Collab:Bai Empire
 This is the collaboration page for the Bai Empire.
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Bai Empire  百帝国 (Baiyu) Capital: Xiongjing
Population: 210,000,000 (2022) Motto: 百省一心 Anthem: Glory to the Empire |
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Located in Northern Archanta, the Bai Empire∈⊾ (百帝国) is a Chinese-speaking country that was once a colonial power. While China is the main inspiration, with the country taking up the Chinese culture, heritage and language, the Empire is not intended to be a carbon copy of the China we know today. Think of the project to be an answer to what a functioning, modern Chinese Empire will be like, with relatively stronger influences from other East Asian cultures.
The project has recently been expanded to encompass (at 812540.00 km²). The project is being led by me, zhenkang, and anyone interested in participating is welcome.
General Information
The Bai Empire is intended to have a strong economy with moderate levels of development. It is a regional power with have a strong influence on regional history and culture. Close coordination will be required if you happen to be a neighbour of Bai.
The Emperor's Commandments
While these are more like guidelines than actual rules, please adhere to them unless granted permission to do so otherwise.
- OGF rules also apply here. Adhere to them as well.
- Only map in Chinese, with no Latin transliterations (e.g. "雄京" and not "雄京 Xiongjing")
- Even if you don't speak Chinese, but is still able to map an East Asian-style city, leave the naming and translation to us.
- Follow the guidelines of the province/city you are mapping in.
- The OGF map is set in modern times, so don't map as though it was in a past dynasty (though if you want to, you can develop your mapping across time to help give some sort of realistic organic growth to your mapping. Just ensure the end product is the mapping we see today.)
- Please do not make drastic changes to the national geography, rivers and infrastructure (roads and rails) without the permission of the coordinator (namely me)
- The provinces are part of the Bai Empire. Please do not join the treacherous ways of Kaosha and Dehua (Cinasia) and declare independence for your own province. Independence movements may exist (especially for Hainanese-speaking Qiongzhu) and there can be former brief independent republics that existed during the Warlord Era. However, back to rule no. 4, the map is set to what the area is today.
Contributors
Anyone with a background, interest, and/or understanding of Chinese culture and history (especially pre-PRC Chinese history) is welcome to join in the project. (It is not necessary to have proficiency in the Chinese language.) Mappers may claim their own province, or sign-up to be part of the three collaborative projects (detailed in the following sections).
To indicate your interest in joining the Bai Empire Project, please ask on the discussion page or message me personally.
- zhenkang, coordinator and co-founder of the project. Responsible for lore and main contributor of Xiongjing municipality.
- The_Cute_Chick, co-founder of the project. Responsible for macro-scale mapping of the whole territory and mapper of Neilu province.
- kengoman, responsible for micro-scale mapping and mapper of Qiongzhu province.
- Hilsonbergman, main contributor of Dunghoigong municipality.
- Intergan, mapper of Shidizhuang and surroundings in Dong'an province.
- Tin Cing, mapper of Huicheng city in Tongbian province.
- poweikao, owner of neighbouring country Kaosha.
- coshatiuav, owner of neighbouring country Grinzez.
- Mtejku222, former/emeritus mapper of the territory.
To-do list
There are plenty of stuff that is needed to be done. Any help is welcomed.
 To do list
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National-level mapping:
Xiongjing (capital):
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History
To see the lore of the Bai Empire, read this article.
The history of Bai is long and eventful. In the 12th century, the First Bai Dynasty was established after centuries of divisions and war. It was succeeded by the Suo, after a Ninwan (or a foreign power) conquest in the 13th to 14th centuries, similar to the Mongol-led Yuan Dynasty. During the Suo, the Bai Empire set out its colonial exploits, establishing new colonies beyond Northern Archanta and Eastern Uletha. These colonisation projects wouldn't last, due to dwindling funds that drained the Empire's economy.
The "Dark Period" of Bai came in the 16th century when corrupt bureaucrats and merchants led to the Suo's collapse and the Lin was established. During this period, Bai gave up many of its colonial possessions through pacts with the West Ulethan colonial powers, which were also given control over parts of the Empire proper. The Middle Bai came in the 17th century, which established the semi-constitutional monarchy (influences from the West). This dynasty was considered the "peak" of modern Bai but collapsed with the rise of radical ideologies such as Bai Fascism and communism.
The War of Fellow Brothers erupted after the fascists gained power and overthrew the monarchy. The fascists, rather expansionist and with a need for resources, waged war with their regional neighbours. While they were eventually put down with a coalition of resistance forces, its collapse led to the Warlord Era, where many factions competed for influence. The New Bai Dynasty only came about in the 1960s, and the Empire rapidly recovered economically to regain its influence in the region.
Geography
A (sketch of a) topological map is needed to determine the major geographic features and the major road and rail infrastructures.
