Lords of the Earth 

CAMPAIGN TWENTY-FOUR

Magyars Defeated

Turn 51

1251 ~ 1255 Anno Domini
613 ~ 617 in the year of the Hegira

New for T51

No Orders: If I don’t get any orders in for a position and the player doesn’t answer my emails then I’ll put the position back to a NPN and put aside the players cash (if any) until they pick it or another nation up again.

Restrictions on Royal Marriages: Due to the complications arising from these rules only K, H or P leaders can benefit from a Royal Marriage. Members of the Royal Family that have not come into play are not considered eligible.

New for T50

Request Royal Marriage: Used to ask a NPN nation for a bride for one of your Princes or a suitor for one of your little Princesses. Cost is 6AP, Charisma based. The leader doesn’t have to be in the NPNs capital but if he isn’t then he needs to be in your homeland/capital.

New for T49

Naval Reaction and Blockade: Naval Reactions can only occur when there is action in a Sea Zone that the fleet is based at. The fleet has to be based from a port and not the Sea Zone. Also, the Reaction can only occur when your own lands or those of an ally benefiting from a Defensive Pact marriage bonus are attacked. It also applies to any merchant fleets you operate through the Sea Zone in the case of piracy.  Naval Blockade’s only work if your fleet is based in the same Sea Zone as the target port and you spend all (every single one) of your APs in the blockade. The fleet must be based from a port and not a Sea Zone.

New for T48

The use of fleets for Reaction and mitigating the effects of Pirates: My understanding has now changed since we GMs have had some discussion on the list. The use of Reaction has been explained on the Wiki and Patrol is no longer used in the Base Rules.

Reaction

 

Trade Route Escorts

 

  • This is specific to Lords 24. Units can be assigned to a trade route to act as static convoy escort using the G type leader. Note this is not as good as patrol as the warships assigned will only reduce the effects of piracy, not capture or destroy the pirates themselves.

 

Updated NPN and Primacy rules: Yep, been tinkering again but I feel a almost serene sense of satisfaction with my latest offering. See what you think.

 

Added the ability to hire mercenary captain when there is no mercenary company available: See the mercenary tables

New for T47

Improved cultivation at TL5: If a nation has reached the dizzy heights of TL5 than it can benefit from improved cultivation. You can Improve a cultivated homeland region from 2GPv to 3GPv, or any other controlled cultivated region from 1GPv to 2GPv. This is a level one megalithic construction.

New for T46

NPNS: I’ve tweaked the NPN and Primacy/Order rules a little to make them fit better with the 24 game. I’ve also reduced their overall RRV to make diplomacy easier.

Second Positions in the East: As I’ve not got a lot of players in the East, I would be willing to allow a second position from existing players. Let me know if you’re interested.

New for T45

New Rivers: I’ve added in some new possible rivers onto the map. These are rivers that were once passable by light traffic (remember Cogs cannot travel on rivers) and have now become silted up. You can dredge a stretch of the river (along one region border edge) as a 0.5 level project.

Gripes:

Agro as conversion – this has restrictions (see 2.11.5.3) which I will be enforcing from now on.

Rivers can only support light ships – as far as I know Cogs cannot travel on rivers. This also includes Cogs built for trade.

New Primates: We have two new Primate positions this turn. Jumal Skyfather, which is an Estonian god and the Coptic Church based out of Axum.

New for T44

Minor islands and City States: I’ll be allowing minor islands (Corfu, Jerba, Wight etc) and city states to be used as locations from T44. Just let me know the rationale behind why you want it separate and if reasonable I’ll add it in. Once they are created as locations, they obey all the rules of islands etc. However, their Gpv cannot go above 0.

Flooding: The last few turns have seen a massive increase in the amount of flooding that has occurred. It appears that the years are getting warmer and wetter. As a result of this some of the minor rivers on the map are once again becoming passable to river traffic.

Denmark: Following on from the Minor Islands stuff, you can see that Denmark is now separated out to Jutland and Syaland (Zeeland).

Announcements and items of note

General Stuff: Please use my Paypal account (stephenbrunt@yahoo.co.uk) for all Lords’ 24 payments. If you cannot use this facility then please let me know and I will see what I can do about filtering US funds to my account. I may also stop using the throneworld email address due to the mass of spam I’m getting!

