How Portugal Could've Been The Greatest and Richest Superpower

 Portugal during it's prime was a pretty big empire, it controlled all of modern day Brazil, but what was most interesting is that it had so many trading posts and this made the country rich. However Portugal, if it had been more assertive it would've been a superpower and would rival the British Empire at it's height. Portugal had a long desire to push into Africa and it failed, but what if it did?
 Morocco was a rival of Portugal and always fought each other over the city of Tangiers, so let's say Portugal defeats Morocco, this would give the Portuguese a major victory and would instill imperialism inside the country, and then they would colonize Africa and the Americas.

  That is one way they could've became a great power, but there was a slim chance it actually could've in our world. During it's height Portugal did have lots of trading post and did make an empire out of itself, however it always second guessed itself and this led to it not gaining any land (except for the lands given to it via Great Britain in the 1900's. Portugal wanted to push deeper into Africa as it had small colonies along the coast, little did they know, there was gold and if they had pushed into Africa, they would have dominated any opponent that stood in their way, there was gold and diamonds and it would've boosted Portugal's economy. Had Portugal Followed that Route, Portugal would be more of a superpower because of the lands it had gained in Africa, the Middle East and India and this would make Portugal a more extensive empire, one that would be feared. No one knows for certain what Portugal would've grown to become, sadly that is the curiosity of alternate history and will forever be.

The Roman Empire

  The Roman Empire, a name that will forever be carved in European History, from the lands of Lothian, United Kingdom to Baghdad of Iraq. Perhaps the most advanced empire for its time, steel armor, the gladius sword, and the shield and this empire expanded fast throughout it time as a nation. At first it was a small city and then defeated the empire of Carthage and this set up the Roman Empire to becoming what it was in our history.

  The Roman Empire after defeating Carthage in the Punic Wars, the young empire started expanding in modern day Spain, defeating all the barbarians in that area and then asserted into Europe even more, eventually taking Spain and spreading into Greece. The Roman Empire soon declared war on the Gauls and they managed to put up quite a fight against the Romans. However, the Romans still managed to beat them and now all of Modern day France was now a part of the empire. In the Balkans the Romans still expanded and was around a few hundred miles from what is now called Istanbul. The Romans eventually took Constantinople from the Greek city-states and now pushed into Asia, as far back as modern day Kuwait. They lost some land to the Parthians and got pushed back. Meanwhile in Egypt the Romans had all of Northern Africa, dealing with Cleopatra and her Egyptian nation. The Romans had a connected empire and still the giant was still desiring land and went up as far as modern day Crimea and the city of Azov. The Romans also expanded in modern day England and tried to push upwards into Scotland but were pushed back and eventually the Hadrian Wall was built to protect the lands the Romans already had on the isles. The empire was soon split up and the western part of the empire collapsed due to barbarians and now only the Byzantine empire was left and would last til 1453. The Roman Empire technically lasted from 453 b.c. to 1453 A.D from a date of its prime to experiencing the age of colonization.

Will China become a Republic Once More?

China today is a communist nation, where the central government has all the power. However, China has an economic system that seems to represent a democracy. However it will be it's own type of democracy, more unique compared to the USA. However a republic wouldn't suit China as of today because there is so many poor areas that need to be improved and it harms the economy of China.

  China's economic system isn't exactly like the United States, it is still monitored majorly by the government, but people are having some to little involvement in the economy. However people are having more of a say within the economy and it is making have a more capitalist structure and this is one of the major components for a democracy to form. In the Chinese Constitution it talks about democracy twice, stating how its goal is to form or develop a socialist democracy, no one knows how long this will take but it's one of their goals as a nation. This could take around 30 to 50 years as people are having more of a say, but due to poor areas and regions within the country it makes it harder to become or have a democratic government. Democracy has never been a fundamental part within Chinese history, there have only been celestial monarchy's to totalitarian regimes to a Communist regime, all of these have 1 ultimate ruler. No one will ever know when China will become a democracy, but when it does it could only make the sleeping giant even deadlier.