The geographic layout for the Empire (which has been mapped during the former Commonia period) will not drastically change. The central area will remain mountainous, with flatter fertile regions at the north and eastern coasts. Some of the existing major rivers will not be erased, but their course may be modified accordingly to be topographically consistent. There will also be some changes to the coastline to make them more detailed and natural. The boundaries will also shift once the geographic features are mapped.
Please see the "More Advanced Projects" section for projects related to the national geography.
Culture and language
The main language used is Mandarin Chinese, the main script Simplified. However, certain regions and states may use other dialects like Cantonese (e.g. Port Dunghoi), Hainanese, Hakka, Hokkien, Shanghainese, and Teochew. For the transcription of dialects, it is encouraged to use a non-Latin script like Bopofomo, Hangeul or Kana.
National infrastructure
Road network
Main article: Collab:Bai Empire/National Roads
The_Cute_Chick has kindly helped sketched the road and rail network in the Bai Empire. Meanwhile, kengoman has drawn up a detailed documentation for the national road mapping convention.
Please bear in mind a few things:
- The Empire is left-hand driving.
- Please do not make drastic changes to the road network without permission.
- If you want to build a cross-country road (whether motorway or normal trunk country road), please message me and I will check on your proposal
- Adhere to the documentation (relinked it here, in case you miss it).
Rail network
Main article: Collab:Bai Empire/BaiRail
More to come...
Provinces of Bai
The Bai Empire∈⊾ consists of 60 over provinces and 4 municipalities. For administrative reasons, the Empire is divided into seven general zones (Gongshus):
- Dongbeigongshu (formerly Phase I)∈⊾ comprises the more important regions of the empire. These include the mapping of the capital Xiongjing and two major cities Riqing and Port Dunghoi. Inspirations for the area is derived from much of real-world southern China provinces: Shaanxi, Hunan, Hubei and Guangdong provinces.
- Donggongshu∈⊾ will be inspired by the Sichuan and Guizhou regions with fertile plains. Former communist stronghold with neighbouring Kanglapo.
- Nangongshu∈⊾ will be similar to the Yunnan and Guangxi regions, due to the mountainous region and close to non-Bai speaking countries.
- Xigongshu∈⊾ will be similar to northwestern China (Xinjiang, Qinghai, Gansu, Neimenggu) with a drier climate.
- Beigongshu∈⊾ will take inspiration from parts of northeastern China (Ha'erbin, Hebie, Shandong). It will also host a modern metropolis Jincheng which will be inspired by Shanghai.
- Zhonggongsu∈⊾ will host plenty of important historical cities like Shaanxi and Shanxi.
- The Kyawal-kaw Autonomous Region∈⊾ will be a Burmese-speaking region. As for now, it will be reserved.
Municipalities and major cities
These major cities are open for collaboration. All mappers, including those who have taken ownership of a province, are welcome to help develop these cities. Their descriptions are as follows:
| Name | Description | Status |
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| 雄京 (Xiongjing)∈⊾ | The cultural and political centre of the Empire, with a layout similar to Chengdu. The contemporary capital will feature a "forbidden city" and a few other historical landmarks (e.g. palaces and tombs of late emperors) alongside "modern" government institutes like the Cabinet, the upper and lower houses of the legislature, and other government departments. The city will see a delicate balance between tradition and modernisation. It is a rather recent development, constructed in the 18th century on older architecture and infrastructure. See this page for more information. |  Open for collaboration. Contact zhenkang for details.
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| 日庆 (Riqing)∈⊾ | Modern city and a regional economic centre of Phase I. Based on Tianjin but Teochew speaking (i.e. Chaozhou in the style of Tianjin). | Open for collaboration. Anyone is free to propose their plan for the city, because I honestly don't have one at the moment, and have no immediate plans to develop the area.
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| 东海港 (Port Dunghoi)∈⊾ | As the name suggests (meaning "East Sea Port"), the city will be a major port of the east coast of the Empire. The city will be mapped in Cantonese. It is modelled mainly on Guangzhou (i.e. plenty of manufacturing zones), but also inspired by the (Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau) Greater Bay Area (i.e. the coastal areas inspired by Macau and Hong Kong, the inner areas a technology and research hub like Shenzhen, etc). |  The city and the area is being developed by Hilsonbergman at the moment.
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Provinces
The description of the 13 provinces is as follows. Each province has a suggested level of development, with different recommendations for mappers interested in adopting a province. In addition to the above three collaborative projects:
- Level 1 provinces are the least-developed provinces in the Bai Empire. The largest town in each Level 1 province (namely the capital) is expected to be roughly 500,000 residents, with a total population of about 2,000,000 residents.
- Level 2 provinces are somewhat more developed than Level 1 provinces, but are still primarily rural. These provinces may include some light industrial uses (factories, manufacturing, warehouses, etc.) near their largest city of +/- 1,000,000 residents. Level 2 provinces as a whole are expected to have fewer than 5,000,000 residents.
- Level 3 provinces are the most developed provinces in the Empire, containing at least one major settlement. Each city has a population of up to 5,000,000 residents. These provinces are also assumed to include an airport and at least one state university. Total population is upwards of 20,000,000.
