Ionace (aka the Isle of the NACE, formerly Monster Island)

Location: Sea of Dawn, where western Alphatia used to be.

Capital: Denwarf-Hurgon (population 2,000, including the 6th Army of Seashield and Imperial and Embassies administrative staff) until new buldings are constructed in the capital of Ionace (that is adjacent to old Denwarf-Hurgon).

Area: 128,199 sq. mi., plus many small islands that were once part of Alphatia (including Nuntar Island, the Vertiloch Islands, the Aasla Isles, the Grey islands, Mount Thera, Eagret Island, Arogansa Island, Eadrin Island).

Population: 3,000, and many monsters.

Language: Alphatian.

Coinage: Alphatian Standard.

Taxes: The Council imposes the standard income tax of 15% on everyone of servant status or higher and an import tax of 1% (this tax only concerns goods coming from outside the Confederation and does not concern goods from Karameikos due to a trade agreement between that nation and the Confederation).

Government type: Center of the New Alphatian Confederate Empire since Nuwmont 23, AC 1013 (though government is not transfered until Klarmont 19, AC 1013, and the isle and the city are not renamed until Vatermont 15, AC 1014.)

Industries, Description, Notable Sites, History, Flora and Fauna: See the PWAs.

Description update: Ionace is under the direct jurisdiction of the Council, but doesn't count as a full member of the confederation. In practice, the town of Sanctuary rules itself, the old city of Denwarf-Hurgon and its recent expansions are inhabited only by Representants or Ambassadors and other such bureaucrats, and the rest is mostly monster-infested wilderness.
Inhabitants of Ionace are of many different nationalities, but some have a special status, being considered full time residents of this land. This mostly applies to the bureaucrats working for the Council, and to the Commander in Chief of the NACE. In fact, those people have to abandon their former nationality in order to work for the confederate government-but this isn't the case for Representants and Ambassadors of course. This is what Broderick did upon accepting his new position-along with abandoning leadership of Aquas's armies.
The creation of the position of Commander in Chief also led to readjustments in the structure of the different armies of the confederate countries, in order to rationalize it. The title of Commander is now reserved to the Commander in Chief, so that the upper title one can have in a national army is now General. There can be only one General per country, which is the person in charge of its whole army and answers directly to the Commander in Chief. The actual divisions are commanded by Colonels-or Adjutants for Navies or Skynavies-, with a Captain at the head of each regiment, composed of lesser officers-lieutenants and sergeants-and soldiers or sailors or marines.
A rare mineral can be found in the mines of Ionace. It is called mnemonic minerals, and has the unusual capability of temporary enhancing one's spellcasting abilities, but has detrimental side effects when used for too long. Wizards commissioned by the Council try to find a work-around for this side-effects. As long as their research is not fruitful, all mined mnemonic minerals are bought by the Council from the miners and stocked.

Important Figures: Broderick (Commander in Chief).

Updates for the years 1013 and 1014 AC: Shortly after the New Alphatian Confederate Empire was formed, it became obvious to the Council that they needed some place to use as a center for the new government. Aquas was too much of a reminder of Zandor's chaotic rule, and was also only one of the kingdoms of the Confederation.
Monster Island rapidly reached consensus, having numerous positive points: It was on an unclaimed land, and was symbolic enough of the return of the Alphatian Empire as it stand on former mainland Alphatia. Moreover, there were plenty of ready-to-use buildings inherited from the dwarves of Denwarf-Hurgon, and the isle was well-supplied thanks to the presence of the new city of Sanctuary and its merchants and adventurers.
Thus the new government was installed in temporary buildings in Denwarf-Hurgon, until the new Parliament was completed in Klarmont 19, AC 1013. Most Representations and Embassies are still assigned temporary buildings, however, as are many other bureaucratic branches of the government. The new buildings have been especially made to resist earthquakes, which are rather frequent in the New Alphatian Sea, and the dwarf-build constructions also resist them; this not the case of most of the hastily-build ones of Sanctuary, however, as a unusually powerful earthquake demonstrated in Fyrmont of 1013.
Ionace also held the first Super-Hard-Ball in Flaurmont of 1014. The event attracted many spectators, including very important ones, and was the occasion to prove that the nations of the former Alphatian Empire had still much in common. Broderick recalled some troops from the ongoing assault on Verdan in order to prevent monster incursions from occurring during that period-devoured VIPs wouldn't have been any good for the NACE. The event was both a social-giving some sense of unity to the population-and a political success-showing the unity of the Confederation and its alliances-, as well as a good sporting event.

See Also: DotE, PWAs (esp. PWA3 for latest information), nace, nace1314.