Great Alliances' War

The Great Alliances' War, Altirusian Imperial War, the Continental War, or the Alliances' Conflict, was a period of geopolitical tension and a series of related armed conflicts waged between the continental powers of the League of Sovereigns and the Lusivakian Commonwealth, consisting mainly of Bressia, The Chergarian Empire, Elandris, and Akrovia, during the Westenlands Wars. Though the war consisted primarily of naval actions in the Aldesic Ocean, the Kartasian Sea and the White Sea, land actions were also seen on small islands and in coastal regions during the naval campaigns, and to a limited extent in continental Altirus. It is argued by some that the Great Alliances' War was the overarching conflict of the Westenlands Wars, and those conflicts fought in the Westenlands should be considered as part of the Great Alliances' War.

The scale and impact of the Great Alliances' War in continental Altirus was mitigated by the Treaty of Pansk, as well as geographical and logistical limitations, although the major powers would see increased involvement in various proxy wars in the Westenlands as the conflict went on.

The end of the Great Alliances' War in 545, with the signing of the Pan-Altirusian Armistice and the Partitioning of the Westenlands, was also marked as the end of the Westenlands Wars, although a number of civil conflicts would persist over the following decades.

Misnomer
The term "Great Alliances' War" first came about during the Syrvanian Incursion of Autumn 523, which was followed shortly by confrontations between the alliances elsewhere. It was believed that these confrontations would precede a land war of a massive scale, waged across Altirus by the continental powers and their Westenlands allies, possibly extending outside of Altirus and resulting in a world war. While this outcome was mostly precluded by the Treaty of Pansk, many expected that the land war would escalate further between the alliances. However, apart from a small number of major actions in continental Altirus, and the ongoing war at sea, it would remain a series of mostly disconnected, often asymmetrical actions, rarely exceeding the scale of the earlier war in Syrvania.

Due to the prevalent usage of the term during the Westenlands Wars, it sees continued usage to refer to the overarching conflict between the alliances during that time, despite never escalating to the scale the name may have implied. Many modern historians argue for the adoption of a less grandiose term, such as the Alliances' Conflict.