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Hello guys, so years ago I published a 1.0 guide on how to achieve the “perfect” reformist run. This time in 3.0, I have decided to make an AAR of a social libertarian society, which Rayne will dub “Sordish Liberalism”, or “the Rayne Doctrine”. Enjoy!

• Anton Rayne was born in 1908, to a wealthy family in Lachaven.

 

“Growing up in a comfy mansion along the Markian Coast, I never had any issues with money. My father was a banker who ran the central bank of the city, and even has regular sessions with the King himself. Dad also had a keen eye on investments, and taught me that the more I invest and spend, the more I will get in return. When I heard that the Kingdom had fell, I didn’t really understand what just happened to Sordland - I was just a 15 year old boy trying to find my way in society.”

“Suzerain: The Yearning of Freedom”, Anton Rayne, 1975.

• He studied at Lachaven Business School in his early years.

“From a young age, Anton Rayne showed his dedication and belief in laissez-faire economics. In his first year at LBS, Rayne wrote a paper about how the new Sordish Republic should embrace investments from Arcasia, as well as investing in specific areas such as the cities to lift the rural regions out of poverty, which he later described as ‘The Table Cloth Theory’.”

“Forwards to the Future”, Carol Circas, 2006

• A staunch anti-totalist, Rayne protested with the students and was beaten relentlessly. He later joined a human rights group, where he met his future wife, Monica.

“I remember how on our first date at his house (since we were too scared to go to a roadside cafe as a result of martial law), I fell into a rant about how I wanted for women’s rights to improve in Sordland, and how we aren’t just baby makers for men. It surprised me when Anton wholeheartedly agree with me, responding with his opinions on how Sordish society should reform itself. He not only supported my activism for women's rights in Sordland, but joined alongside me in human rights protests against Luderin’s tyranny. He told me how he was beaten up by Luderin’s lackeys during the coup d’etat, and how he later joined a human rights group like me to fight for Sordland’s freedom of speech. ”

“A Different Kind of First Lady”, Monica Rayne, 1967

• Rayne then joined the Red Youth to fight against Luderin.

“Dad told me that he was a Red Youth member during the civil war. Lachaven was under Rikard’s control for most of it, and he described in gruesome detail how he saw a young girl get rolled to death by tanks, and even got into a few skirmishes against the Young Sords in the latter half of the Civil War. Those days in Lachaven turned him against any war, seeing it as a moral blight on society. The stories he heard from his fellow comrades gave him a new perspective on his political beliefs.”

“Born in the Limelight”, Deana Pasilaco (nee Rayne), 2016

• Rayne would serve in the military, though was punished severely due to letting Bludish refugees through in 1930.

“INCIDENT REPORT - FEBRUARY 23RD, 1930

DESCRIPTION: Private Anton Rayne at the Gumren Outpost deliberately let refugees slip through, in turn going against President Tarquin Soll’s orders of a zero-refugee policy.

PUNISHMENT: Solitary confinement and demoted to outpost maintenance.

GRECI SORDLAND

General Iosef Lancea of the 6th Army”

Incident report of Private Rayne’s misconduct during the patrol, written by General Iosef Lancea, 1930.

• Rayne joined the USP, and later became a Member of Parliament.

“When I first saw Anton Rayne, I saw a charismatic, but very misguided person. He was talking about how the Energy Protection Act is stunting the growth of Sordland’s energy industry, and how the National Autarky Plan was going to steer the country to stagnation. He might have opposed Soll fiercely, but he never went too far in his criticisms, which is probably why Soll kept him around.”

“The Iron Lady”, Gloria Tory, 1973

• Rayne eventually joined the opposition, and conspired with Ewald Alphonso to vote Tarquin Soll out of office.

“I still remember that day. Anton told me that there is nothing to be worried about, and that we will succeed in taking Soll down at last. Alphonso aligned with Rayne on a lot of issues - they both believed in mass privatisation, both believed in increased freedoms, and both hated Soll with a passion. He also told me how his wife was eight-months pregnant, and she had been stressing about this vote for days. We certainly didn’t make her stress for nothing.”

“At The Forefront”, Nia Morgna, 1989

• As Alphonso’s Presidency unravelled, Rayne told him to step down, with most of the reformists switching to Rayne’s side.

