Lords of the Earth
CAMPAIGN TWENTY-FOUR
War
in the East
Turn 52
1256
~ 1260 Anno Domini
618 ~ 622 in the year of the Hegira
New for T52
East – West Split: I’m going to try to split the
East and the West parts of the game so that I can process the orders quicker –
don’t know if or how it will work yet but lets see if it’ll happen
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
The West
For Nations of the West - Turn 53 Orders due by: January the 13th
2010
Without further ado, the news for these
years in Lords 24 history...
Eastern Europe
The Varangian Rus of Kiev
(Orthodox Civilized Open Empire)
Svetlana,
Queen of the Rus
The
city of Perograd
was built on the banks of the Dnepr in Pereaslavl. The cultivation of Muscovy continued apace. Peter of the Rus died while
feasting the saints in late 1258, his daughter Svetlana took to the throne
amidst much grumbling from the Boyars. Despite their objections Svetlana
managed to consolidate here rule. She married a local nobleman and mothered two
young sons to ensure the dynasty. While Price Vassily and Piotr protected the kingdom
from Kiev, Vasimir made some gains in Pechneg
where a grudging acceptance of Kiev’s
claim on the region was achieved. The other Piotr built a house for the Order
of St Vladimir in Smolensk.
Discussions with the Order persuaded them to redirect their efforts to freeing
the Balkans from the Islamic invaders and eventually to restore the Oriental
Roman Empire to its former glory.
The Ests
(European Pagan Barbarian Open Empire)
Andrus III, Kings of the Ests
Some cogs were commissioned in the dockyards of Ventapils,
destined for trade around the Baltic. The Estonian army grew in size when four
thousand men were raised in Estonia.
Andrus ruled from Estonia
but sadly his two young children died from the fever in 1257.
The Western Uighur Khanate
(Sunni Islam Civilised Open Empire)
Barjik, Khan of the Uighurs
Three thousand light cavalry were raised in Thrace
for Prince Ediz. Barjik himself ruled from Thrace
with Ediz cemented relations with the city of Thessaloniki with a marriage to a local
princess. He was aided by the able Emre and the Imam Mahmoud in his
negotiations.
Scandia and the Out Isles
Jarldom of Orkeneyjar
(Roman Catholic Seafaring Open Empire)
Nicholas Larsson, Jarl of Orkney
The
newly cultivated Highlands were further
improved with newly planted oat fields and haggis farms. The great dockyards of
Kirkval saw an unprecedented number of warships built, two hundred of them were
taken into Nicholas’s commands. His wife Alesund was promoted to his heir. The redoubtable Freya Svendatter moved
throughout Ireland, finally coming to rest in Munster where she managed to get
the region formally join the Jarldom with the help of Gretal. Sif travelled to Brest where she used her
influence with the Order to gain the services of an Order Master.
Kingdom
of Svear
(Roman Catholic Seafaring Open Empire)
Olaf Arnoldson, King of the Svear
Helsingfors
and Sundsvall grew in size and a new city in Saarema built
called Kuressaare. While Arnoldson ruled from Uppsala, Emilson took control of the garrison
in Skane. Karlson patrolled the waters off Kuressaare with the Svear fleet of
nearly fifty warships.
Saxon Kingdom
of England
(Roman Catholic Civilized Open Empire)
Arthwin I, King of England
The
cities of Caer Dyvi and Wymeswold were improved with new sewage works and
public baths. English missionaries were active in Dyffed and saw a great many
converts there. Kings’ Arthwin’s aim was to fully integrate Berwick back into
the Kingdom whilst the lords of the nation were dispatched to do the same in Wales and Cornwall;
some progress was made.
Western Europe
Heiliges Romisches Reich
(Roman Catholic Civilized Open Empire)
Heinrich, Holy Roman Emperor.
More
gold was sent to the Knights of Malta to secure the Emperor’s growing
influence, although no new progress was made. Roads were extended from Saxony
to Jutland and the road between Ulm and Bourgogne saw some
improvements. Massive investment in the German economy saw its society become
free. Heinrich rules the empire from Saxony,
sadly the Empress Mara died in childbirth. Hans saw some acceptance of the
Empire’s sovereignty in Leipzig while Cristian
von Lausatia had more success in the Alsace
as the region became fully integrated into the Empire. The army was under the
command of Aldabert von Matrunco who patrolled from Provence.
