Following Russia's defeat in the Crimean War, its intelligentsia believed that backward social, economic and political institutions had been the source of said defeat. After the Treaty of Paris (March of 1856) Alexander II's government immediately began planning for a total reform of the Russian society: the abolition of serfdom, military reforms, railway construction, free speech, judicial reform, etc. In 1864 a number of Russian officers, enraged and ideologically inspired by the great American struggle to end slavery, occupied the Winter Palace and proclaimed a new Russia. Its liberal intelligentsia was assembled to form the Constitution of 1864 and the first Duma, a body of elected legislators. While initially opposed to the unravelling revolution, Alexander II eventually ceded and agreed to transform Russia into a semi-constitutional monarchy.

The ML-20 was the most advanced piece of 152mm artillery available to the Soviet Army during the Great Patriotic War. Longer barreled and heavier than its M-10 cousin, it formed the backbone of all operational-level artillery fires, raining hell on select German sectors. The Oceanykan Peoples' Army 12th Artillery Division employs some of these weapons.

An oddball of a company. Mitsubishi Motors entered the Oceanykan market extremely suddenly and violently, becoming a top dog within years. Not violently literally, but by importing Japanese migrants and production equipment. Nobody knows why they came so abruptly, specially since the Japanese government gives them trouble for building tanks that end up in the wrong hands. An extremely popular theory, backed up by dubious but believable sources, is that Mitsubishi Motors Australia is a joint Japanese/Mitsubishi mission to keep the other Zaibatsus in Oceanyka under watch. They do have economic interests in the nation, and regularly "unmarked" tanks mysteriously attack Holden factories. However, their Japanese production methods are too obvious; all parts are labelled, have a serial number and can only be repaired at a Mitsubishi agency.

1886 was an eventful year for the British. Decades of alliances, pacts and wars culminated in a grand coordinated rebellion against British colonialism. The British were only able to evacuate the most important governors and aristocrats, while the Army was overrun. Seeing it pointless to try and reestablish rule, Britain seceded rule of the island to the Cestlep-based headquarters of the rebellion: the Oceanykan Council. With this was born the Oceanykan Federation, commonly known as the "Old Republic". The parliament-like organisation, featuring representation by the major groups of the nation, had de jure rule over the country. Despite an extremely weak constitution the Federation managed to coordinate several of its members to participate in development projects. This early era of the Old Republic is commonly known as the Oceanykan Golden Era. The country adopted many modern technologies such as industrial production, railroads and machineguns. Wars were plentiful but not nearly as much as before. The Council even sent its army to fight in the Weltkrieg, with mixed results. But a particular era of strife directly following the end of hostilities corrupted and weakened the Council. By the time all radical rebellions of the second Weltkrieg were exterminated, the Council was not the group of idealistic statesmen and industrialists it was before.

The greatest crisis that Oceanyka's new republican government faced was the Oceanykan Civil War, in which it found itself victorious. However, the country remained in a state of political, social and economic decay, and thus the end of said civil conflict marks the beginning of the Late Republican Age.

The Type VII is the most produced type of submarine in history. It is a diesel submarine armed with torpedoes, a deck gun, and some anti-air weaponry. Today it is seen as simple, but back during the Second Weltkrieg it was revolutionary. Hundreds were produced, some of which made their way to Oceanyka through getting lost or boarded in action in the Pacific Theatre. There, the venerable U-Boat was reproduced ad infinitum.

As a submarine, the Type VII is specialised at hunting down capital ships and cargo vessels, taking them out with a distance with its acoustic torpedoes. However, it is fairly weak to dedicated anti-submarine tactics and equipment. This is especially true for the Type VII; most anti-submarine manuals in the world were created specifically to destroy this kind of submarine, and the world's technology has progressed far beyond the Type VII.

The fiery flamaroma is a plant which thrives in Oceanyka's tropical and subtropical zones. Its leaves are strongly aromatic, releasing an earthy, smoky and citrusy smell with which traditional perfumes have been manufactured for millennia. Their seed pods range from vibrant green to deep red, each harbouring an inferno of heat that only those accustomed to spice can bear. The compound responsible for this pugnancy is called "hydrocapsilite", chemically related to the capsaicin found in chili plants. Flamaroma has been cultivated for thousands of years, and many different cultivars exist. These can range from the mild Sweet Southern to the infamous Flamethrowaroma, which can kill a grown man if they dare eat a whole pod.