“When I first heard of Anton Rayne speaking of freedom, liberty, democracy and justice, I was skeptical. This felt like the same hollow promises that Ewald Alphonso spoke of in 1949, and it was only after Alphonso stepped down, and only after Rayne made a fiery speech about the failures of both Alphonso and Soll, did I even consider joining the USP. Even then, I was ready to ditch the USP if Rayne proves himself to be no different or worse, the opposite of what he campaigned for.”

Ciara Walda giving her eulogy at Anton Rayne’s funeral, 1983.

• Anton Rayne wins the 1953 General Elections.

“Dear citizens of Sordland! Today, you have placed your trust once again on the United Sordland Party! When me and Anton first started campaigning, we promised an agenda of market reforms, democracy, and justice! With our election, we will make sure to fix the recession, amend our dilapidated constitution, and finally, open Sordland to the West and the world at large! Now, let’s PARTY!”

Vice President-elect Petr Vectern at USP’s victory rally, 1953.
Chapter I - 1954
Turn 1

• On his first day in office, Rayne promised to reform the constitution.

“I knew from the first hour at the office that my ideas are going to upset my entire party. Petr and Lucian had always warned me how the party is going to hate me for trying to reform the constitution like this. Between the 3% threshold to my known disdain of Soll… it was never going to be easy. I told Petr back then as we’re drinking that ‘a true capitalist takes risks to earn big’, and that was the philosophy that guided me throughout my Presidency.”

“Suzerain: The Yearning of Freedom”, Anton Rayne, 1975

• Rayne also reaffirmed his commitment to a free-market economy to Symon Holl and Gus Manger.

“Anton was smart in taking a risk for a laissez-faire economy, while cracking down on the Oligarchs that dominated Sordland at the time. He had barely been in office for 48 hours when he told me the necessity to privatise services to cater competition and growth, as well as the full repeal of the Energy Protection Act. Of course, Lileas saw him as a national security threat for trying to privatise everything, and in hindsight, she could have been right, but the cold hard statistics back in the 1960s didn’t lie.”

“The Bite of 1978: In Hindsight”, Symon Holl, 1981

• Rayne decides to meet with Marcel Koronti.

“It was just the right thing to do. Marcel Koronti was one of the most powerful oligarchs in Sordland, and even though I was a part of the Red Youth, I was surprised by how many times the oligarchs thought that they can sway me. Truth is, despite my embrace of capitalism, I never liked the oligarchs - they are greedy capitalists who exploit people for their own gain.”

“Suzerain: The Yearning of Freedom”, Anton Rayne, 1975.

• Rayne vetoed the Campaign Finance Bill.

“Despite passing the Grand National Assembly in its first session, Anton Rayne, a committed liberal, has vetoed the Campaign Finance Bill in one of his first acts as President of Sordland. This bill would have empowered the USP financially while hurting smaller parties, and the veto came as no surprise, given how Rayne has repeatedly espoused the importance of pluralism and representative democracy, often citing Lespia and Arcasia as examples of pluralist democracies. He seems to be willing to go against his own party to lay the groundwork for reformism in Sordland, with Prime Minister Alvarez commending Rayne’s efforts to shut down bills that threatened Sordland’s democracy.”

Excerpt of ‘Radio Nacional de Lespia’s (RNL)’ “News at 6”, January 21st, 1954.

• Rayne approved of the new L-1 Electrified Railway from Holsord to Lachaven.

“The electrified railway to Lachaven was not just the start of the Sordish Economic Miracle - it paved the way for a true high-speed rail network across Sordland later on. In the 1960s, a branch line to Deyr was constructed, as well as cooperating with Lespia to fully electrify the line between Holsord and Perla. During his first term, Clavin foolishly called off the full electrification of train lines to Estord and Narbel, which could have saved us from the stalemate during the Rumburg intervention.”

“A Case For Bullet Trains”, an opinion article in the Lachaven Times by Professor Maxim Cazniych, 1985

• Rayne invested most of his personal wealth (3 PW) on Armadine.

“I’m an alumni of Lachaven Business School, and I believe that Armadine’s new ‘television’ technology will revolutionize entertainment, which will allow for the stocks to increase massively. I recommend others also invest in it.”

Anton Rayne when asked about his Armadine investments, January 28th, 1954.

• Rayne met with Bernard Circas, hours before he was fatally murdered by alleged members of the Young Sords.

