Lords of the Earth

Campaign Nineteen

Turn 46

Anno Domini 1126 - 1130

Turn 47 Orders Due By      Friday, September 24th, 2004.  Orders will not be accepted after Midnight MST on Saturday, September 25th.  Please don’t ask for an extension.  Then I’ll just have to say “no” again.

A

nnouncements

Hello again, since LORDS 2 is either being put on ice or given to another ref, I will resume monthly processing on this game.

Contacting & Paying the Referee

I will no longer be taking money directly for turns.  Instead, players sending funds by mail should make all checks payable to Thomas Harlan and send them either to the 2nd Street address or to Thomas’ address, which is:

Thomas Harlan

3210 E. 23rd Street

Tucson, AZ 85713-2261

Below are my Email and Regular mail addresses:

4858 East 2nd Street

Tucson, AZ 85711

Email: ancaric@throneworld.com

Payment: When paying via Paypal, please send all funds to this account:

lords19pmts@throneworld.com

        Please do NOT send payments to my Paypal account, use the one listed above.

Zero and Negative Credit: Consequences

Players at zero or negative credit at the time of deadline or determined to have a negative balance at the conclusion of processing will not have their orders processed, plain and simple.  So get your orders and payment in before processing starts or life will become very unfair very quickly.  Finally, players with a negative balance are liable to get their country reassigned without notice.  You have been warned.

 

Rules Stuff

        As mentioned above, I’m going to try to keep alterations to the rules to a minimum (a double “yeah, sure” regarding my chances).  Here are some things to keep in mind:

Hands Off Trade and the IMA action (clarification): here’s what you can and can’t do regarding moving MSps around.

ú        Inter-nation Trade Fleet: May be freely initiated, starting MSPs determined by computer.  To add or move MSPs requires an IMA action.

ú        Internal Trade/Fishing Fleets: May be freely initiated, starting MSPs are added by the player.  Additional new MSPs may be added to an existing fleet.  To move MSPs between existing fleets requires an IMA action.

Moving a fleet to a new port requires an IMA action, regardless of type.

        HBZ and Transports: please note that transports are mobile units for purposes of building within the HBZ, so if you want to build them in a port outside HBZ you’re out of luck most of the time.

        Allied Leaders Revisited: the following are changes to the rules concerning allied leaders.  Any troops attached to an allied leader may not be detached for any purpose.  They stay with the allied leader at all times.  Allied leader units may not be demobilized, although they will go away if the player decides to reduce the control level of the allied region or if the allied leader dies and is not replaced.  Players may build or assign additional units to the allied army but such units become part of the allied army and may not be taken back.

        Female Leaders: while I don’t want to disallow them totally, the Dark Ages were a pretty male dominated time.  Consequently, a female Royalty member may only become Queen, Empress, Regent or Heir if they have a Charisma of AT LEAST 10.   A Princess will only become an active leader if her Charisma is at least 8 (eight) or greater.  Any Charisma statute less than this will result in no generation (although you can still marry them off).  Any existing Female Rulers, Heirs, Princesses may remain.   The only exception to this is if the sole available heir is a princess, in which case she becomes ruler regardless of Charisma (and the subsequent DF check gets an big bad negative modifier as the local nobility resents the presence of a female giving orders and intruding on their bailiwick).

        Demobilizing Units: some of you are trying to demob units and rebuild them elsewhere on the same turn.  This is a no-no, as rule 5.4.6 indicates.  However, unlike the rules, I will allow demobilized units to be rebuilt elsewhere on the turn following their demobilization or later.  The NFP simply go into your saved NFP slot.

        The Homeland Income Multiple: has decreased to one.

        Gold, NFP and Agro transfers: beginning immediately (well okay, next turn [41]), any inter-player transfers will only become available to the recipients the turn after they are sent.  So if someone sent you stuff on turn 41, you have to wait until turn 42 before you can use it.  Gold and NFP will be placed in their respective saved sections.  Agro will be placed in the reserves.  Note: players sending agro must spend gold to preserve it in transit.  Keep this in mind when deciding how much to charge for your surpluses.