Norman Kingdom
of France
(Roman Catholic Civilized Open Empire)
Raymond, King of France
This
period of peace saw the lands of the French
Kingdom improved with
public works. The regions of Languedoc and Aquitaine were protected
with scattered field forts. The lands of Orleans
were finally cultivated and the road to the Catalonian border completed. King
Raymond ruled the kingdom from Paris
and was blessed with a young son. Enguerrand of Tours protected the southern
border from Aquitaine
aided by Laurent. Alberic spent these years gaining an alliance from the city
of Aachen.
Principality of Salerno
(Roman Catholic Civilized Open Empire)
Ricardo III, Prince of Salerno
To protect against
any further Moslem raids, the lands of Salerno
were protected with coastal forts. Romagna was re-colonised and the city of Leghorn grew in size. Like
the French, the lands of the Principality were further improved with public
works. Missionaries in the city of Genoa
saw the influx of Islam revered. The missionaries in Venice were not as successful. Ricardo ruled from
Campania and
was saddened by the loss of his wife in childbirth. Under the Count of
Vincencia’s command, the Salernian army of thirty thousand men moved into the
Sicilian interior. Mejid, Sultan of the Ayyubids, commanded the Egyptian forces
of nearly thirty-four thousand men and a large number of field forts. In the
first assault against the Egyptian position, the Sultan was cut down by Italian
knights. Seeing the Sultan slain, the Egyptians routed, eight thousand of their
men killed. The Italians lost six thousand of their men in the assault. The
Egyptians fled to the fortress of Catania
hotly pursued by the Italians. The Italians surrounded the fortress and
attempted to place it under siege. The siege failed because the fortress was
supplied from the sea. Geraldo Buccelli escorted the Palermo
garrison from Campania but died of a fever in Palermo in 1258. Nuselus
was left to protect the Principality from Campania but fell from his horse and died in
1256. Maxcillio reduced the enmity towards the Principality in Savoy but died of a
fever in 1256.
The Papal
States
(Roman Catholic Civilised Religious
Order)
Pope Urban III, God’s Voice on Earth
To
improve communication with the Pope’s northern territories
a postal road was built from Ravenna to Venice. The largesse of
the Pope saw great improvements in the cities of Venice
and Leghorn. An
abbey was built in Ravenna
and the influence of the Pope grew in Aragon and the Anacletan Order.
Missionaries were active in Palermo and Sicily and saw many
converts on the island. Cardinal Spada was elevated to Pope on the death of
Callistus, he took the name of Urban III. Ottobuono travelled to Leghorn, his attempts to
raise a Monastery in the city failed..
The Akramid Caliphate
(Sunni Islam Civilized Open Empire)
Darkan, Caliph of the Akramids
The
lands of the Caliphate were greatly fortified. Fortresses were built on the
coasts of North Africa and the walls of the
old Umayyad cities were improved. Attempts ot get the Moslem majority in Santiago to take control
of the city failed. Darkan took a new wife as he ruled from Andalusia
and was blessed with two young children. Obrahim supported Mehehkmed as they
tried to oversee the Moslem uprisings. Mahidia was visited by Imran Nazir and
the Imam, with the downfall of the Umayyad’s the hostility of the past was
buried and relations was improved.
The Anacletan Order
(Roman Catholic Civilised Religious
Order)
Bernard the Ugly, Grandmaster of the Anacletan Order, Scourge of Islam
The
Order gained support from the Catalonians by building public works. An Order
House was built in Valencia
and Cannes but the Order failed in Santa Maria. The status of
the Order was improved in Aragon
and England.
Bertrand the Ugly ruled from Catalonia
and fiddled about with the Order’s shipping. It was left to Robert and Guisgard
to defend the Order’s holdings in Santa
Maria. Sadly, Robert died from a fever in 1256 and it
was left to Guisgard to protect the Order.
The Middle East and Africa
The Buwayid Sultanate
(Sunni Islam Civilized Open Empire)
Hamzah, Sultan of the Buwayids
The
cities of Antioch, Susa,
Qom and
Al’Kuwait increased in size and their walls rebuild to accommodate the new
population. Hamzah ruled from Baghdad
and allowed Zarife to spend some time with his fierce and beautiful wife.