“That night, I was chilling at home and doing homework, when Mom came into my room, crying. She told me that Dad was shot dead by members of the Young Sords, and at that moment, my world collapsed. Dad cared about me a lot as a child, and he taught me the ideas of compassion towards the poor, even though we were rich. President Rayne later sent his condolences to me and my mother, telling how he found Dad to be one of the greatest writers, politicians and socialists of all time, and how his writings influenced his own planned fight for reformism and liberty.”

“Forward to the Future”, Carol Circas, 2006.

Turn 2

• Rayne sides with Nia in the meeting and refuses to condemn the Red Youth for sparking violence, later emphasising the importance of self-defense against Rumburg when he met Iosef and Valken.

“Anton was principled and kept his usual cool demeanour. He told Lileas that in spite of the Red Youth’s alleged meddling, we shouldn’t point fingers at the United Contana right away. He later clarified that in spite of being a former Red Youth member, he only joined to fight against Luderin’s tyranny, and nothing else. At that point, I knew he isn’t going to simply abandon his idealistic vision of Sordland over this.”

“At The Forefront”, Nia Morgna, 1989.

“I was honestly surprised that for such a notorious die-hard liberal anti-Sollist like Rayne, he would emphasise so much on self-defense. Before our first meeting with General Lancea, I harboured nothing but resentment against Rayne, thinking that he was gonna sell the country out to the West and tear down Sollism. While my fears were proven true eventually, his charm and respect to the Sordish Armed Forces from our first meeting showed that he is capable of shielding our country from external threats, and was just enough to convince me to not pull the trigger on him.”

“Old Soldiers Never Die”, Valken Kruger, 1964.

• Rayne loses it during family dinner and yells at Franc.

“Dad often has a temper when he becomes nervous. I remember him yelling at my brother after he snapped at Dad for playing down the threat that the Circas assassination had on us. He seems to be on edge, and barked at him to leave the table. Seeing everyone furious sent me into a crying spree, though Dad later admitted to me privately that he could have dealt with both the assassination and my brother’s concerns in a better way.”

“Born in the Limelight”, Deana Pasilaco, 2016.

• Rayne visited affected towns in person against the unrest.

“In 1934, Colonel Soll addressed the nation on the fifth anniversary of the end of the civil war, where he described how a house divided against itself cannot stand. Twenty years later, these words never held more weight than ever. Our nation is facing its greatest crisis since the Luderin regime, where a walk on the streets can be your last. When extremism takes over from the flanks of freedom of speech, we all collectively lose freedom.”

Anton Rayne giving a speech at Gelsord, 8th March, 1954.

• Rayne took a 1 million Sordish Ren bribe from Tusk, only to backtrack on his promise and pick Taurus instead.

“We are jubilant at the Sordish government’s decision for letting us build their first high-speed railway. This is a sign of President Rayne’s forward thinking ideas, and a sign of his government’s Western leanings. We hope to cooperate with the Sordish government further on other infrastructural projects that they pursue.”

Taurus Holding CEO Geralt Fais in a press conference, 1st April, 1954.

• Rayne bailed the businesses out over stimulus checks.

“Of course the people are ignored as usual. What else do you think a USP President would do? They are simply a puppet of the oligarchs and the elite.”

Manoly Suheil during a regular Assembly meeting, 23rd April, 1954.

• Rayne meets Marcel only to reject his deal.

“In hindsight, it might have been better to not meet Marcel entirely. I had no intention of cooperating with the oligarchs anyways, and the meeting only served to prove how the oligarchs just see me as a tool to be used, not as an actual leader. Even though I had turned down the offer and the meeting was supposedly a secret, the Radical got wind of it and published a comic of me marrying Koronti, mocking how my outspoken advocacy for capitalism and liberty will mean that I’ll ‘marry’ to the oligarchs.”

“Suzerain: The Yearning of Freedom”, Anton Rayne, 1975.

• Rayne attends the funeral of Bernard Circas in Deyr.

“Anton Rayne was a lot of things. His days at the Red Youth during the civil war made him a humanist; his wealthy upbringing made him a capitalist; his relationship to Monica made him a liberalist. But when I saw him during my father’s funeral in 1954 and listened to his speech live for the first time, the young me realized what he really is - just a father trying to survive in the dog-eat-dog world that was the 1950s in Sordland.”

Carol Circas’ opening lines in her eulogy at Anton Rayne’s funeral, 1983.