        Entrophy, or Viagra hasn’t been invented yet: any male Royal personages attempting to begat kiddies after the age of 50 has a severely reduced chance of siring any new bundles of joy.  Just so you know.

        AP reminder:  please remember that it is the slowest unit of a given force that determines which unit modifiers apply to determining APs/year.  So if your army of light, elite cavalry includes even one heavy infantry unit, the footsloggers are slowing everyone down.  Also if a leader has a combat rating of four or less, he has a –1 AP per year modifier regardless of what he’s doing.  ADDITION & WARNING!!! Players who insist on not keeping track of AP expenditure in their orders run an excellent chance that their leaders will do nothing the entire turn, so grit your teeth and do the math!

        Shooting oneself in the foot:  Just so you all know, if your king continues to produces heirs after he has an established heir in place (i.e. one who has generated stats, it always goes to the eldest male by the way.) the possibility of something bad happening upon the death of the monarch is increased.

        INTEL STUFF: When performing Infiltration and Counter Infiltration Intel Operations, it is always best to specify which sector of your nation you are trying to protect or subvert.  The sectors are listed in rule 8.3.11 in the basic rulebook but I will repeat them here:  Espionage Service, Government, Royal Family, Military, Populace, University and Religion.  Players who order an op against an unspecified target will have a SEVERELY reduced chance of success.

        WARNING: According to the upcoming revised (yet again) Rulebook, several Government, Societal and Economic changes will be dependent on a nation’s Tech Level.  If you have a government, economic or society belonging to one of these types, you will be compensated for the gps and or nfp spent.  I strongly urge people to stop investing in these projects until more information becomes available.

        A QUESTION OF TIMING: Certain builds take an entire turn to perform (although for clerical reasons are usually done at the same time as the rest of the builds).  These are:

ú        City Construction (both new and additional levels)

ú        All Megalithic Construction Projects

ú        Colonies

What this means is that you may not take advantage of a given build of this type on the turn that it is constructed.  For example: you may not base MSPs or build PWBs at the increased city capacities until the turn after the construction is done.  Similarly, PWBs may not be built in excess of a region’s old terrain type the turn it becomes cultivated or colonized to a higher GPv.  So plan accordingly.

        YARD CAPACITY:  Starting next turn (t93), I will be assessing Yard Capacity costs for all heavy units as well as all ship units.  Below are the appropriate sections from the Modern rules supplement.

        The construction of all ship units as well as all heavy-prefix land units requires the use of (in addition to GP and NFP expenditures) Yard Capacity of the appropriate kind. Each ship or heavy prefix land unit type has a Yard Capacity (YrdC) cost listed below.  This is the Yard Capacity cost when constructing the unit.  For most types of nations Yard Capacity can only be used at a Friendly City within your Homeland Build Zone.   Each point of Yard Capacity provides one Yard Capacity point per turn.  YrdC may not be saved from turn to turn.  While Pre-Modern nations (nomads, barbarians, civilized, renaissance, etc.) cannot build the dedicated Yards that are prevalent in the Modern Era; pre-modern cities and trade centers have an intrinsic Yard capacity for the production of ship and heavy land units.

Intrinsic Yard Capacities

        Cities, Trade Centers and Port Cities have “generic” Yard Capacities, as noted in the following table.

Table 3‑9. Intrinsic Yard Capacity

Source

Capacity

Notes

Trade Center

5

Usable only by Nomads or Barbarians for the construction of Heavy units (including ships, if in a coastal region).

City

GPv × 5

Usable for the construction of Heavy land units.

Port City

GPv × 5

Usable for the construction of ships and heavy land units.

        Note: Port City capacity is not separated for ground unit and ship unit construction. There is only one Capacity, reflecting the specialization of port cities for ship construction.

Yard Capacities on the Stat Sheet

        The city-based Intrinsic Yard capacity is listed on your stat sheet as part of the City description, between the city PWB and the City Type like so:

Avalon [3+30i15p4]

        This city has a GPv of 3, 30 public works an intrinsic Yard capacity of 15, is a port city and has 4 wall points.

