The Crisis of the 16th Century had been caused, or had caused, a large rebellion in the east of Ewo-Ife, where a state under the guidance of Wúgi had formed. It had caused a sectarian revolt in a few border counties in the north east, a not Wúgist but Kayaist. Most Shockingly, it had caused a league of cities to turn their backs on the rule of the military nobility and to openly claim their independence from the Alááshu.

The rebellion in Ewo-Ife was one of the peasants, caused by the usual grievances but worsened through repressive religious policies and converting the local population. Instead of turning to Kaya, Ewo-Ife had converted to Wúgisha after the faith of the old gods had been firmly rooted out through a bloody invasion, and although Wúgi and Kaya could tolerate eachother just fine, the religious difference was a source of unrest. The rebellion was led by wúgázu and they split themselves from the Agawúgáná, leader of Wúgisha, because the Agawúgáná refused to be openly disloyal to the Alááfin.

Instead of throughout all of Ewo-Ife, the rebels only got the east, in part because of the Agawúgáná's opposition. As a result, the wúgázu were unable to maintain their control over the rebellion and the peasants placed their faith in local nobles, who claimed kingship and seceded from the Alááshu. The first oba managed to stave off much of the transition that the rest of Tozàn was going through, but instead of the imperial system he had to adapt to a more tribal form of government, given the small size of his realm.

The sectarian rebellion in the northeast also constituted a split from the faith. Although Kayasha radicalised and became more fundamentalist altogether, the "Sect of Ùsizàki" advocated mandatory meditation for everyone, forbidding men to talk in public unless asked to and forbidding men from bearing arms. It became perhaps the first instance of women repressing men on such a scale.

In the southwest, the secession was everything but religious in nature. The League of Onkùyò referred to a confederacy of coastal cities west of Olòyà, which was firmly in the hands of an ofòkù (duchess). The main cities of this league were Onkùyò, where the confederacy was made, Tawònì, Akà and Takòàne. While still ruled by noblemen, these were merchant families unwilling to submit to the militaristic and hierarchical transition taking place in the rest of Tozàn. They had, in the crisis' times of chaos and fallen central authority, the monopoly over Tozàn silk trade and access to the most important routes for gold and ivory.

The League of Onkùyò did not need soldiers, they simply hired mercenaries, such as the hardened Gbéné from the west, veterans from their fight against Ataràmè. Money bought better men than the repression and mandatory services the military nobility could muster, and without an Alááfin's sort of army, the likes of which could subjugate entire kingdoms, there was no one to oppose the League's secession.

In the League's cities, life continued on as normal for many people. The cities governed themselves and not through following kings, dukes, counts or barons, but through the old concept of oligarchy. The old bureaucracy of the Alááshu was kept intact at the local level, but all its decisions were made in a council-like fashion involving the important merchant families. In practise, their influence had been significant even under the Alááshu, so the common artisan would not notice a lot of change in their day to day life. Labourers and peasants would not notice any change at all.

Takòàne was an outlier among these outliers, though, as a slave rebellion had struck the city early on in the crisis. The commoners had to be enlisted to fight off the slave army outside the gates, but after a succesful battle they demanded their say in the city's politics. It was decided that every adult woman who paid taxes would be allowed to attend council meetings. Soon those meetings had to be held on a public square and Takòàne developed a rudimentary republic as it was decided to instead elect representatives to go to the council meetings instead. This was, as far as novelties went, the craziest thing to come out of the crisis.

Abandoning the following provinces