Zompist Bboard Again

So here goes:

(1) How come, afaik, none of the Skourene city-states during the time of the Tžuro invasion ever tried to side with the Tžuro against one or more of the other Skourene polities?

(2) I can see how Sokandeli was always hemmed in by more powerful ṭrota for its entire history, but how come it was never able to take advantage of any historical moment when all of its neighbors happened to be weak to become independent? Did Sokandeli have its own smapali or other elements of autonomy during its history?

Bumping because I really want to see this answered

1. Well, when cities were conquered they did become part of the Tej, and contributed to the war effort. And some cities surrendered rather than be liquidated.

But I think you're more interested in why cities in the Littoral didn't ally with the Tej. Mostly, because the logistics were terrible. The Tej had no navy, so it had no way to materially assist any southern allies. Nor could it send an army by land when the areas in between had not yet been occupied.

They themselves would have said that no Skourene would bend the knee, etc etc; but a little more cynically, the whole Skourene strength and weakness was their identification with cities above all. The mere idea of a defense league was difficult to accept, even in the face of growing empires elsewhere.

The one way the Tžuro might have affected things is with money. It seems likely that the incredible disharmony of the Skourenes was increased by quiet disbursals of cash. But it's hard to prove now.

2. Sokandeli was small and not really in an effective position to maintain its own independence. It was ruled directly by Miligenḍi, and one of the things that reconciled it to its conquest by Paplopagimi was the chance to have its own smapali.