Increasing Intrinsic Industry

        The only way that intrinsic Yard Capacity may be increased is through city expansion.  Additional capacity gained through such expansion may not be used on the same turn that the city expansion occurs.

        Important: HBZ and primate construction restrictions are still in force, so just because you have the capacity to build something at a given site, doesn’t mean that you will be able to if the city is out of your HBZ.

Yard Capacity Costs

Unit Type

YrdC Cost

HI

1

HEI

1

HC

1

HEC

1

XT

1p

T

2p

HT

3p

XW

1p

XEW

1p

W

2p

EW

2p

HW

3p

HEW

3p

P = may only be built at a port.

Map Stuff

Some discrepancies between the maps and the Stats program have cropped up:

NEW: Kush is Asiatic Pagan, not Hindic.

As a general rule, in discrepancies of this kind, the stats take precedence over the map.

Japan & the Pacific Rim

The Taira Bakufu

Taira Shun, Daimyo of Kwanto.

Diplomacy    Yamaguchi (nt)

        Shun sent his diplomats among the southern daimyos, attempting to induce them to join the Taira bandwagon.  He had very limited success.  An emissary to the court of the Emperor in Heian was a bit of an embarrassment when the ambassador died in the middle of presenting his credentials to the Keeper of the Imperial Seal.

The Moluccas Seahold

Bandar I, Lord of the Spice Islands

Diplomacy    Kediri (ea)

        Gautamo continued his rather aggressive foreign policy, dispatching General Kamatsu and Prince Bandar to Taiwan and brutally subjecting the natives there.  They returned in 1130 to find the halls of the palace at Buku Salat swimming with blood.  It seems that Gautamo II died in late 1127 and his youngest brother, Prince Lamu, thought it would be just fine if he were King.  Lamu sought to legitimize his rule by slaughtering all of Gautamo’s male offspring and had a fine old time chasing them throughout the halls of the palace and murdering them all. (The palace guards, liberally bribed, either ignored the proceedings, or actively assisted in the purge.). 

        Bandar, an astute fellow, managed to turn this tragedy to his advantage by gaining the support of general Kamatsu and his troops.  They then stormed the palace itself and put Lamu’s severed head on a spear.  The disloyal guards where themselves purged and more blood flowed like water. (which is going to be a bitch to get out of the carpets I tell you!).

        Having dealt effectively with this crisis.  Bandar declared himself king.  His brother Arjuna, hearing of these events upon his return to Palau and under no illusions under what HIS reception would be should he return home, hoisted sail and set out for parts unknown.

The Maree Tribes of Australia

Tuart, Prince of Maree

Diplomacy    None

        Yaraka was settled to a (1/4).  At home everything kinda went to hell with the death of Tuki and generals Caleb and Lachlan (the latter had just been made a prince by Tuki and was trying to start a family when he felt the icy hand of death grip him).  Out of all this, Prince Tuart finally managed to restore some order and take up the reins of kingship; although quite a few apple carts were upset by the whole sorry mess.

The Arikat of Maaori

Kamut III, King of the Southern Islands

Diplomacy    Vanuatu (f), Bora-Bora (t)

        Maaori expansion in the South Seas continued apace.  In the home islands, a veritable glut of city expansion occurred as Pojemi, Wellington, Tatasara, Aoteora, Tiakau and Manukau all increased in size.  At sea, Admiral Murillo began to plumb the mysteries of the Samoa-Hawaii Inter-Island arrows.

China

The Goreyo Kingdom

Syngman On Rhee, Prince of Koguryo

Diplomacy    None

        No orders.  Which was not good!

The Kingdom of Shan’si

Chao Ma Chen, King of Shan’si, Watcher of the Northern Marches

Diplomacy    Yanzhi (f), Hsuing Nu (diplomat skinned alive!)