The Japanese Empire

  The Japanese empire is quite notorious during World War II, and was put down by the Allies and the United States. The Japanese empire bombed the territory of Hawaii, in a area called Pear Harbor and this woke up the "Sleeping Giant" and by September 2, 1945, thus ending the Japanese Empire.
  The Japanese Empire was the first modern Asian nation and it used that advantage to grow its empire. During this time Japan only controlled the lands it controls today. Japan wanted to gain Korea from the Qing Dynasty and at this point it was beginning to crumble, so Japan wanted to capitalize off of that weakness. So the countries fought each other and the Japanese had guns and the Qing Dynasty had some, but not enough so they were vastly outnumbered in the new technological weaponry. Japan won the war against the Qing Dynasty and gained all of Korea and Taiwan in the process. Japan was now a great power in the world, but in Asia alone was the only superpower (Not including Russia as an Asian nation). In 1905 hostilities began to ensue between the Russian Empire and Japan. Japan declared war on Russia, many thought that the Russians would win, but surprisingly the Japanese fought them back. Russia surrendered soon after, Russia lost a part of the Island of Sakhalin and in the process lost legitimacy among the people. The year is 1914 and World War I has broke out and chaos was ensuing in Europe, before 1905 Japan and the British Empire had signed for an alliance, due to the alliance system, Japan asked Great Britain if they wanted help could they join, the British agreed and the Japanese got prepared for war and helped the British on numerous occasions, especially in the Arabian Sea and near Indonesia. WW1 ended and Japan gained small islands that further extended its lands, dozens of small islands were handed to the Japanese, but this would prove dangerous for the United States during World War II. In 1933 the Second Sino-Japanese War had begun and this time Japan moved deeper into China, making puppets out of Manchuko and Mengkukuo, as during this time China had broken apart and there was doubt about the future of China as a country. Japan moved in, to signify its role in the world but this time, China had the same technology. Japan stilled moved deeper and deeper into China and was gaining a surplus amount of land. The U.S stopped trading with Japan and Japan needed America for it's oil, America also froze all Japanese assets, which what's interesting to me is that doing that action is considered breaking an international law. Japan's army halted, still pushing but not at a rate they used to. The year is 1941 and Europe is in flames because of World War II and Japan committed an act "that would live in infamy". This action would cause the end of the Japanese empire and is the largest Maritime Asian Empire in history, but in the present day it pushes for peace above all.

For Honor: The Shugoki (Lore) and What I Love About Him

The Shugoki is a fearsome samurai, big in size and wields a weapon no other man can wield. The weapon is difficult for him to even pick up, but that doesn't mean he can't use it effectively. when faced with a enemy the Shugoki swings his weapon, with such ferocity that the enemy can't block his attack and has been known to charge at someone and break their spine. It shows how powerful he is and he does this all because he wants to preserve peace.

Shugoki should be feared on the battlefield with good reason, everyone should be aware that he will not back down until he draws his last breath.
 I personally think Shugoki is amazing when you play as him, but you have to play smart. One fatal mistake, such as missing a charge and the enemy can win, but that doesn't mean you can't use it, you just have to be aware of the area around you. You have to use architecture and walls to your advantage, shove an enemy into the wall and charge and watch the magic happen. Always be passive-aggressive, be passive and wait for the enemy to make a mistake and parry their attack then assert your aggressiveness. This will show the opponent that you are meant to be feared on the battle field, patience is the victor, as you can capitalize off your opponents mistake and can make them second guess themselves, and that is when you can play mind games with your opponent. If played in the right hands, Shugoki is capable of almost anything. Slow in speed, but punishes those who think they can outsmart him.