• Rayne decides to only issue a condemnation letter to Rumburg for closing the Lachaven consulate, while also expressing interest in all possible trade deals.

“Anton was quite idealistic about our potential alliances. He said in that meeting that he will deal with Rumburg diplomatically by issuing a condemnation letter rather than retaliating, and expressed interests in every alliance, even including Valgsland. Of course, he was probably just saying that to not shut down any opportunities, but the way he conducted diplomacy was groundbreaking for our nation, defining our overall direction for the next two decades.”

“The Making of a President”, Deivid Wisci, 1960.

• Rayne signs the Tourism Cultural Preservation Act.

“Visit the beaches of Benfi and Vesord today! Cheap flights from Sordland Airlines starting at 500 Lira.”

A promotional poster of Sordland Airlines after the signing of the TCPA, 1954.

• Rayne reaffirms his commitment to radical reforms, and shoots down Hawker’s idea of declaring an emergency after getting the dossier of Ricter in Arcasia.

Ciara: “So Rayne is really going for radical change? He is going to come into a crash course with Tory and Hawker for that. All this talk about change and hope… I hope he actually means every word, not like Alphonso.”

Nia: “Yeah, I was surprised at his interest of reducing the threshold to 3% and removing the Member of Honor. And removing justice immunity too. We also talked about revoking the Special Zone today, and he’s making it a priority.”

Ciara: “And that meeting with Hawker?”

Nia: “Rayne basically told him to fuck off. Y’know, Ciara, it’s not every day that we can just chill out and have these conversations, especially with the constitutional reform coming up… and that’s on top of caring for my two young kids.”

Ciara: “It’s okay, Nia. Being a mother and helping to run a country is a part of what makes you an inspiring woman to so many in Sordland. We’re fighting for a better future for all of us. Speaking of which, I’ll be heading to Narbel next month, and give Rayne a good look at the downtrodden cities on the frontier.”

Excerpt of a conversation between Nia and Ciara on 25th July, 1954.

Turn 3

• Rayne and Franc have a successful barbecue together.

“Dad liked to have barbecue with my family when I was a little girl. We usually did it at the Presidential House’s backyard, where we would chat about our lives, tell jokes and bond together in spite of our busy lives. Now that I’m the President, I will make sure my family do the same here.”

President Deana Pasilaco speaking to the press, 2002.

• Rayne paid the education fees for Serge’s daughter using Tusk’s money.

“President Rayne was a man who really cared for the people. He took out one million dollars from one of the richest men in Sordland, and gave it to the less advantaged like me. It was Rayne’s generosity and compassion to the poor that lifted so many to destinies that were previously unimaginable when I was a kid.”

MP Erika Wolkner of the Liberal People’s Party giving a speech at Anton Rayne’s funeral, 1983

• The Narbel Meetings resulted in Sordland bailing out Gasom alone, as well as convincing Alphonso to improve worker’s rights.

“Six or seven years ago, President Rayne declared that his administration will improve worker’s rights and secure the rights of Gasom’s employees. While the investment has had positive effects on the economy, only 67% of Gasom employees enjoy Gasom’s welfare policies, while the remaining continue to live in atrocious conditions. Can the President explain why hasn’t the administration place further pressure on the working conditions at Gasom?”

MP Manoly Suheil of the PFJP during an Assembly session, 1960

• The later address successfully dispells a strike, showing Rayne’s humanist philosophy

“I have no idea how did Anton successfully convince Alphonso, and how he managed to dispel a general strike at Gasom with one speech. He seems interested in both improving the lives of the disadvantaged as well as mass privatisation, arguing that both capitalist and a socialist method is needed to bring Sordland into the modern age. Regardless, he is certainly a very liberal minded President, and I hope that he can bring the reforms that Sordland desperately needs.”

Paskal Beniwoll in his journal, 6th September, 1954.

• Stability Order rejected

“President Rayne has vetoed the Stability Order of 1954, citing it as an infringement on the freedom of speech, and pointed out how some members of both the Red Youth and Young Sords are not violent or militant, but simply fighting peacefully for a cause they believe in like many of us. We commend the President for not issuing blanket bans on organizations, showing his dedication to limiting Presidential power and protecting the freedom of speech in Sordland.”

Page 3 of the Lachaven Times, 10th September, 1954.

• The GREEN act was vetoed.

“Are you fucking kidding me!? An act to protect the environment, and yet President Rayne shoots it down? By Dast, what the actual fuck is the President thinking!?!?”