Prince Haythan was again tasked wife protecting the borders from Diyala. Gains
were made in Quetta,
Bandar and Circis.
The Ayyubid Sultanate
(Sunni Islam Civilized Open Empire)
Rashid, Sultan of the Ayyubids
With
the death of Mejid in far Sicily,
Rashid took control of the Sultanate. He was blessed with a young son after
getting a new wife from Jordan
after Hosni Qatub’s diplomacy there.
.
Usama-Yoruba Onium of
Ibo
(African Pagan Civilised Open Empire)
Bhanda, King of the Ibo
It
was time to end the threat of Adjou once and for all. In the lands of Sudan
fifty thousand horse were raised for Ibana. Such was the might of Ibo that this
was not even the greatest amongst Bhanda’s armies. Bhanda ruled from Ibo but
passed away in 1257; his son became the Emperor of the Onium. The lands of
Awaghost, Walata and Mauratania paid the price for support of the Adjou Aba as
the people were slaughtered before Payad’s host. Plaida gained a new bride for
the heir and from Goroul and improved the relations with the region. With his
new army, Ibana moved into the Songhai to
confront the Adjou. Seeing the great numbers of Iboan cavalry, the Adjou pulled
back to Aruane where they thought the Africans would not follow. This time they
were mistaken and Ibana pursued his enemy through the desert sea to the oasis.
The Adjou horde was not small in numbers, it comprised of nearly forty thousand
battle-hardened men intent on defending their goats and camels. Maybe the
battle would’ve had a different result but for the death of Adjou Emir from
Ibana’s spear. At his death the Adjou routed and the superior might and quality
of the Iboan’s won Ibana the field. With hardly any losses, the Iboans broke
the might of the Adjou, the surviving twelve thousand men were pursued
throughout the Sahara right to Agades;
although they managed to from escape Ibana’s grasp and the general failed to
completely eliminate them.
The Mwene-Mutapa
Empire
(African Pagan Civilised Open Empire)
Nyambo, Emperor of Mapungubwe
The
port of Nguni Da-Mutoto was built on the shores
of Nguni and protected by a walls from possible Malay attack. An aqueduct was
planned to improve the sanitation of Mwene-Mutapa and a road started out to Vaal. Besides interfering with the affairs of the nations
merchants, Nyambo was blessed with a daughter from his cape wife. Sadly, his
wife from Gorongo died during childbirth. Kakuyo Kakawate worked with the
nobility of Gorongo to improve relations with the Hindu province. Despite his
promises, another noble Gorongo daughter met here end giving birth to a child
of Nyambo. Kakuyo himself passed away during these years from a fever. After
years of conquest, Matombo Mukare left a small garrison in the Xhosa ands
before gaining a feudal alliance from the Cape.
The East
For Nations of the East - Turn 53 Orders due by: Wednesday the 9th
December 2009
Without further ado, the news for these
years in Lords 24 history...
India
War in the East
Kaunaj and Bengal vs Thaton
“Strike hard and make sure there are no survivors”, Janda
thumped the magnificent map table in his great palace for emphasis, “and make
sure the Bengalis play their part. Coded dispatches were rushed to the Bengalis
to co-ordinate their attacks on their great enemy. Through the mists of early
morning, Kaunaj assassins appeared at the country estates of Thawan Baroma
while the general was at ease with his family. The Indians set fire to his
house and all those within but their intended victim managed to pull himself
from the fire. He was however badly wounded and suffered for years from his
injuries. The Admiral of Moulmein,
Chao Seni, was wounded by Bengali assassins while he was inspecting the
Thatonese fleet; he was also to suffer from his injuries during the conflict
that followed. The first attack came in the spring of 1256, where the Raja of Assam
took his small force on a raid into Manipur. The region was heavily fortified
and the Assamese lost nearly a thousand men in the raid. In the summer of the
same year where the Raja of Nadavaria moved to raid the Kalingans, again the
Thatonese defences stood firm and the Raja lost most of his men in the raid. He
also succumbed to his wounds and the new Raja rejected the alliance with
Kaunaj, paying tribute alone. Under the Admiral Rom and the Dagger Priest
Sandhu, the Bengali navy of nearly 120 light warships attacked the Thatonese
coastline of Mon, Thaton and Pegu. The peasants of Mon took heavy losses but
when the raiders hit the shores of Thaton, the combined forces of Sanya
Sundaravej, Tawan Baroma and Chao Seni caught the them as they were hauling
loot back to their ships Over forty Bengali ships were lost as they tried to
flee the defenders. The raids into Pegu were also met with resistance as
Sundaravej and Lui Annan faced the attackers. The Bengalis lost another ten
ships to the defenders. As the year turned to autumn, the Bengalis attacked
Samatata, the forces under the Pala numbered nine thousand foot, the great
majority of which were elite guard formed during the Mongol invasions years
before, and eight thousand cavalry. The Bengalis wiped out the Thatonese
defences for only minimal losses. The aging Pala did not live to see his
victory though as he passed away of old age as the region was being secured. As
the year passed and 1257 arrived, the forces of Kaunaj attacked Burma.