For Honor: The Lawbringer (Lore) and What I love about him

The Lawbringer, the very name gives a sense of justice and righteousness and for good reason. The Lawbringer is a man who is feared on the battlefield, always patient waiting for the enemy to strike first, they will parry the attacker and show ruthless aggression afterwards. They wait for the enemy to make a mistake first then they move in. Their weapon: A poleaxe, a weapon that would make most men run in the opposite direction but for the few that decide to fight him only fall on the field of battle. His armor is unique in comparison to his fellow knights, a special design for his order and the steel he wears is nearly impenetrable.

 I main a Lawbringer, he is iconic to me. he is the ultimate patience test. In order the play him you need to have patience, everyone strikes attempting to win the match, but when your enemy always focuses on winning they often make the simplest mistake, and this is where Lawbringer thrives. You can parry the enemy's attack and deal a lot of damage to your opponent and this will have the opponent second guessing themselves and then you can be assertive and continue to pressure them. Most of time this works and I have beaten many foes that I have came across, It got so intense that everyone would run away from me because I understand what it takes to play that character. As I always say "Patience is the ultimate key to beating a foe", and interestingly enough, I did that with all characters and it worked for me.

My Problem with Some Politicians in the Modern Day.

  I've always wanted to be a political scientist, the job interests me so much, however I have a problem with politicians. There is only two problems I have with them and those are, being all talk but no action and the base everything on the future. At some point in life you will have an opinion on a certain subject and it's your purpose to defend your opinion. Most politicians always have a big mouth and want to share what they want for the country and its people and they desire to make it better for everyone. When they win presidency or get a seat in Senate, they don't stick to what they said before and end up doing more harm than good. Why say you're going to make this country better but in the end, you only did it for the votes. However, this is not my main problem.
  My main problem with  most politicians are the fact that they base literally everything on the future. I can understand that we need to be more advanced than the enemy but that's not my point. My point is that they focus to much on the future that they neglect to reflect on history and understand its importance, it's not there just to remind us of what happened. It's there to teach us a lesson or human desire and the effects of war. No one wants war and I am a firm believer in that however, history is always made when a country defends their homeland. I will always try to be different, I want to remove the barrier between politicians and the citizens, and that's starting to become a problem to me as well.
  Speeches of the past were more emotional, it felt like that person took their time and dedication to pour out their feelings into that speech. Today, all the speeches are wrote out on paper and they presenter speaks in a monotone voice and it seems like he doesn't want to be there. the people there don't learn and aren't being informed of things currently going on, etc. I want to be emotional and show the people that I care for them, that they have a purpose in this world, rich or poor. I want to instill pride into the people and give them a reason to be politically involved in everything. However, that is a long way away and I don't know when that day will come, but for now we wait.

The Russian Empire

  The Russian Empire is quite notorious for its size and was one of if not the strongest nation in the world for a century. Ivan the IV changed the Duchy of Muscovy into what is now Russia. Under Ivan's leadership Russia expanded southward near the Caucasus and the Black Sea. Russia was not really seen as a great power until Catherine the Great took over, seeing as "Great" is in her name, you can imagine she did great things for Russia and she did. She expanded Russia deeper into Europe after the Napoleonic Wars. You could say Russia loved land, as they finished the exploration of Siberia some time after the Napoleonic wars. Russia during this time was a leading global power and was feared by Europe. This eventually lead to the Crimean War. This war was The British, French, and Ottoman empires against Russia, the most intimidating part about this war was that Russia still pushed back the invaders and the invaders saw little success. Until the British Empire was officially involved in the war and soon Russia was slowly pushed back from the Crimean area. Russia lost this war and it didn't put the empire in a crumbling state, but those 3 empires only halted its expansion. Russia began to expand more into Asia and bordered modern day Iran and Afghanistan. The year was 1914 and tensions arose between the European powers and everyone was at each others throats.
 Then on July 28th 1914, The Great War had begun and Russia had the 4th strongest economy at this time, but was having problems internally. Russia was being pushed back by the Germans and everyone thought Russia would be able to handle the new empire. Russia fell into civil war and signed peace with the Central Powers. The Communist party eventually won the civil war and was now in a new era. A Soviet era.