        Chao Ma Chen attempted to conduct a census but his mind was on other things, namely an invasion of Korea!  Massing over 56,000 troops, Chao and his brother Tai stormed into Bandao and overran it in short order.  Anshan (and the un-walled Inchon) quickly followed suit.  Finally, Caho wrapped up his victorious campaign by marching into Koguryo itself and occupying it and the capital (also un-walled) in short order.  As for the Koreans, Syngman withdrew with his household and small army south into Silla and hoped that the northerners wouldn’t come any further.  His wish was granted...for now.

        To the north, the Hsuing Nu, slaughtered an effete Shan’si diplomat that had been sent among them offering mewling words of alliance.

The Kingdom of the Yangtze

Cao Tse Tung, King of Hupei

Diplomacy  None

        No orders.

The Kingdom of Kwangsi

Chu Shen, Prince of Kwangsi

Diplomacy    Kienchou (-1 to YfC)

        Chu Shen quietly continued to mind his own affairs.  A census was conducted and the city of Fuzhou grew to level two.

Southeast Asia

The Kingdom of Champa

Bao Dai II, King of Champa, Lord of Vijaya

Diplomacy None

        Tiring of the intransigence of the northerners of Guizhou and Korat ordered colonies of loyal Hindic Khemers to settle in the restive regions and so ensure control.  This was done with the backing of thousands of Champan troops (just in case the natives got any ideas).  Thus Bao Dai rules over a truly apartheid society, with Hindu Khemers lording it over a helot class of Buddhist Viet and Chinese.  This situation will doubtless give activists something to do in later centuries.

        In other news, Ta’li increased in size and a royal road was built between Nan Chao and Guizhou.

The Kingdom of Kambuja

Chulalongkorn, Deveraja of the Kambuja

Diplomacy    None

        No orders.

The Kingdom of Ava

Shambramaba III, King of Ava

Diplomacy    None

         No orders.  Shambramaba II died and was replaced by his son and namesake.

India

The Kingdom of Maghada

Kassar, Raja of Bengal

Diplomacy    Kalinga (f), Bhutan (c)

        Kassar’s latest diplomatic endeavors where hampered by the deaths of both diplomats fairly early in the turn.  Despite this, some success was had.  On the domestic front, various construction projects were undertaken with road links between Nadavaria and Kalinga and between Assam and Gtsang.  Two new port cities where also built, Tezu, in Gtsang; and Naupada in Kalinga.

The Kingdom of Chola

Gagan, King of Chola, Lord of Tanjore

Diplomacy    Nasik (f), Seylan (ea), Anhivarta (nt)

        Gagan made lots of neat new friends among the Western Deccans and Tamils.

The Pratihara Empire of Kaunaj

Jayadeva, Emperor of India

Diplomacy    Kashmir (nt, down from fa)

        Sachetan finally died at the end of 1128 at the ripe old age of 93.  His son and successor, Prince Jayadeva succeeded without incident (i.e. the Empire did not sink into a quagmire of violent civil war, much as I’m sure you’d all like it to).

        Things where pretty quiet all things considered.  Edrosia was colonized back up to its old level of 3; the Postal road links between Sukkur and Edrosia were upgraded to Royal road status; and Kaunaj, Somantha and Benares all shot up a level.

Central Asia

The Kingdom of Jungaria

Kilij Arslen, Lord of Karakocho.

Diplomacy    Karluk (ea)

        A new city, Altay was built in Karluk and that was about it.

The Emirate of Samarkhand

Hamid, Emir of Samarkhnad

Diplomacy  Kush (fa), Kuldja (nt), Bokhara (f), Otarsh (ea), Turkman (ea), Dzambul, in Turkman (ea)

        In addition to the usual buckets of diplomacy, Hamid ordered the construction of two Royal road segments: the first between Kara-Khitai and Otarsh; the second between Kara-Khitai and Khwarzim.

The Khazar Khanate

Alp, Kagan of Khazar and Saksiny

Diplomacy    Alan (+1 YfC), Polovotsy (f)

        Kirov was put under cultivation.

The Near East

The Hamadid Emirate

Yusuf Ibn Omar, Emir of Damascus.

Diplomacy    None

         No orders.  Omar expired at the ripe old age of 92.