The regions forts were pushed aside as massed forces of forty thousand men,
commanded by Vipin rolled into the Burmese countryside. Bandarban was besieged
and easily fell. It was in Ava that the battle raged fiercest the mercenary
captain Lui Annan rushed his forces from Lampang. His force of fewer than three
thousand cavalry combined the Sundaravej’s elephants and four thousand light
troops. For months Annan and Sundaravej
kept the invaders out causing Vipin to flee when he was caught in the thickest
part of the battle. The Thatonese were unfortunate to lose Annan to an arrow in
the side but in the following weeks Shivaji and Vipin were killed by Thatonese
troops. In the end it was numbers that counted and the Kaunaj forces wiped out
the defenders under Sundaravej, forcing him to flee south. Prince Bindu took
command of the Kaunaj forces but rued the sixteen thousand me lost in the
attack, a heavy burden indeed given that both Shivaji and Vipin were also
amongst the losses. It was in 1258 that the now reduced Kaunaj forces moved
into Pegu. It was eerily quiet as there was nothing but a small garrison to
prevent the attack. Bengal moved easily into Arakan and the city of Akyab taken by the
invaders. In smaller battles, the city of Pagan
was besieged and taken by Prince Bindu. The reason for the lack of resistance
in Pegu became apparent as the Kaunaj army moved into the Thatonese heartland
of Moulmein.
Sundaravej had collected the homeland garrison of seven thousand cavalry and it
heavily defended by fortifications. Thawan Baroma commanded the main Thatonse
army which still numbered around twenty six thousand men and the combined
forces easily outnumbered the attackers. The attackers were destroyed, ending
their successful invasion throughout the Thatonese heartlands.
Pratihara Kingdom of Kaunaj
(Hindu Civilised Open Empire)
Janda, Raja of Kaunaj
As war was declared against the Buddhists of Thaton, Janda
ordered that every able bodied man or boy be pulled from the fields and cities
of the nation to serve for the cause.
Nadavaira was heavily fortified and over thirty thousand men were
conscripted into the army. His assassins were dispatched to eliminate the
Thatonese command in Thaton and very nearly succeeded in killing Thawan Baroma;
as it was the Thatonese general was to suffer from his injuries throughout
these years. Missionaries in Pegu and Sikkim saw a reasonable amount of
success in converting the Buddhists there. As most of the great and good of
Kaunaj set off east to Thatonese lands (see the War in the East), Janda spent
these years ruling his Kingdom, his paranoia forcing him to change his sleeping
patterns daily in case of Thatonese retaliation (maybe this was the cause of
his lack of children during these years). Prince Gyan managed to seize some
Thatonese shipping in Benares before
continuing to administer relations with the Bengalis. The Greater Wheel abbey
in Burma
provided some riches to offset the cost of the war as it was burned by Vipin
before his death in Ava.
The Western
Dhara
(Hindu Civilised NPN Empire, Open Empire)
Pajama I, King of the Dhara
More gold and
manpower was spent on clearing the wild places of Satava and a road was started
from Vijayanger to Kayal. While the less than able Fallija moved the garrison
of fifteen hundred men from Anhivarta to Satava, Pajama tried to replace the
loss of his son; he was blessed with two new Princes for the royal dynasty.
Paga collected the troops brought to Satava by Fallija and collected a further
four thousand men from Karanata, about half of which were cavalry. The Dharan
army now consisted of around twelve thousand men and moved to attack the province of Vengi. Vengi was unprotected except for
a small local levy of fewer than one thousand men and these were easily
defeated by Paga. The province was subjugated and forced to pay tribute to
Vijayanger. Palcama’s efforts to persuade Manyakjeta to form closer ties with
Vijayanger came to nothing, his acerbic manner not helping the situation.
