The Confederated Bastions are a coalition of city-states located within the Great Dividing Range, built atop the ruins of Do-Kharak, the ancient Dow empire. Formed out of necessity, mutual defence, and shared heritage, the Confederation stands as a force of stability in an otherwise lawless and violent region. It is, however, inhabited mostly by the Montagnards, who much like others do to them elsewhere in the continent, see outsiders with great mistrust. Politically, it is a loose alliance of independent city-states built across the mountains that make up the southern Great Dividing Range, known as Bastions, each ruled by its own Assembly of Elders. While laws and governance vary, most Bastions operate under a syndicalist system, where powerful guilds of miners, engineers, and craftsmen hold immense sway over policy. The High Council of Bastions, meeting in the great fortress-city of Karraz-Vyrr, acts as a mediator and organiser for collective military efforts, trade policies, and disputes between the city-states. However, individual Bastions retain significant autonomy, and rivalries between them are common. Officially the polity itself was founded in 1858 as a union between the first two Montagnard proto-Bastions.
Mining is the lifeblood of the Confederated Bastions. Rich veins of iron, coal, copper, uranium, silver and gold run through the mountains, making Montagnard industry a critical supplier for Oceanykan markets. While historically reliant on raw material exports, the Bastions have increasingly shifted toward heavy industry. Montagnard steel, machinery, and small arms are renowned for their robust construction, durability, and craftsmanship. Though some within the Confederation advocate full industrialisation, others argue for a return to traditional artisanal production, causing ideological fractures. They are, after all, a very traditional people, often perceived as obtuse or thick-headed despite their mechanically innovative mindset.
While unable to field a true centralised army due to their small population and political autonomy, the Bastions are some of the most heavily fortified locations in all of Oceanyka. Originally built as Dow strongholds, many cities extend deep into the mountains, featuring tunnel networks, concealed redoubts, and layered defences that make sieges virtually impossible. Bandits and raiders usually steer way clear of the Bastions' great stone gates. The Montagnard militia ensures every able-bodied citizen is trained in combat, while a professional Granite Guard serves as the Confederation’s small, but elite standing force. Their preferred weapons—notably shotguns and mechas—reflect their engineering prowess and preference for heavy, close-range firepower.
Despite their wealth and military strength, the Confederated Bastions face a few important threats. The first is that the polity's member city-states often quarrel amongst each other, and while currently unimportant, the Montagnards are known to hold grudges for a very long time. Were they to accumulate, the polity itself could implode into civil war. Another is the encroachment of modernity, particularly the Oceanykan People's Party, which has its eyes on the Bastions' mineral wealth, and may seek to infiltrate them to annex their industrial potential as the Oceanykan Federation's. Finally, an existential question arises: where are the Dow?. It is known that they fought the Zermans in a great war for the latter's liberty, but it is also known that it was a different calamity which put an end to them. If whatever it is that took down Do-Kharak still lurks in the Underdown, it could rise once more from beneath.