The Buwayid Emirates

Ibriham ibn Ali, Emir of Emirs, Protector of the Caliph.

Diplomacy    Tabaristan (f), Abadan (ea), Diyala (a)

        Ibriham continued to work his people hard, constructing a whopping three Royal road links; one between Media and Zagros, the second between Abadan and Kuwait; and the last between Fars and Mand.  In addition, Tabaristan was put under cultivation.

The Emirate of Aden

Ali ibn Muktair, Emir of Aden and S’ana.

Diplomacy    Yemen (a)

        In addition to his ongoing diplomatic endeavors, Ali decided to develop his new Kingdom a bit.  To this end, two new ports, Abha in Yemen and Hargeysa, in Djibuti where built.  In addition Berbera was plowed up and cultivated.

Eastern Europe

The Eastern Roman Empire

Constantine Pophryogenitus, Emperor of the Eastern Roman Empire, the Great Reformer

Diplomacy    Dalmatia (no effect), Epirus (no effect)

        Byzantine warships descended on the Gulf of Cyprus, cutting of Egyptian trade.  There wasn’t a lot of it, but the Tunisians were annoyed to lose what they were getting.  The Emperor also pushed vast armies around his great realm, fearing attack from any quarter.  Finally, Heraclea and Alexandretta both increased in size.

The Principality of Muscovy

Igor II, Boyar of Muscovy

Diplomacy    Seversk (a), Courland (ea), Smolensk (+17 to YfC)

        Some diplomacy and not much else.

The High Republic of Hellreiger

Lore III, King of Poland

Diplomacy    None

        No orders.

The Duchy of Estonia

Verityn Viikberg, Duke of Estonia

Diplomacy    Musa (ea)

        Missionary work was continued among the pagans of Petersburg.  Verityn also ordered the construction of a new city, Klaipida, on the shores of Lake Ladoga, in Veposkava.  Riga and Tallinin also increased in size.

Western Europe

The Duchy of Bohemia

Erich Govner I, Duke of Bohemia

Diplomacy    Pomern (t)

        Sebastain Govner died in late 1126 and was succeeded by his son Erich without incident.  The new Duke oversaw the expansion of Munich, Prague and Brunswick in short order.

The Vernonian Empire

Gaius Germanicus II, Emperor of Italy

Diplomacy    None

        The new Emperor scraped up troops and ships from all corners of Italy and prepared to try to salvage the situation in North Africa.  See below for the results.

Le Royaume de France

Phillip Capet, King of the Franks

Diplomacy:   Hainaut (f, following Allied leader death)

        Despite his advancing age, Phillip remained active, ordering the construction of half a Royal Road segment between Languedoc and Catalonia to facilitate trade with the Spanish.  In addition, Lacroix, Rennes and Paris all increased in size.  A port citadel was also built in Lacroix (one was planned for Rennes but as Ponthieu already had a fortress it wasn’t built).

        More interesting (defined as “Ohh, isn’t that interesting!”) was the Comte du Val Funde’s departure from Rennes in 1126 with several cogs, the prelate David and Prince Phillip (not to mention a handful of missionaries) and his attempt to plumb the depths of the Azores Current.  The Comte returned to Bordeaux some four years later, his ships much worse for wear and Prince Phillip’s body moldering in the hold, but apparently successful.

        Also of interest (defined as the Chinese saying “may you live in interesting times.”) was the great mutiny that swept through the King’s army based in Vincennes.  Fully forty percent of the troops under Phillip’s command up and left, grumbling about lousy pay and living conditions.  Several suspicious individuals were seen meeting with several prominent subordinates shortly before the mutiny broke out.

The El Reino De Navarre

Miguel, King of Navarre

Diplomacy    No effect.

        Deciding that he’d best quit while ahead, Migual renounced all claims to his English possessions, except Cornwall and Falmouth.  In other events, Lisbon and Tortosa continue to grow and several new Royal road segments were built:  The first from Navarre to Catalonia; the second from Leon to Portugal and half a link (with the French building the other half between Catalonia and Languedoc.