The Palas of Bengal
(Hindu Civilised NPN Empire, Friendly to
Kaunaj)
Ran, Palas of Bengal
The Pala ordered the
fortification of the nations great cities. High walls were built around
Tamralipti, Bihar and Gaur and the regions of Assam, Gtsang and Palas saw
scattered hill forts built. Seven thousand men were recruited into the Pala’s
army in Gaur and one hundred light warships commissioned at its docks. In
Moulmain, Bengali assassins were successful in severely wounding the Thatonese
admiral Chao Seni. Bengali missionaries were active in Gtsang and Assam
and saw some success in those regions as the influence of the Dali Lama was
reduced. The Pala took command of his army into Thatonese territory (see the
War in the East) but the journey proved too much for the ageing despot and he
died in the attack of Samatata. Prince Ran was in Gaur when he heard the news
and quickly took control of the Palas, confirming his ties with the Rajputis
and his loyalty to the alliance. Satinder took command of the Bengali army and
returned to Gaur once the western regions of Thaton had been conquered. With
the capture of Rangoon
and Akyab, several Thatonese merchantmen were captured. The others fled to
other Thatonese ports. Banu was left to defend Gtsang and saw no action during
these years. The High Priest Sandhu of the Dagger Order accompanied Rom on the
raids on the Thatonese coast. It was during Rom’s piracy in the Andaman Sea that the aging priest died of a
fever.
South East Asia and the Islands
The Dai Kingdom
of Annam
(Buddhist Civilised Open Empire)
Fer Netcol, King of Annam
The
horde devastation in Annam
was repaired as much effort was spent on the region. Gold was sent to the
Greater Wheel in Tibet
to aid in the Annamese efforts to gather support from the Dali Lama. Fer Netcol
took a chance travelling to Nanchao given the hostility his northern neighbour
felt towards him. However, his offer of marriage and making the Nanchao king
the heir of his kingdom, as well as the caravans of gold, saw an easing of the
hostility Nanchao felt towards Annam.
No tribute was forthcoming but the northerners at least saw that their future
may be with Annam
in the long term. Pala nga non was no so fortunate in Hunan where despite the
hefty gifts of gold and other such trinkets, the easterners were insulted at
his pathetic attempts to woo them.
Kambujadesa
(Hindu Civilised Open Empire)
Emperor Surya Din, Emperor of the Khmer
The
recently colonized island
of Singapore was further
improved with new irrigation systems and public baths. A great deal of junks
were commissioned in the dockyards of the nation; these would later be assigned
to the trade routes of the nation. In the dockyards of Phan Bo, twenty warships
were commissioned. The road network was extended from Vijaya to the Mison
border. In recognition of the Khmer’s growing influence in Southeast Asian
trade and Chi in particular, a mercantile exchange was build in the city. The
great monument to Vishnu, Angor Wat was completed in Angor. Surya Din was still
heirless throughput these years as his wife failed to bear him any sons. His
favourite, Nung Tok Pai, took command of the men stationed in Singapore and after collecting the
two and one half marines from Angor set sail for the south. The lands of Tengh
were sparsely inhabited and Nung easily landed his force on their shores. It
was not long before the jungles were pacified and the few hunters there
subjugated to Khmer rule. Haing the One-Handed continued to hang on to the
temporal realm and managed to increase the resentment to Khmer rule amongst the
Hmong. In a great sweeping journey throughout 1256, Vireakboth the Snake took
command of a great part of the Khmer army, combining the garrisons of Siam and
Chi with those of Phan Rang, Phan Bho and Champa. He also deployed local
garrisons to Surin, Khemer,
Cochin and Preikuk.