A voice tape of Gus Manger complaining to the Palace secretary, Livia Suno after hearing of Rayne’s veto, 1954.

• The Constitution was drafted with a 3% Threshold and Member of Honor abolition, as well as other more obvious things.

“President Rayne has announced the new constitution reform package today, which included many articles that many consider to be extreme. The main spotlight on the reform package lands on the reduction of the electoral threshold to 3%, a move which many across all parties found surprising, given how the current 10% threshold allowed the USP to hold its majority. Another major talking point is the removal of supreme court justices immunity and the abolition of the Member of Honor, a move which sparked speculation that President Rayne is planning to put Colonel Soll on trial. Other reforms included the removal of legislative powers for the Supreme Court, as well as a limitation on vetoes, with the Grand National Assembly being able to override a Presidential veto at a 3/5th majority. The reform draft also included a two-term limit and the introduction of a confidence vote for cabinet members on appointment, as well as a limitation on decrees. The constitutional reform has been lauded by both the PFJP and the independents, while Kesaro Kibener of the NFP has called it ‘a national disgrace’.”

Sordland Broadcasting Corporation’s News at 6:30, 1st December, 1954.

• The EPA was removed entirely, much to everyone’s surprise.*

“The removal of the Energy Protection Act was a double-edged sword. On one hand, it allowed the rapid growth of the energy sector in Sordland in the 1960s, which helped the nation to develop immensely during the period. On the other hand, it left us vulnerable to foreign energy manipulation, such as Lespia’s control of Sordish Petroleum. The risks of removing the EPA became clear during the Bite of ‘78, when the Heijiland Conflict led to a surge in energy prices, which brought forth the major economic crisis that marked the last days of the Clavin Presidency. Perhaps had Rayne only increased the limit to 49%, the energy crisis would have been alleviated, if not averted fully.”

“The Bite of ‘78: In Hindsight”, Symon Holl, 1981.

*NOTE: This is only if you want to also trade with Wehlen. If you aren’t planning to trade with Wehlen, just increase the limit to 49% and it will have the same effect.

• The Budget Meeting resulted in an increase in Healthcare, Education and Law and Enforcement, at the cost of a reduced military budget.

“In my eight decades on Nur’s green Earth, I have never seen someone as blatantly anti-Soll as Anton Rayne. In the final days of 1954, he managed to turn every conservative against him, first by rapidly lowering the electoral threshold to allow separatists and communists into our treasured Assembly; then he removed the Energy Protection Act to allow for imperialists to seize control of our economy, and after all that, he defunded the pride of our nation to fund the overbloated welfare program. At that point, I honestly wondered if he will just give Estord and Narbel to Rumburg next for a quick buck, or sell Conriat to Valgsland simply for some scant trade relations.”

“Old Soldiers Never Die”, Valken Kruger, 1964.  

Chapter II - 1955
Turn 4

• The Worker’s Rights Act was signed.

“The Worker’s Rights Act is a monumental occasion for the Sordish people. It safeguards the right of workers and labourers that had long been toiling the factories and soil, and ends the decades of exploitative practices that the oligarchs and the landlords had enacted on the peasants of Sordland. But this is simply one of many steps to achieve true equality in Sordland. Whether by class, ethnicity or by gender, President Rayne will need to continue the pursuit of equality through action, and not simply be complacent after signing one bill.”

MP Katarina Horten addressing the Assembly, 25th January, 1955.

• The Department of Justice was given the budget, allowing the formation of the Anti-Corruption Police.

“When Anton approved of my suggestion of establishing an anti-corruption police, I was jubilant. When I was still teaching in the University of Deyr, I witnessed corruption on a level so extreme, it was hard for me to even comprehend how it was possible. Even as I made my way to Holsord, I witnessed how the cabinet members of the Alphonso Administration fleeced bribes to and from oligarchs, as well as how many simply bribed the judges to get lighter sentences, or in some cases - none at all. I remember how I picked up my kids from Ciara, and she embraced me once I told her why I was late. And somehow, my then-husband was home even later.”

“At The Forefront”, Nia Morgna, 1989

• An investment package to Lorren was made.

“With how the Rayne Administration had been investing, we’ll soon have a east-west divide so extreme that may just tear this nation apart. Us Bluds are constantly ignored by the central government, while the eastern four provinces gets everything.”