Northern Europe

The Kingdom of Wessex

Hareth Hamasson, King of the Angles and Saxons

Diplomacy:   Mercia (t)

        Hareth contented himself with opening trade with all he could (Spanish, French, Swedes, etc.) and making nice among his immediate neighbors.

The Kingdom of the Svear

Drevs, King of the Swedes

Diplomacy    Jutland (f)

        Svear urban expansion continued with Kristiansand, Alesund and Stockholm all moving up a level and that was about it.

The Norse Kingdom of Iceland

Bjorn Haraldson, King of the Norse

Diplomacy    None

        Bjorn continued to send colonists into the Highlands, repopulating it to its old level.  Haraldswick also bumped up a level.  In other events, a sizable Norse naval force swept into the Irish Sea and exacted tribute from the Manx and, after considerable fighting, the Welsh of Gwynned.

North Afriqa

The Maghreb Emirate

Lashal ibn Umar, Emir of Morroco

Diplomacy    None.

        No orders.

Al Fatamid Caliphate Al Qaira

Malik ibn Mohammad, Fatamid Caliph of Egypt

Diplomacy    None

        Flush from his recent victories, Malik planned continued operations against Franj and Copt alike. (See below for the war stuff).  On the domestic front, the Caliph put the thousands of Italian prisoners to work constructing a great bridge spanning the Nile between Egypt and Mansura as well as assorted urban beautification projects in Mamphis.

West Afriqa

The Kingdom of Ghana

Wetelimba, Lord of Kumi-Saleh

Diplomacy Galem (fa)

        Made nice among his neighbors and continued to keep to himself.

The Kingdom of Nupe

Ta’ziyah, King of Nupe and Oyo

Diplomacy Dendi, in Zerma (ea)

        Aside from Surinama dying in the midst of a diplomatic trip to Dendi and a road being built to the Ifen border in Oyo, things were pretty quiet.

The Kingdom of Ife-Benin

Senufo I, Lord of Ife and Benin

Diplomacy None

        The new king immediately ordered a set of new roads.  The first; from Ife north to Oyo, which linked up with the Nupan road coming down from the north.  The second extended from Ife west into Yoruba.  Lagos and Accra both increased a level.

The Kingdom of Kanem-Bornu

Susiseko, King of Kanem and Bornu

Diplomacy Ikego (fa)

        Built some public works and kept to himself.

East Afriqa

The Makuria Kingdom of Nubia in Exile

Akencheres II, King of Kutch

Diplomacy    None

The Nubian War

Fatamid Egypt vs. the Makuria Kingdom (with the latter receiving help from assorted Italians and Greeks).

Initial skullduggery:  Byzantine AO op against Egyptian infrastructure knocks off a point.  The accompanying CF op fails (else you wouldn’t be seeing it here).

A.D. 1126:

        The Byzantine fleet interdicts the Gulf of Cyprus of all Fatamid shipping.  Egyptian trade with Tunisia is strangled.  In Egypt itself, Malik detaches Qaboos bin Timar with 20,000 troops and orders to pacify the south before marching westward into Ad’diffah at the head of 51,000 veterans.

        In Venice, Emperor Gaius Germanicus dispatches the Legate Ignatius[1], accompanied by 20,000 troops carried in nearly 300 ships to set sail for North Africa.

        In the south, Arron’s 6000 infantry bestir themselves and begin marching into Adulis.  In Nubia, general Zebulban and his 5,000-man force begin to systematically lay waste to the region.  The locals are too shocked by the action of supposedly friendly troops to resist effectively.

        By year’s end, Malik has secured Ad’diffah, making it a pt region and has begun marching into Lybia; Qaboos has arrived in Alwa after marching south from Egypt to Thebes and hence into Dongola.  Ignatius is in Taranto having picked up additional warships there and in Ravenna.  Arron’s force has marched into Adulis, sacked and burned Pwenet and has begun subduing the locals in the region prior to laying waste here as well.  NOTE: guys, if you attempt to Scorch Earth or Loot regions that you control, you’re going to get a fight from the inhabitants, just as you would a non-controlled region.  Just because you own a place doesn’t mean the locals will let you abuse them.  Further north, Zebulban finished wrecking Nubia and begins marching south into Kassala.

