critics as bent on destroying their own nation.  They demanded an end to expansion and even some return of land to descendants of displaced minorities. The URDF opposed cultural/physical displacement by Megatrine and they were self-styled anti-military, anti-expansionist. They demanded peaceful coexistence with smaller tribes and nations and had no qualms about violent acts committed against their own Megatrine government, military, or civilians (if aligned with opposing factions) to advance their cause.  Critics viewed the anti-military stance as hypocritical when contrasted against the violent activities of the group.

===Civil War===

In 1964, the URDF declared the Rationalist government to be in violation of Taijitu human rights laws and seized power.  This set off a state of war between all three factions when the Ascendancy attempted to take advantage of the URDF's chaotic takeover by attempting their own coup.

The Ascendancy eventually took control, and gained enough power to execute the [[1966 Foreign Purge]], considered a pipe dream only two years earlier.  Two things happened as a result of the Purge: First, 1) The Ascendancy became overconfident and overextended, and 2) the other two factions realized they would need to join or die, so they formed an uneasy alliance.  This eventually turned the tide of the Civil War against the Ascendancy.  By 1969, The Ascendancy was defeated, exiled and, poetically, refused entry into surrounding nations and tribes.  Some tried to enter by force, but failed to displace smaller tribes; others kept their heads down and slowly and secretly returned to the Republic.

With the Ascendancy effectively neutered, the Rationalists and URDF attempted to set up a shared government, but within two years, had failed miserably.  In 1971, tensions were so high that it took only one spark, known as the [[South Mordant Incident]], to plunge the nation back into open civil war.  It remained that way for 9 years, during which the Ascendancy re-built and began agitating both factions. Other Taijitu nations spying in on satellites and informants had an extremely difficult time separating the three factions.  The Rationalists were the most traditional military - soldiers, troop movements, etc., but the other two factions ran terror based, limited exposure missions -  the URDF by choice and the Ascendancy by need.  It was not uncommon, for instance, to have the Ascendancy stop a URDF plot to attack the Rationalist target and then have the Rationalists team up with the URDF to retaliate against the Ascendancy.

Finally, in 1981, the Rationalists received an influx of "international capital" from an unknown Taijitu nation. There are several theories as to who backed the Rationalists, but no nation has come forward to claim responsibility for it, nor did the Rationalists publicly state, if they themselves even knew.  It turned the tide of the war in the Rationalists favor and on August 3, 1981, the URDF surrendered, followed by the Ascendancy and the official end of the war on August 25, 1981.

===Post-War===

The Rationalists inflicted heavy penalties on remaining Ascendancy and URDF members, but executed only the highest leaders in both organizations and imprisoned only those who would not take an oath of loyalty to the Republic.  The URDF rebuilt and became, in short order, a political party to counter the Rationalist influence in government, make a conscious effort to work within the government to achieve their goals rather than attacking it.  The Rationalists worked on a plan to re-integrate the nation into international relations.

The Ascendancy regrouped and in 1983, returned with a drive-by shooting during the [[Megatridimensional Order 1983 Economic Summit]], injuring several members of the [[Allied States of Bustos]] delegation, including [[Duke Valerio Alosiso the First]], who suffered permanent injury, and killing others, including the Republic Ambassador.