A Bludish citizen while on an SBC radio show, 13th February, 1955.

• Monica was allowed to speak at the Benfi festival.

“Tell Anton Rayne, Curtan Leste sends the following message:”

“When you came to meet me in Anrica, you said to me as follows: ‘I will respect the Benfi Festival and its traditions.’ You left then, but you did not do what you had promised me about. You put your harlot of a wife called Monica Rayne as the speaker of the Benfi Festival, and said over the phone: ‘If you want to come, then come; if you do not want to come, go away!’”

Who do you think you are, treating someone like me with such contempt? Sons of gentlemen we are, and I phoned you to demand that you place me back on as the speaker of the opening ceremony, but you refused and gave empty and hollow responses. Is there any politician in Sordland and beyond who has treated me this way? Only you treat the Mayor of Anrica and the Benfi Festival with contempt! On account of that one favour I owe you for allowing the L-1 Railway, you feel free to speak in such a way, while I had given the Administration ample time to respond, and Gloria Tory has likewise given me ample time to respond, from which we had written on a booklet to be kept at my office in Anrica.”

“How have you treated me for that speech? You have withheld my right and the audience’s right from me for the Benfi Festival; it is up to you to restore the conservatives’ trust in full.”

“Be advised that I will no longer be accept any offer from you for support in the Assembly. I shall select and pick what policies I will enact from your administration, and I shall exercise against you my act of rejection because you have treated me with contempt.”

Complaint Letter to Anton Rayne by Curtan Leste, sent on 17th May, 1955.

• Taurus Holdings was allowed to finish the project with their extra funds.

“Anton Rayne’s Western tilt has ran into a setback, after the L-1 Railway, currently being constructed by Taurus Holdings, had to be bailed out by the Sordish government due to budget overrun. This shows that foreign companies cannot be relied on to build key infrastructure projects, something which the President needs to be aware of.”

Page 7 of the Holsord Post, 9th March, 1955.

• Taxes were increased for major corporations, though small and medium corporations had their taxes stay at the same level.

“When Rayne told me that he was going to increase taxes on the rich, I was like ‘are you kidding me?’, because the large corporations are the lynchpin of society. They power our nation forward. And yet, Rayne treats them like a money tree, shaking out all of our hard-earned wealth. All the while, small and medium corporations, the small cogs in our economic machinery, did not get a tax increase.”

Mikail Aven on “The Neutral Lens”, 19th April, 1961.

• Education was reformed and privatisation began after a school visit at Leiren.

“People often call me ‘Rayne the Greedy’ for my mass privatisation programs, and I have to admit that the wave of privatisation led to increased inequality in Sordland. However, that is what Sordish Liberalism stands for - a system where the free market generates revenue, from which it flows back into the government, from which we invest to improve the lives of the Sordish people. Certainly, privatising education allowed for increased competition in the industry, though I can see how some kids wounded up becoming disadvantaged simply due to not being born in the purple.”

“Suzerain: The Yearning of Freedom”, Anton Rayne, 1975.

• New farms were subsidised in Gruni.

“Part of what made the 1960s such a glorious time for Sordland was Rayne’s heavy subsidization of Gruni’s agricultural industry during his four years as President. Under him, Sordland’s food exports skyrocketed. Employment in Gruni increased massively as farming efficiency went up by over 30%. The initiative allowed him to obtain some votes in Gruni in spite of his progressive policies, and while he has attributed it to his minister Gus Manger, we all know that Rayne was the real one who pushed forward the initiative.”

“Forward To The Future”, Carol Circas, 2006.

• Gloria unsurprisingly does not support the reforms, but Albin does.

“By the time I met President Rayne at my office on that April morning in 1955, I was basically fed up with his antics and anti-Sollist behaviour. I knew he was already a dissident before Alphonso even came into power, but Rayne came in and immediately revoked the Energy Protection Act, which was the nation’s vanguard for safety and stability. He also launched his first wave of privatisation and defunded the military, and then lowered the electoral threshold to allow communists into the parliament. I didn’t even have the time to bring up my disdain of him allowing his wife to speak.” 

“The Iron Lady”, Gloria Tory, 1973.

Turn 5

• Rayne vetoes the Religious Harmony Bill.