A.D. 1127

        Malik marches into Lybia and after clearing out the Veronite garrison,induces the locals to pay tribute. He then begins pressing into Tripolitania.  Qaboos, meanwhile, marches into Nubia and induces the locals to resume paying tribute there as well.  By year’s end, Qaboos is on react.

        To the west, Ignatius arrives in Tripoli and enters Tripolitania.

        In the south, Aaron finishes subduing Adulis and then thoroughly wrecks the place. By year’s end he’s marching south into Danakil.  Zebulban meanwhile, arrives in Kassala, lays waste to the region and stomps the local militia when they try to interfere.

A.D. 1128

        Malik storms into Tripolitania and runs smack into Ignatius’ army, moving into Lybia at about the same time.  Over 50,000 Fatamids swamp and destroy the 20,000-man Veronese force.  The Caliph then spends the rest of the year securing the region and preparing to put Tripoli under siege.

        To the south, Qaboos wins more glory for Fatamid arms when his 20,000 troops react into Alwa and attack Zebulban’s 5,000 troops entering the region from Kassala.  Outnumbered over four to one, Zebulban’s force is obliterated and he’s killed.  By year’s end, Qaboos has marched into Kassala.  Further east, Aaron attacks Danakil and begins laying waste to that place as well.

A.D. 1129

        In North Africa, the full weight of Malik’s fury falls upon the Veronese city of Tripoli, which falls after a siege of three months.  The Caliph then sacks the city and burns it to the ground.  The Veronese presence in North Africa is snuffed out.  The Caliph then begins marching back to Egypt.

        In Kassala, Qaboos forces the natives to resume paying tribute.  Compared to the depredations of their co-religionists, the Fatamid yoke is quite light.  This done, Qaboos then presses on into Adulis and begins the process there.  To the south, Aaron finishes wrecking Danakil as well as sacking and burning the port of Erkico.  He then goes on react.

A.D. 1130

        Malik returns to Egypt.  The Veronese fleet, after patrolling the central Med, returns to Venice.  In the south, Qaboos finishes browbeating the locals of Adulis and begins marching south into Danakil.  Aaron reacts against this only to find he’s bitten off more than he can chew, being outnumbered three to one.  The outcome is sadly predictable.  Aaron’s force is run to ground and destroyed.  Qaboos ends the turn, still in Adulis engaged in this sanguinary activity.  Further south, the remaining Nubian possessions go independent and Zeila stops paying tribute to Cairo.

South Afriqa

The Bakongo Kingdom

Namodu III Wambolea, King of Bakongo

Diplomacy None

         Namodu continued to look to the defenses of the kingdom, building citadels at Bakona and Benguela.  The King’s penchant for slaves also continued with general Usfu descending upon Chokwe, beating up the local militia and leading the inhabitants off in chains.  A similar attack on Lui was aborted when Usfu took a spear in the head.

The Kingdom of Nyasa

Asserate, Chief of the Nyasa

Diplomacy None

        A new port, Ibo, arose on the coast of Kilwa.

The Kingdom of Rozwi

Shaka II, King of Rozwi, Lord of Zimbabwe

Diplomacy None

        Life in Zimbabwe continued at its usual r-e-l-a-x-e-d pace. Xai-Xai and Maputo increased in size.

The Kingdom of Vaal

M’tesa, King of Vaal and Mapungubwe

Diplomacy Swazi (ea)

        M’tesa continued to wheedle at the mountain tribes of Swazi.

The Xhosa Kingdom

Kreli-Sarhili, Chief of the Xhosa.

Diplomacy None

        Kreli-Sarhili was also content to sit quiet for the most part, although Tshwanne continued to grow.

North America

The Tlingit People

Blackhair, Chief of the Tlingit, Lord of the Far North.

Diplomacy None

        A new port, Haihais, was built in Timishian.

California

Obsidian Coyote, Ruler of California

Diplomacy No effect.

