Greece

The legacy of Greece’s ancient civilization—and gods—is felt throughout present-day Earth-Prime. The ancient world was a time when the gods more freely interfered in mortal affairs, and both monsters and mortal (or semidivine) heroes of their making existed.
Modern Greece is quite some distance from its mythic past, however. While the ancient sites and monuments are preserved as much as possible, Greece struggles with the challenges of the present, with a depressed economy and substantial national debt creating civil and public unrest.
Although it has millennia of history, the modern Greek state formed in 1830 following a war of independence from the Ottoman Empire. Greece experienced a number of upheavals, including monarchies imposed by the great powers of Europe, before becoming the modern Hellenic Republic. Centuries of rule by the Ottoman Empire followed by independence and a later Greek-Turkish war has led to unease between Greece and Turkey, manifested in the ongoing dispute over Cyprus.
Modern Greece has the largest portion of the world’s total merchant fleet (some 16%) and shipping is a major industry. Wealthy Greek business magnate Constantine Urallos, owner of Delphic Inustries, got his start in shipping, and still controls a substantial fleet.
In recent years, the Greek government has been investing in education and technological development, although both are now suffering from the economic crisis along with the rest of the nation.
MOUNT OLYMPUS The tallest mountain in Greece has long been associated with its pantheon of gods, its mist-shrouded peak said to be their home. Indeed, “pantheon” literally means “home or temple of all of the gods.” In truth, although the Greek gods did walk the slopes of Olympus, their true home exists on an other-dimensional plane, most easily accessible near Mytikas, the highest peak of Mt. Olympus. In the Golden Age of Ancient Greece, the portal between Mytikas and the true Olympus opened freely, but the formation of the Pact between the Master Mage Simon Magus and the magical, otherworldly powers, restricted the gods’ travels to the mortal sphere.
Zeus still reigns as king of the gods, his wife Hera at his side. Of the Olympians, the ones who now most often interact with mortals are Hermes and Hades. Hermes, messenger and herald of the gods, carries Zeus’ decrees to those mortals still willing to listen. A trickster by nature, Hermes sometimes finds ways to slip away from Olympus and have fun in the mortal world. He has, for example, challenged superhuman speedsters to land races in the past, or set himself up with the life of a mortal celebrity in order to enjoy all of the pleasures the human world has to offer.
On the other hand, Hades, the dark lord of Tartarus, simmers with resentment towards the restrictions placed upon him, first by his younger brother Zeus, and later by the Pact and the presumptuous mortals who dare challenge the gods themselves. Hades has long sought to overcome the Pact and extend his power over the Earth, thwarted by various heroes, particularly the immortal inventor Daedalus and his Freedom League allies.
Unknown to the other Olympians, Eris, the goddess of discord, also has her hand in mortal affairs, having focused her attention on the chaos and potential discord in Emerald City following the Silver Storm.
CRETE One of the largest of the Greek Islands, the isle of Crete was once center of the Minoan civilization. It also sits at the center of the origin of one of Earth-Prime’s most famous heroes, and one of its most sinister villains.
King Minos, who gave his name to the civilization he ruled, became a patron of the inventor Daedalus, employing him to create an inescapable labyrinth to imprison the Minotaur, the monstrous offspring of Minos’ wife, sent as a curse by the gods for their displeasure with Minos’ disrespect. King Minos then imprisoned Daedalus and his son Icarus to keep them from telling the secrets of the labyrinth to anyone. Daedalus crafted wings that allowed them to escape, but Icarus failed to heed his father’s warnings and fell into the sea and drowned.
The Greek hero Theseus later ventured into the labyrinth and slew the Minotaur, but the creature was raised from death by Hades, god of the underworld, to serve as his instrument in the mortal world under the name Taurus.
Both Daedalus and Taurus have taken steps over the centuries to conceal information about the ancient Minoan civilization of their time in order to keep it from becoming too widely known. The Labyrinth, in particular, maintains a close watch on the isle of Crete and any historical or archaeological projects going on there.

Type

Geopolitical, Country