 

Order Form: Please use the standard excel order form from now on. I’ll update the site with a link to it next week when I get some time. This is important as it helps me process the turn more quickly. THIS IS NOW MANDATORY.

 

Non-Payment: some of you still owe me some cash. Although it may come as surprise that this is not my main source of income, I see it only polite that you pay for the occasionally night out. So, if you’re under zero next turn I’ll not process you orders.

 

Version 6: Lords 24 uses version 6 of the basic rules

 

The Map: The map now includes India as well as Europe, Central Asia and Africa. I’ve greyed out repeated areas on the maps to make my life easier. However, this means some player nations are split across more than one map. I may increase the size of the main map but I’ll have to think on this.

 

Tithes and Tribute: I think these are automatically updated by the stats program, so no need to declare them in your orders.

Control of the Papacy and Religious Orders: In Lords 24 we will not always have a player Pope (or Caliph etc for that matter) and the following rules are used to determine which player faction controls the Pope’s actions, Papacy Rules. I’ve also added some stuff about gaining support from their armies

How to make your GM happy (PLEASE READ! REALLY!):

Please send any and all Lords24 correspondence to lords24gm@ymail.com or stephenbrunt@yahoo.co.uk .

LORDS 24 WEB RESOURCES 

The Lords Twenty-Four homepage is at: 
http://lords.throneworld.com/lote24/index.html

All of the on-line resources, including order forms, mailing lists and web-sites for Lords of the Earth are summarized on this page: 
http://lords.throneworld.com/?page_id=2

You can subscribe to the Lords 24 mailing list by pointing your web-browser at: 
http://games.groups.yahoo.com/group/lote24

…and following the instructions on that page.

VARIOUS FEES AND LEVIES 

At the moment the turns cost $5 – please pay up of you owe

We are using the latest v6.3.5 of the basic rule book that can be found here

http://lords.throneworld.com/players/loterule/rules.html


Turn 52 Orders due by: Wednesday the 19th October 2009

Without further ado, the news for these years in Lords 24 history...


Eastern Europe

The Varangian Rus of Kiev

(Orthodox Civilized Open Empire)
Peter, King of the Rus

 Peter's wife died in childbirth and fearing the veracity of his bloodline, the Rus made his eldest daughter his heir; an act that did not meet with great favour amongst the Boyars. A new city called Perograd was raised in Pereaslavl and protected by a low wall. In exchange for Orkney gold coin, stamped with the Raven crest, much gold was shipped north to the islanders. Vassily fought back against the Magyars after they had taken Pechneg. Their assault on Kiev wiped out the hated invaders and caused rebellions amongst their subjects. The Magyars would never forget the might of Kiev. Piotr’s attempt to raise a house for the Order of St Vladimir in Smolensk failed but the other Piotr was successful in his attempts in Chernigov. Much favour was curried with the Order for these works but questions were raised amongst the Orthodox priests as to the Order’s purpose now that the Magyars were defeated. Georgi was given a handful of troops and told to invade Goryn, his ineptitude meant that his small army got lost on the way and ended back in Kiev many months later..

The Ests

(European Pagan Barbarian Open Empire)
Andrus III, Kings of the Ests

A new port city called Ventapils was built in Musa. Andrus raised three thousand more men in Estonia, mainly infantry but some siege engineers. Novgorod was further improved and twelve cogs were commissioned in the dockyards of Libau. Andrus rules his northern kingdom from Estonia but was not blessed with any new children. While Gcarson of Livonia and Vilnus patrolled the kingdoms borders, Dunstan was successful in gaining tribute from the city of Dorpat in Livonia.

The Western Uighur Khanate

(Sunni Islam Civilised Open Empire)
Barjik, Khan of the Uighurs

Two thousand skirmishers were raised from the Greeks in Thrace. Barjik declared that Ediz will be heir to the Khantate on his death. Barjik’s new wife dies in childbirth, sadly his young son also died. The Khanate’s attempts to convert the Christians of Thrace were met with stubborn resistance and few if any turned to Islam. Emin took command of the four thousand men in Thrace and was tasked to hold the region against any invasion. Emre and the Imam Mahmoud were dispatched to Thessaloniki where they gained an alliance from the city’s elders.

