[ooc]late update, and shorter than I intended. I had run into some computer issues, now resolved (basically I shouldn't play this as well as do video editing in the background)[/ooc]
The year begins with war, well February begins with it anyway, using a pair of Mobile Infantry battalions on loan from New Canada to augment her forces, the NZDL moves troops into California to smash the grip of the warlords and seize it for her own. The hastily formed "Yahoo Coalition" put up a stiff fight, inflicting heavy damage to several of the attacking battalions, and a hidden ICBM silo opened fire on the NZDL home cities, killing over 6 million in the process, however it became clear that they had shot their bolt, and within 3 months resistance had collapsed, the leaders were put to death for crimes against humanity and the people of the area welcomed NZDL troops with open arms, judging them much less likely to enslave or randomly murder them, and for the most part they were proven correct.
The missiles raised the background radiation of the world very slightly, and the bombardment caused unrest in the citizens of the world, who feared a return to the all out war of the Invasion, however cooler heads prevailed and within months the radiation had declined once again.
As for the remaining factions, trade alliances were sworn in, and the world welcomed two new empires to the Trans-Newtonian era: Shadowveil, which occupies much of the territory previously controlled by Russia, and for a short while took over Inuks embassy at Chicxlub until the latter faction remembered they technically owned it, and the New Dutch Republic, composed of a loosely associated group of cities, islands, and merchants from around the world. They immediately join in the various discussions, the NDR forming their own alliance, and Shadowveil being generally strange at everybody.
Several ships were launched by multiple factions in an effort to begin exploitation of the ruins on Mars, though as yet no troop transports or Engineer Battalions are available. In the last part of November, Japan laid down a behemoth freighter weighing over 30000 tons, though its construction will take nearly 2 years.