        The Californians continued to be busy as Californians can be.  Kalapuya was put under cultivation and colonized to a (1/6) region while Yurok was colonized to a (2/3).  Kettenpom, Tula’ree, San Francisco and New Teotihuacan all bumped up a level.  In the north, the armies of Tuolumne (a Yokuts ally) marched into Chemakum in a show of force.  The local wildlife was duly impressed.

The Anasazi Nation

Manchuk II, Chief of the Anasazi, Lord of the Chaco

Diplomacy None

        The postal road between Tiwa and Leoti was completed. An expedition to the Sea of Panama came back without its leader and no results.

The Mississippian Empire

Hiamovi, The Great Beaver of the Snake

Diplomacy None

               Leaping Crane went to his ancestors and was succeeded without incident.  The new Great Beaver oversaw cultivation projects in Sauk, Kickapoo, and Muskegon as well as a royal road link between Michigamea and Kaskinapo.  More significant was the final abolishment of slavery within the Empire, an event that passed without undue discontent.  A large amount of money was sent south to the Yamasee.

The Natchez Confederacy

Circling Hawk, Great Sun of the Natchez

Diplomacy None

        A great bridge was built across the Great Snake between Atakapa and Taposa.  In addition, Okmulgee was put under cultivation.  In foreign affairs events were mixed, while the Yamasee also benefited from Atakapan largess, an attempt to enslave the locals of Coalhuiltec got slapped silly and driven off.  Finally, Taposa was downgraded to (nt) status.

The Yamasee People

White Feather, Chief of the Yamasee

Diplomacy None

        The cultivation of Cheraw continued.  In addition, Muskogee was downgraded to (nt) status.  The gifts from Michigamea and Natchez were greatly appreciated.

Mesoamerica

The Toltec Hegemony of Chichen Itza

Alzur, Grand Hegemon of the Maya

Diplomacy    Naco, in Lenca (ea), Copan, in Ulva (f), Texcoco, in Huexotla (ea)

        Coatl keeled over in the midst of a diplomatic trip to Naco.  An event that, surprisingly, didn’t upset the locals too badly.

The Kingdom of Tarascan

Tlacala, Warrior-King of the Tarascan and Cuyutec

Diplomacy None

        Cuyutec was put under cultivation.

The Arawak of the Islands

Awcom II, Lord of the Islands

Diplomacy    None

        Ciboney was put under cultivation and a census was conducted.

The Chibchan Kingdom

Cilan II, King of the Chibchan

Diplomacy None

        Corazon grew a level and a new royal road link was built between Achagua and Caquetio.  Cilan also spent a great deal fo time warding off the attention of would-be suitors vying for the hand of one of his family’s many eligible daughters.

South America

The Kingdom of Paraiba

Panib II, King of Paraiba

Diplomacy None

        Itacare and Camacan were colonized a further level (1/2) and (1/1) respectively.

The Mighty Incan Empire

Ozcoco, Emperor of the Incas

Diplomacy Chimu (a)

        Having saved up a whole wad o’ cash, Ozcoco blew it all on a veritable smorgasbord of city expansion.  Every city within the Empire went up a level.  There was even enough money to rebuild the walls that had been torn down so the expansions could occur.

The Kingdom of Karanga

Amaru, Lord of the South

Diplomacy None

        Pacheco increased a level.

The Kingdom of Shokleng

Urcon, King of Shokleng

Diplomacy None

        Having also saved up a huge pile of cash, Urcon also unleashed an orgy of city expansion, increasing every city in the realm, save Sao Paulo.  In addition, Bauru was colonized to a (1/4) while to the north, new waves of settlers colonized Tupi to a (-/3) and Patasho to an (-/8).

The Mapuche Nation

Obsidian IV, King of the Mapuche

Diplomacy None

        To the south, Obsidian’s people were also moving, settling Neuquen to a (1/10) region.  Closer to home the capital, Quiroci, expanded.





[1] Ignatius, along with his subordinates Bruno Ransom and Lucius Angelo,  The fleet is commanded by Princes Gabriele and Dante Germanicus.