Elsewhere in Eastern Europe

The Magyars suffer at the hands of the Kievians, their might broken against the Kievan infantry. The Oriental Roman Empire makes progress with Galatia and Pontus, gaining support from these regions as they try to recover some of their lost ground.  The Order of St Vladimir’s army is destroyed by the Magyars in Pechneg but lives on to see their enemy defeated. With no new enemy to fight there are questions raised as to the purpose of the Order.

Scandia and the Out Isles

Jarldom of Orkeneyjar

(Roman Catholic Seafaring Open Empire)
Nicholas Larsson, Jarl of Orkney

A large number of warships were commissioned in Kirkval’s great dockyards – over one hundred and fifty vessels were put to sea. The Highlands were further fortified with castles in Ayr and Dunfermline. Improvement of the fertile coastal regions of the Highlands was also started. Advisors were sent to the Holy Roman Empire and England to help improve their woeful naval ability. Raven’s head gold was sent to the Rus in return for much needed grain. Northern missionaries were active in Dyffed but the Welsh proved hard to convert from their own brand of Christianity. Nicholas himself devoted these years to his family and his wife Alesund. Sadly, his uncle Helmut, who was to take charge of the Jarldom in case of Nicholas’s death, died of the flux in shortly after sailing north. His body was brought back to Kirkval for a full Orkney funeral. Frigga was attempting to raise a house for the Hammer in Munster when she was thrown from a horse and died of her injuries.

Kingdom of Svear

(Roman Catholic Seafaring Open Empire)
Olaf Arnoldson, King of the Svear

Olaf continued to sit at ease within his kingdom. Gold and men were spent on increasing the fortune of his people.

 

 

 

Saxon Kingdom of England

(Roman Catholic Civilized Open Empire)
Arthw I, King of England

The great fortress of Land’s End was once again ruled from London. In payment for their fealty, the city was improved with English gold. Wymeswold also gained from Arthw’s largesse. Much gold was sent to Kirkval to help build the new fleet and pay for the naval advisors from the island kingdom. Again and again, English missionaries were sent to Dyffed but the stubborn Welsh refused to willingly give up their heretic ways. The Welsh provinces were persuaded to pay grudging respect to the Saxons by the efforts of Arthw and the Lord Neumann.

 

Western Europe

Heiliges Romisches Reich

(Roman Catholic Civilized Open Empire)
Heinrich, Holy Roman Emperor
.

Saxony benefited from a delightful new thoroughfare through the province. The roads throughout the south of the nations, from Thuringia to Provence were upgraded to allow for heavier traffic. More gold was sent to the beleaguered Knights in Malta, increasing the Empire’s influence with the order. Grain shipped to the Orkneys in return for gold. Heinrich was blessed with a young son by his wife Katerine and formally declared Raimond as his heir during a lavish ceremony. The cities of Osnabruck and Stuttgart were incorporated into the Empire through the efforts of Hans and Cristian von Lausatia. Aldabert von Matrunco patrolled the eastern border from Bavaria in case of any Magyar attack, although that threat has now faded since their defeat at the hands of the Russians. Bishop Adriano Viccenzo had news that a secret society of masons was active in Saxony but had no success in proving this during his extensive investigations throughout the region.

Norman Kingdom of France

(Roman Catholic Civilized Open Empire)
Raymond, King of France

King Raymond ruled his wide domain from Paris and was blessed with two young sons. Sadly, Prince Archimbaud died whilst patrolling the southern borders of the Kingdom. His body was shipped back to Paris for burial. Bishop Abelard escorted the Princess Isabelle to Catalonia before heading north to the Aquitaine. He met with Archimbaud in the province and was unfortunate to succumb to the same fever and died the following spring. Princess Isabelle was then married to Bernard of the Anacletans to promote an alliance between the Order and France. Many warships were transferred to the order in Marseilles to further cement the good relations. The cultivation of Poitou was completed, the last vestiges of wilderness put to the plough. The city of Tours and the Aquitaine became friendly to the Kingdom. The marriage of Princess Clemence to the Count of Tours hastened the diplomacy between the Norman city and Paris. A royal highway was completed down to the Pyrenees through Aquitaine. French missionaries attempted unsuccessfully to convert the remaining Moslems of Catalonia.