The Kingdom of Thaton
(Buddhist Civilised Open Empire)
Ratana Jarunsuk, King of the Thaton
It
was meant to be a time of great prosperity for the Thatonese people when under the
guidance of Ratana Jarunsuk the city of Thon
Buri grew in size. Grain was sent to the Khmer in
exchange for gold and the regions of Mon, Perak, Johor and Kedah
fortified. Raods were built throughput
the south and from Akyab to Bandarban, although the war delayed the completion
of that project. Thatonese missionaries were also active in the lands of Gtsang
and Assam,
hindering the efforts of the Hindus there. Jarunsuk himself was blessed with
two children during these years whilst ruling the Kingdom. Prince Nai-Thim saw
no success with the Nanchao, despite a hefty bribe from Thaton’s treasury. With
the Indians attacking from the west, all of the great generals of the nation
saw action and some lost their lives (see the War in the East). However, the defeat
of the Indian army in Moulmein
meant that the remnants of the Thatonese force were ready to revenge the
attack.
Manchu’ko and Nihon
The Minamoto
Shogunate
(Shinto Civilised Open Empire)
Emura Minamoto, Shogun of the East
With
the Taira in disarray, the Shogun ordered eight thousand men to be recruited
for Adachi Yasumori, there would be an equal split between infantry and
cavalry. Eiroku Minamoto surrounded himself with an elite guard of sixteen
hundred men to complement his already substantial force defending Yamato. The
Shogunate increased its influence with the Shinto priests of the Nihon-no-Tenno
during these years. Adachi Yasumori pushed aside the defenders of Akita as his force of
eight thousand men retook the region. After collecting the garrison of Aomori, the fortress of Akita was also taken; completing the
subjugation of the region. Wadou was assisting the Shoguns priests in their
talks with the Nihon-no-Tenno when he succumbed to food poisoning from rancid
sushi.
The Goryeo Kingdom
(Buddhist Civilised Open Empire)
Wang Insu, King of Goryeo
Four
thousand infantry were raised in Kai Ching and several transports commissioned
in the dockyards of Ji’An, Kai Ching and Po Yang. A port was built on the coast
of Liao-Tung to give Ta’Ting access to the
sea. The lands of Bandao were improved to gain more rice for the people of
Goryeo. Before his death in 1256, Wang Cheol Gojong spent a considerable amount
of time re-arranging the shipping and harassing the merchants of Goryeo. Wang
Insu heard of his father’s death while en-route to Hokkaido where over two thousand men were
added to the garrison there. Prince Wang Dong Sun spent these years with the
Khitan arranging a bride for his late father and husband for his sister.
The Land under Heaven
The Kingdom of Koueichou
(Buddhist Civilised Open Empire)
Dai Ling, Queen of Koueichou
A new city called Kwa-Dei
was built in the southern region of Kweichou. The Buddhist monks of Szechuan were alarmed at the aggression of their Hindu
neighbours and spent these years amongst the laity raising the piety of the
nation. Regent Lao Pen was tasked with ruling the Kingdom from Szechuan and any
ideas he may have had of wresting control for himself was cut short when his
advanced age caught up with him. Dai Ling was invested as Queen without any
major incident, although the peasants were grumbling about being led by a mere
woman. Ko Pang and Chigun Zhang were tasked with defence of the realm, although
how they were going to manage that with all the troops protecting Dai Ling was
cause of much concern.
The Empire of the
Western Song
(Buddhist Civilised Open Empire)
Zhi Zhen, Emperor of the Western Song
The
losses sustained during the last Mongol attack were replaced in Lanzhou; thirty thousand
heavy cavalry were raised along with another thirty thousand light cavalry.
Much gold was sent to Koueichou in exchange for grain to feed the
over-populated cities of the northern kingdom. The road from Ch'ang-Te to Funiu
was completed and more money was spent on the road from Hanzhong to Ts'un'I; an
epic route over the high mountains. Trade was instigated to the Kingdoms of
Kaifeng and Chiangning. Song missionaries were active in the Gaxun-Nur and the
nomads there were converted to Buddhism. The Emperor Zhi Zhen was becoming
increasingly desperate for an heir as his health was beginning to fail him.
Despite his best efforts, no son was born during these years. Wu-Fei was sent
to gain support from the city of Tao-Chou
and to aid Yu Jing in his negotiations there. He was attacked by bandits on his
way to the city and died of his wounds in 1256. However, the efforts of Yu Jing
saw the city pledge military support to the Empire. An Zhao was tasked with
defence of the Empire and gathered the three thousand horse from Yanzhi as well
as the newly raised cavalry in Lanzhou
to his banner. He was stationed in Kansu but
saw little action during these years outside the local tea houses.