“I was relieved by President Rayne’s decision to veto the Religious Harmony Bill, a bill which would have started the extermination of the Bludish language. This was also the opening salvo on his crusade of enforcing equality in Sordland to the best of his ability, and while he may have made some mistakes afterwards, he built a solid foundation for the rights of the Bludish people to be respected, something which contributed to the failure of the Luderin Administration’s attempt of eradicating our rights and liberty.”

“50 Years On: My Life’s Struggle For Bludish Rights”, Mansoun Leke, 1983

• Rayne made 6 PW on his Armadine investments.

“Investment go brrrrr”

An internet meme which circulated on the Sordish internet, 2019.

• Rayne decides to keep immigration relaxed.

“First the 3% Threshold, then the repealing of the EPA, then the defunding of the military, and now this!? We need to prepare for a contingency to make sure this country doesn’t become toys for the other superpowers!”

Iosef Lancea during a regular high command meeting, 1955.

• Rayne made an investment at FC Anrica, and remembered Petr’s red lipstick later on at the Gentlemen’s Club party.

“I never had much love for Anrica, and especially not after my very public spectacle of humiliating the Mayor of Anrica during the Benfi Festival. But when Gus gave me that opportunity to invest in football, I just couldn’t pass up. I also remember how on the same day when I invested in the club, I saw Petr kissing in the bushes with a waitress. Not that it surprised me though, Petr was always a womanizer and an unfaithful husband to Evelyn.”

“Suzerain: The Yearning of Freedom”, Anton Rayne, 1975.

• Rayne defends his wife at the Benfi Festival, leading to Curtan Leste walking out. Monica enters politics in the aftermath as a suffragette.

“I have been interested in politics since I was a little girl. Anton finally gave me the breakout opportunity at the Benfi Festival, where I made a rousing speech to raise awareness for woman’s rights in Sordland. Of course, the reactionary Curtan Leste had to disrupt my speech in spite of direct orders from the President of Sordland to stop it, and he wounded up running away from the ceremony like a whiny little kid. From that point on, I stopped being simply ‘Monica Rayne the First Lady’, but rather ‘Monica Rayne the suffragette’.”

“A Different Kind of First Lady”, Monica Rayne, 1967

• The ACP was directed towards the Oligarchs.

“Oligarchism is the root of evil in politics. Koronti is a slimy asshole who uses his media empire to manipulate the public opinion, while Tusk is a serial briber who wouldn’t stop flinging money to politicians with less integrity. I’m glad that Anton is going after them first, and I hope that we get to turn up dirt on them soon.”

Memo from Nia Morgna to Karl Gresier, 16th July, 1955.

• The trade deal with Agnolia was successful, though Sordland stopped short of recognizing Heijiland as Agnolian.

“Today, Agnolia is proud to announce the officialization of our alliance with Sordland. The two nations have been brothers for centuries, and this trade deal ensures a fairer and more equal trade relationship between our two nations. The mutual defense pact also allows our nations to fight against the tyranny of Malenyevism and Rumburgian imperialism.”

Maartin van Hoorten giving a speech at the state dinner following negotiations, 10th August, 1955.

• The trade deal with Wehlen was successful, with Sordland defending its borders with Wehlen against supposed BFF soldiers.

“Trading with Wehlen was a double-edged sword. On one hand, it gave us cheap oil that ensured relative energy stability until the end of the Smolak dictatorship. On the other hand, we had to agree to defending our border against the BFF. At least, that was what Smolak claimed. In reality, he was clearly using it as an excuse to commit a mass genocide of the Bludish minority, and Lespia wounded up purchasing Sordish Petroleum as part of the trade deal. As someone who cares about Bludish rights, I deeply regret trading with a dictatorship like Wehlen.”

Anton Rayne giving a speech on the 30th Anniversary of the Izzam Incident, 1963.

• The President gives a speech in front of the Assembly.

“I watched Rayne speak in front of the Assembly in the leadup to the Constitutional vote. While it was clear that he wanted to get rid of the Old Guard, Soll included, he carefully phrased it in a way that emphasises unity and justice, while avoiding bipartisanship that is plaguing our nation. When Ricter and Kibener stood up to speak, he responded to them in a logical and direct way, not shutting down any attempts at cooperation outright. This is how he was able to push reforms through - by being the bridge the country needed.”

Manoly Suheil speaking on Tuomas Sacker’s One-on-One, 31st March, 1965.

Part II will see the conclusion to the saga and what happened in the aftermath. It's not quite what you would think.