These subdivisions can be taken up by one or more mappers. They have the freedom to map as they wish within it, subject to general overarching guidelines of each province (e.g. geography, railways, motorways) for consistency across the Project. Mappers are also encouraged to keep their provinces open for collaboration by other mappers, especially for the urban centres.
| Name | Level | Area (in km²) | Description | Status |
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| 宝矿 (Baokuang)∈⊾ | 2 | 8157.96 | While rural, the province hosts many mines of valuable resources. Although with a Level 2, the province will feature plenty of railways and infrastructure for transporting these resources. | Available but recommended only for more advanced mappers
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| 大湖 (Dahu)∈⊾ | 2 | 10725.25 | Next to the Great Lake, this area will feature an ancient, majestic city like Xi'an. Can be based off Shaanxi Province | Available but recommended only for more advanced mappers
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| 大领 (Daling)∈⊾ | 2 | 11122.24 | The border region, this area will feature a few ports and industries. Can have plenty of Kalmish influences from neighbouring Kaosha. | Available
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| 东岸 (Dong'an)∈⊾ | 3 | 11654.04 | The Cantonese-speaking region, part of the region will have urban sprawl from Port Dunghoi. | Now under development by Hilsonbergman
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| 繁岸 (Fan'an)∈⊾ | 3 | 17851.43 | Based on Hunan Province with at most two important cities by the coast. |  Available as long as you can provide a suitable plan
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| 光岸 (Guang'an)∈⊾ | 2 | 9241.21 | Northern Chaozhou (Teochew) region. When mapping please preserve the straight border along the tropic. Anyone with knowledge of Teochew is welcome. | Available as long as you can provide a suitable plan
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| 内陆 (Neilu)∈⊾ | 2 | 8490.40 | An extension of the Teochew-speaking area. Largely plain and flat, with plenty of farms. | Now under development by The_Cute_Chick
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| 琼珠 (Qiongzhu)∈⊾ | 1 | 4125.28 | Likely based on Hainan (though not as tropical). Anyone with knowledge of Hainanese is welcome. | Now under development by kengoman
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| 同边 (Tongbian)∈⊾ | 2 | 7598.11 | An extension of the Cantonese speaking area, it could feature plenty of industries (e.g. electronic equipment, chemicals and textiles). It will border the communist country of Kanglapo to the south, so there will be plenty of Katayan enclaves. | Currently under development by Tin Cing, but will be annexed into Kanglapo. Mapping by Tin Cing will be moved to another coastal province.
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| 王印 (Wangyin)∈⊾ | 3 | 15237.78 | An extension of the Teochew-speaking area. Largely plain and flat, it will see plenty of rail connections through the area. | Available as long as you can provide a suitable plan
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| 晚营 (Wanying)∈⊾ | 1 | 14733.95 | A landlocked province, there is one city available for development. Ideas for developing the region are welcomed. | Available as long as you can provide a suitable plan
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| 未知区 (Weizhiqu)∈⊾ | 1 | 11480.73 | Literally meaning "Unknown Region", this mythical area was a source of many legends and myths. Plenty of religious sites could be built in the high mountains. | Available as long as you can provide a suitable plan
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| 隐穴 (Yinxue)∈⊾ | 1 | 13672.06 | Literally meaning "Hidden caves", this will require some experience in mountain mapping. Some mining industries may exist, or abandoned during the devastating Warlord Era. | Available as long as you can provide a suitable plan
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More advanced projects
These are more advanced projects that are recommended only for more experienced mappers. While the current scope of these projects is limited to the area within Phase I, please be mindful that these will be expanded into Phases II and beyond. For these projects, please indicate the project ID in the subject line when messaging me.
| Project ID | Project Description | Map area | Project Status |
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| BG-001 | Create a topo map for the Bai Empire | Available but recommended only for more advanced mappers
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Phase II and beyond
Once Phase I is running smoothly, the Empire will further expand to include more provinces that include more Chinese cultures. Phase II, which will comprise the provinces numbered 78-86 (or AR915), will commence around the 2nd quarter of 2022. Other Phases remain tentative.
Provinces numbered 87-92 are intended to be part of a potential Burmese-speaking country, a close ally of the Empire.
Foreign relations
The Bai Empire is welcome to establish relations with countries around the world.
| Building their embassy in your country | Building your embassy in their country |
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 While the Bai Empire is welcome to establish relations, at this stage Bai is rather new and it is not ready to do so. Send me a message and we can sort things out.
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 Xiongjing remains under construction and it is unadvisable to set up embassies in the capital. If you like to, however, feel free to send me a message.
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Bai Quarter
You are welcome to establish overseas Bai neighbourhoods around the world. However, depending on our relations and history, the size may vary. Bai neighbourhoods could be named as Bai Quarter (百人街). For generic Oriental neighbourhoods, you can name them "Pan-Ardentic". Link your Bai Quarter at the canon Bai Empire page.