Principality of Salerno

(Roman Catholic Civilized Open Empire)
Ricardo III, Prince of Salerno

Ten thousand infantry were raised in Naples and fifty warships commissioned in the Principalities dockyards. Apulia was greatly improved by new irrigation systems. A son was born to Ricardo as he ruled his Principality from Campania. Progress was made in assimilating Savoy and Palermo through the efforts of Maxcillio and the Bishop Madconi. Whilst the Count of Vincencia watched from the walls of Palermo for and Moslem attack, Geraldo Buccelli loaded the newly raised men aboard his cogs and conveyed them to the city under the escort of his fleet.

The Papal States

(Roman Catholic Civilised Religious Order)
Pope Callistus III, God’s Voice on Earth

An abbey was built in Leghorn and a postal road built to Romagna to improve the Papal communications with its northern holdings. Naples, Venice and Leghorn benefited from Papal largesse as new sanitation works were built throughout these cities. Attempts to destroy the Kaliph’s mosque in Mahidia came to no avail as the instigators were captured by the Akramid authorities in the city. Much influence was gained in Italy and with the far Svear thanks to the efforts of the Papal envoys in those lands. Whilst Pope Callistus oversaw the Papal See, Archbishop Anselm travelled to Poland and requested that the Poles paid the tithe rightly due to the Church. Cardinal Spada was dispatched to Cannes to help with the burden of bureaucracy in the western lands. The holy lands of Latium were defended by the Papal army under Cardinal Ottobuono.

The Akramid Caliphate

(Sunni Islam Civilized Open Empire)
Darkan, Caliph of the Akramids

Great improvements were made to the old lands of the Umayyads; cities were built in Cheliff and Kabilya as well as a mighty fortress in the Baelerics. Fez was rebuilt closer to the sea to improve links with the Spanish mainland. Missionaries from the Caliphate were active in Santiago bet met with little success in the pilgrim city. The Caliph himself took a new wife but she died in childbirth before providing him with any issue. Prince Obrahim was in command of the border force, working out of Andalusia and looking for any Anacletan foray into Akramid territory. Galacia became friendly to the Caliphate through the efforts of Imran Nazir and the Imam Astroman. It was left to Prince Mehehkmed to consolidate the scattered garrisons of the Umayyads and bring them back to Andalusia. The regional garrisons of Caliphate’s Spanish territories were also consolidated under Darkan’s command.

 

The Anacletan Order

(Roman Catholic Civilised Religious Order)
Bernard the Ugly, Grandmaster of the Anacletan Order, Scourge of Islam

Houses were built in Marseilles and Catalonia but the order failed to build a new house in Santa Maria. The docks of Cherbourg were put to use building twenty light warships for the order. The Order’s attempts to improve their status with Aragon and England failed miserably as the sovereign nations ignored the Order’s envoys. The marriage of Bernard to Isabelle of France brought the Order into an alliance with Paris. Guisgard travelled to Marseilles where he took command of a recently ceded fleet of thirty warships from the French. The fleet then sailed back to Santa Maria.

Elsewhere in Western Europe

Quiet times.

                               

The Middle East

The Buwayid Sultanate

(Sunni Islam Civilized Open Empire)
Hamzah, Sultan of the Buwayids

The cities of Antioch, Susa, Hamadan and Qom grew in size through the largesse of the Sultan and their walls replaced. The rich lands of Persia were further improved with new irrigations systems. Given the haughty nature of the Romans in Constantinople, it was with great please that the Sultan’s agents managed to capture a professor from their prestigious university and put him tenure at Baghdad’s. Missionaries in Bithnia and Crete were unsuccessful in pulling the people of those lands towards Allah. While Hamzah ruled from Baghdad, Prince Haythan was tasked with patrolling the Sultanate’s borders from Diyala. In this he was aided by Harig of Edessa. The slaves captured from Romagna in years past were moved to help with the new irrigation projects in Persia. The Imam Numair was successful in persuading Mand to become a tributary to the Sultanate but the deaths of Khoury of Fars and Abdul-Hafiz meant that Quetta remained unconvinced of its role in the Sultanate.

Al-Khulafa'ur Rashidun

(Sunni Islam Civilized Primacy
Zaahir al Shiraj, the Righteous Kaliph

The Kaliphs were at ease.

