The Imperial Republic of Shin-Kansai (/'ʃɪn kænsaɪ) or formally 新 関西 (Shinkansai or "New Kansai"), existing from years 2581 - 2920, was a nation founded during the Astrum Diaspora from one of the first star nations to redevelop space travel independently of Earth. Located in the Galactic South in space now claimed by the Threshold, Shin-Kansai was founded as a dedicated Japanese region by the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency, but this plan was ultimately foiled by other space agencies and the Human Continuity Project claiming adjacent space to the primary colonies of Himeji, Odawara, Shin-Nippon, and Endo.

Table of Contents

• Etymology
• Cartography
• History
• Culture

Etymology

The name Shin-Kansai means "New Kansai," named after a large, populous region of Japan on Earth..

Cartography

Shin-Kansai consisted of the Himeji and Odawara spheres of influence that are now part of the Meritocracy of Threshold. Two of these worlds, Murdalla and Adenal, were deemed not habitable by the Human Continuity Project following the War of the First Dominion due to extreme bombardment, chemical, and biological weapons reversing any terraforming efforts. While Murdalla was a small colony with only a few bubble-cities, the loss of Adenal was a major loss to the region as it had been terraformed to being fully hospitable to humans.

History

The Imperial Republic of Shin-Kansai was, for a time, the galaxy's largest homogenous group of people, being predominantly Japanese but with mixing of Korean, Filipino, and Pacific Islander. During the Deep Seed of Astrum Diaspora, ships began arriving that were more heterogeneous in racial mixing, but these new colonies were soon taken under the wing of Shin-Kansai.

The Andras-Kansai War

The Andras Dominion invaded the Imperial Republic of Kansai in 2903, beginning the Andras-Kansai War. Andras claimed that it was their right to own the lands to the Galactic West of the original Kansai settlements, as these were founded by HCP Deep Speed ships instead of the original JAXA flights. and Andras insisted that these people had been conquered by Shin-Kansai, and were now being "liberated" through warfare.

These "liberated" individuals were forcibly genetically altered to meet Adras' needs, sparking great controversy in the region. 

The war lasted for 34 years until the Andras Dominion surrounded Kansai and Threshold forces in 2937. At this point, Andras was fully dissolved into Threshold control, though those planets and regions of former Shin-Kansai control were given back to their parent nation.

Reconstruction

The nation was devastated during the Andras-Kansai War with the Andras Dominion. Two planets, Murdalla and Adenal, were ravaged to the point of inhospitability and two civilian Mega stations were destroyed by Andran kinetic barrages. Thresholders assisted in reconstruction, with a great many moving to the region to help to build as humanitarian forces, and thousands of such volunteers ultimately stayed. Shin-Kansai greatly relied upon Thresholder supplies and support following the war, with over one billion people killed and large swaths of space destroyed. 

Threshold, itself a new nation, was more than willing to develop new allies. As a result of the two nations being intertwined during reconstruction, Threshold persuaded Shin-Kansai to form the Threshold-Kansai confederacy. By 3201, Shin-Kansai as a nation was no more, having fully integrated into Threshold.

Culture

Shin-Kansai culture was predominantly Japanese, owing largely to the heritage of the original settlers. Many traditions were carried over from their country of origin, and the nation was considered as a cultural sanctuary, as they made many of the cultural traditions into federal holidays and practices in an attempt to preserve former Japanese tradition.

Entertainment

Sumo wrestling and Kendo were national sports, and many nationals trained in the art of performing tea ceremonies. Martial arts are also popular pastimes, and many practiced them via virtual-reality systems, and do still today in Threshold, though this is often looked down upon as it does not actually require the body to perform the artforms.

Cuisine

Much of the cuisine of Japan was carried through to Shin-Kansai, though modifications had to be made. Mana grains, a nutritional and resilient cross between rice and wheat, often supplemented or replaced rice in traditional dishes, and the fish selection was much slimmer and found its way into traditional Japanese recipes to include mana beer, mana-sake, and mana noodles, though supplementing mana for soy in soy-sauce was made strictly illegal.