North Africa

The Ayyubid Sultanate

(Sunni Islam Civilized Open Empire)
Mejid, Sultan of the Ayyubids

The Sultanate remained quiet.

Amir al-Bahri

(Sunni Islam Civilized Religious Order)
Akeem, Lord of the Sea

As with other Islamic states, a sense of peace permeated the Order..

Elsewhere in the North Africa

Quiet.

West Africa

Usama-Yoruba Onium of Ibo

(African Pagan Civilised Open Empire)
Bhanda, King of the Ibo

The Adjou Aba take heart at the Iboan lack of interest to sweep down out of the desert. The take Songhai and pillage the valuable regions. Other lands also suffer the same fate..

Elsewhere in the West Africa

Quiet.

South Africa

The Mwene-Mutapa Empire

(African Pagan Civilised Open Empire)
Nyambo, Emperor of Mapungubwe

 The lands of Transkei were improved by the orders of the Emperor. Three thousand warriors were raised in the Vaal for Matombo Mukare. Augmenting his force with men from Matapos and Karanga, Mukare moved into the lands of the Xhosa, easily annexing their lands for the Emperor. With Chimbganda of Nguni patrolling the eastern seaboard, the Emperor Nyambo was content to sate himself on his wives, both failed to survive these years of Nyambo’s efforts but at least one had the decency to provide him with a child; even it was a daughter. Kakuyo, now in command of the army and titled as the Governor of Gorongo, used his position and the safety granted to the populace by the Empire to help coax them into further strengthening their relationship with the Empire. Kakuyo was authorized by the Emperor to promise that great investments would be made to the lands of Gorongo. Kakuyo also took the two, soon to unfortunate brides, for the illustrious Emperor Nyambo from Gorongo, praising them for their purity of blood and the quality of its people, declaring them worthy of royalty. The people of Gorongo were still suspicious of their invaders, but maybe not quite to the level of previous years.

 

Elsewhere in the South Africa

 

The Glory of Unkulunkulu gain some more sites throughout southern Africa.

 

Central Asia and Persia

The Karakhanate of Ilig

(Sunni Islam Civilised Open Empire)
Sahir ibn Saleh, Khan of the East

The lands are ravaged by the Tsaidam but the Khan manages to force them away from his heartlands.

Elsewhere in Central Asia and Persia

New cities are built in Georgia and Shirvan. The Khazar convert to Sunni Islam. The Tsiadam sack and burn Parapavura, and then move westwards from Kashmir after looting the region. They conquer and loos Tadzik but are turned away from Transoxania and Bactria. The horde ends in unfortunate Uzebek.

 

India

Pratihara Kingdom of Kaunaj

(Hindu Civilised Open Empire)
Janda, Raja of Kaunaj

The dockyards of Benares saw an unprecedented building programme as large numbers of light merchantmen were built; these would be destined for trade along the great Ganges. The rebuilding of Uttar Pradesh continued after the depravations of the Mongols, although it still had to reach the level of population enjoyed before the invaders struck. Gtsang was ceded to Bengal in recognition of the growing friendship between the nations. Sadly, Princess Neela did not live long beyond her marriage to the Pala and a much valued alliance was unfulfilled. The marriage of the Princes Om, Gyan and Ram to the great and good of Ceylon saw a strengthening of relations with the southern kingdom. A royal road was started to Kosalapala from Patna although not much progress was made. Other roads though out the nation were completed or progressed at a much faster rate. While the nation’s missionaries in Und and Sind saw some success, attempts by Rajput to damage the government of Saffarid Iran failed, making the Shi’ite nation wary of its larger Hindu neighbour. Kinh Jada was blessed with two young sons and spent these years ruling his kingdom and interfering with the affairs of the nation’s traders. Prince Bindu was assigned to dealing with the Bengali court to ensure that they towed the Kaunaj line. It was the left to Prince Gyan and Om to assist Shivaji in persuading the Ceylonese to pay tribute to Kaunaj. They were further assisted by the Brahmin Harsh. Vipin moved out from Gtsang once the Bengalis had taken control and sought brides for the princes; all but Prince Ram was accommodated. Rupinder was tasked with investigating the wilds of Kaunaj for those troublesome Buddhists; although no sign was discovered of any insurgence.

The Western Dhara

(Hindu Civilised NPN Empire, Open Empire)
Pajama I, King of the Dhara

A new period of expansion starts under Pajama. Cultivation projects in Avanti, Satava and Jihjhoti are progressed and the forces of the Kingdom move into Pawar under the command of Paga. His forces are routed when the general is killed by the Pawar and fled back to the Dhara lands. Pajama II moves into Vengi with the main Dhara force of six thousand men and three elephant squadrons. The battle was fierce against the smaller Vengi army of two thousand men but they were better led. It seemed that they would lose to attrition until Pajama II was cut down assaulting the Vengi King. The remaining Dharans fled the field. The defeats at the hands of the Vengi only strengthened Pajama’s resolve to conquer their isolated enemy.

The Order of the Dagger

(Hindu Civilised Religious Order)
Omprakash, Lord of the Order of the Dagger

Omprakash is content to hold sway over his conquered lands.

The Palas of Bengal

(Hindu Civilised NPN Empire, Friendly to Kaunaj)
Palas of Bengal

A great number of cogs were commissioned in the dockyards of Tamralipti; these would later be put to use on the nation’s trade routes. Further missionary work in the Gtsang fails due to severe storms sweeping through the region and catching the priest in a flash flood, drowning them when the great river swelled far beyond its banks. The Pala of Bengal married Neela of Rajput for an alliance between the two inter-linked nations. Unfortunately, the alliance was voided by the death of the Neela during childbirth. Through the efforts of Prince Ran and Satinder, the rich province of Assam, allied with the Palas. While Rom scoured the Gtsang for any sign of Buddhist insurgents, Banu was tasked to do the same in Maghada. No sign of any Buddhist plot was uncovered. The High Priest Sandhu too command of eighteen fast warships and attempted to find a route out to the Maldives, unfortunately the same storms that took the lives of the priests in Gtsang prevented the Dagger priest from reaching the islands.

Elsewhere in India

Quiet.

South East Asia and the Islands

 

The Dai Kingdom of Annam

(Buddhist Civilised Open Empire)
Fer Netcol, King of Annam

Peaceful times.

Kambujadesa

(Hindu Civilised Open Empire)
Emperor Surya Din, Emperor of the Khmer

Large numbers of junks were commissioned in the dockyards of Feranga and Vijaya to be used on the nation’s most profitable routes. A fleet of warships and a contingent of marines were also raised in Angor. These were to be assigned to Nung Tok Pai and accompanied him to Singapore. Once stationed on the island, the young leader was the first advocate of Surya Din’s Principle of the Dog, a Southeast Asian version of the "sink or swim" mentality. His mall force was to provide support for Khemer agents exploring the region of Tengh. Haing the One-Handed seemed to have found his calling when his attempts to convert more of the Surinese nobility away from Buddhism was successful. It was left to Foyan Fehn to patrol the nations’ borders from Champa while Surya Din ruled the Angor. Sadly, his heir Pheakdei Pich died of the flux during these years and left Surya Din wondering how he would continue his line of succession.

The Kingdom of Thaton

(Buddhist Civilised Open Empire)
Ratana Jarunsuk, King of the Thaton

Arakan was further improved by great public works and the cities of Bandarban and Imphal also. Forts were built along the frontiers of Kalinga, Samatata and Burma to protect against possible Hindu aggression. The great road network of the nation was further improved when postal links were set up from Mandaly to Imphala nd Bandarban and from Thon Buri to Kadaram. Ratana Jarunsuk rules the nation from his newly built Palace of the Crystal Winds in Moulmein. He was blessed with a daughter during these years. The low level hostility on the Bengali border continued when General Vipin was entertained by a Thatonese delegation, the intent was to persuade him to join with the Buddhists but although challenged, his loyalty remained firm. Priests from Thaton had some success in Assam and Vengi but their efforts in Gtsang went unheeded. Ratana Nai-Thim continued to attempt to sway the lords of Nanchao to the Thatonese cause, his attempts to keep the diplomacy secret thwarted by his large retinue and many Assamese sympathisers in the Tai’Li court. The borders of the nation were patrolled by Sanya Sundaravej from Lampang and Thawan Baroma from Thaton itself. The cost off Moumein was under the jurisdiction of Chao Seni and his forty odd warships. Further protection was offered in the south by the mercenary captain Lui Annan from his stronghold in Mon.

 

Elsewhere in South East Asia and the Islands

The city of Palau Buring is built in Utara.

Manchu’ko and Nihon

The Taira Shogunate

(Buddhist Civilised Open Empire)
Taira Kiyomori, Shogun of the West

Saga is further fortified and eight thousand eager infantry were raised in Kumamoto as every able-bodied man is scraped from the cities streets. The city also saw forty transports built for the newly raised army. Taira assassins were almost successful in killing the hated Emura Minamoto but for the vigilance of his bodyguards.  The forces of the Shogunate attack Aichi, Akita and Kwanto. The forces of Minamoto are mobilised and the attacked on Kwanto thwarted, the Taira forces are all but eliminated. Hideko fails to land in Aichi but successfully beaches his army in the Akita. Aomori is liberated by the Tairan forces. Taira Kiyomori tries to take advantage of the sea-borne attacks to take Yamato. His forces attack the Great Dividing Wall again and again but cannot push their way into the Minamoto heartland. The Shogun himself was killed attacking the hated easterners and his daughter took control of the Shogunate, causing much dissention amongst the nobility.

The Minamoto Shogunate

(Shinto Civilised Open Empire)
Emura Minamoto, Shogun of the East

Yamato is further protected by a large contingent of siege engineers and another thousand foot. In Toyama, twenty warships are commissioned in the dockyards there.The forces of Taira were repelled from all but Akita. Sadly, the Shogun himself was killed in the fighting and his new son-in-law Eiroku became Shogun on his death. A royal road was built between Aichi and Kwanto and between Yamato and Toyama. Yuki Hideyasu was routed when the forces of Taira attacked Akita. Influence grew in the Nihon-no-Tenno as the Shinto priests started to wake up to the Buddhist threat to the west.

The Goryeo Kingdom

(Buddhist Civilised Open Empire)
Wang Cheol Gojong, King of Goryeo

Wang Cheol Gojong took control of the nation’s shipping and greatly improved the trade routes within the Kingdom. The scattered fleets were all gathered and put to work patrolling the water’s around Po under Hyo Pong. The garrisons of the nation’s great cities were augmented as Wang Cheol Gojong looked towards the growing threat from the Steppes. Attempts to convert the pagans of Mudan as well as remove the hostility towards the great Buddha found amongst some of the Hsuing-Nu failed during these years. Kim Gu looked towards the western defence from Shang Tu whilst the island of Hokkaido was protected by Roh Mo’s two thousand men.

The Land under Heaven

The Kingdom of Koueichou

(Buddhist Civilised Open Empire)
Lao Pen, Regent of Koueichou

The city of Ghang’De grew in size and its walls rebuilt. It was Lao Pen’s intention to further relations with the Chang’Ling but rumours amongst the Hupei court were rife that the westerners intended to capture the Emperor’s daughter. Lao Pen was met at the border and refused entry into the Chang’Ling lands.

The Empire of the Western Song

(Buddhist Civilised Open Empire)
Zhi Zhen, Emperor of the Western Song

Four thousand cavalry are raised in Kansu and a large contingent of engineers in Chang’An. In the new port of Huang Ho, a few warships were commissioned in its dockyards. The great road from Chang’An to Ts-Un’I progressed during these years with the stretch to Hanzhong all but completed. Song missionaries converted the nomads of Lob Nor to Buddhism, a brave effort given the Mongol presence. Whilst the Emperor Zhi Zhen ruled from Chang’An, the Mongols poured south intent on plunder of the rich Chinese lands. Their first target was Wu Hai but surprisingly, the peasants of those lands forced the horsemen back to the steps. Yue Tong was mobilised to prevent the Mongols from attacking Ordos and successfully repulsed the invaders, losing his life in the process! When the Mongols attack Yanzhi their Khan is killed by Chinese archers and they flee back to the steppes.

Elsewhere in the Land under Heaven

The Great Khitan horde take Tumet but are repelled from Kir when their Khan is captured. The Saka-Sungari Tribes make trouble in the east of Manchuria. Ch’Ang’Sha built a new city in Miao Ling called Jingjiang. The remaining minor states of China start to consolidate their positions. The Greater Wheel gains a church in Burma but fails to build Abbeys in Nanchao and Padishan. An Abbey is built in Guizhou and a Church in Szechwan.