Lords of the Earth 

CAMPAIGN TWENTY-FOUR

Turn 61

1301 ~ 1305 Anno Domini
663 ~ 667 in the year of the Hegira

New for T59

Paths to victory: There are several options open to a player when an NPN has been defeated

 

  1. Take the victory conditions (see NPN rules) available for NPNs and allow the NPN to go its own way. This is a useful option if you do not want to increase your imperial size or bother with the NPNs internal affairs.
  2. Keep it as either Pacified or Pacified Tributary. You will not get victory conditions but will get income from the NPNs Homeland/Friendly regions and cities. Also, as the years from conquest marker goes up it may turn Friendly or Tributary. Using this option treats the NPN as a super-region.
  3. Old school, you will have to take the regions you want and conquer each in turn. If the capital is taken then some of the NPNs ratings will be added to yours if higher. The NPN will cease to exist.

 

Dealing with hordes: Hordes can be dealt with a number of ways rather than just an outright battle. These are

 

  1. Threaten them. Hordes respond to a show of strength and may leave you alone if confronted with enough force.
  2. Bribe them. They are looking for gold and lands to settle or pillage so if you offer them it on a plate they may well go away. They may also just take it and attack anyway.
  3. Use diplomacy. It does work and I suggest chucking in a royal princess or two.

 

You can also use a combination of the above. If the horde becomes a FA or A, you can direct its attacks or its path of migration.

New for T57

Non-player rules update: I’ve updated the NPN rules to fit better with the Lord’s system. Please check them out.

New for T56

New movement and action rules: I know that they didn’t meet with overall approval last time around but I will be implementing the proposed movement/action rules for T57 (see here). Any current player that takes them up will be given a 2 turn bonus to their credits but they can continue to use the current method for the time being. All new players will have to use them. I’d rather stick to the standard rules but there is no way Lords is sustainable as a long-term game (and I want 24 to be long-term) unless there is some simplification for the GM.

The areas that cause me the most processing grief are movement, AP calculation and garrison changes.

New for T53

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. Also, Primate, Order and Secret Empire positions are not eligible for marriage bonuses. These are meant to be diplomatic arrangements between sovereign states.

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.

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: 
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…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

 

 

Scandia and the Out Isles

Jarldom of Orkeneyjar

(Roman Catholic Seafaring Open Empire)
Jotun Nicolson, Jarl of Orkney

The Orkneyjar fleet was expanded again with over eighty ships being commissioned in Kirkval’s dockyards. An Order House dedicated to Le Marteau de Dieu was built in Hordavil but attempts to build one in the surrounding region failed. King Joutn travelled back from the newly conquered lands of northern Spain with his army and retinue. His return was delayed slightly after awarding the province of Asturias to Garm as his fief. The long journey north proved too much for the king as a mild fever caught in the damp forests of Asturias deepened and was to claim his life in 1304. Queen Frigga took control of the kingdom and despite rumours of discontent that the royalty had yet again flouted with tradition, no dissent occurred. Queen Frigga spent the months waiting for her husband to return recruiting sellswords to the raven banner; assisted by her son Prince Braggi. Princess Inga, widow of Erik Nicholson, was sent to Adger in the far north but died shortly after arriving in the old Norwegian lands. Hildegard was accompanied by Tordal and the young prodigy Bishop DeBole as she also travelled to Adger to woo the lords there. They were rewarded with the fealty of the Adger’s jarl. Feric moved throughout the conquered Spanish lands collecting the stray bands of men stationed as garrisons. His attempts to declare Castille as a tributary for Kirkval met with failure as no sooner had the northmen left than the region and Burgos declared for Olbia. It seemed the old loyalties ran deep. Francois of the St Denis Order left Gascony for the French and then travelled back to Kirkval where he was to die in 1303. Meanwhile, Louis of the Hammer moved to Thingvellir in Iceland where an Order House was raised.

Saxon Kingdom of England

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

The declaration of Prince Ian to become King Harry’s heir was met with great celebrations throughput the lands. To improve relations with the truculent Welsh, a postal road was cleared from Wymeswold to Caer Dyvi. King Harry himself was blessed with four children during these years as he ruled from London. Berwick to formally declare for the King again as the efforts of Lord Alex paid off.

 

 

Western Europe

Heiliges Romisches Reich

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

The Empire’s control of the Tyrol and the Swiss was stretched as their traditional levies were no longer required. Throughout northern Germany the Empire’s roads were improved and a new postal route created down into the Tyrol. Prince Jarung was to join his father at the Saxon court to assist in the affairs of state.  Caught up in the paranoia of the age, Leopold demanded that Provence be investigated for any cultists of supporters of the late Pedro of Aragon. None were found despite a thorough search of the province. Houses for the Knights were built in Lyonnias, Lyon and Burgundy by the Saxon clergy and in Campania and Catalonia by the travelling Duke, Francois aus Lyonnais. While the Emperor ruled from Saxony, his son Prince Hubbert moved south to Provence where he spent these years supervising affairs in the region. Duke Gunnard aus Holland was unsuccessful in raising a series of Oratories for the Maltese in Naples and Calania. After handing over control of the captured Aragonese province to the St Denis commander, Bishop Adriano Viccenzo travelled back to Cannes with the German army.

Norman Kingdom of France

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

The lands of Aquitaine benefitted from King Jean’s treasury as they were greatly improved with new orchards and hazelnut groves. Prince Charles was presented at court and formally declared as Jean’s heir. He quickly had to take control of the kingdom as his father died during a hunt in 1304. The newly conquered lands of Navarre were cleared and fields planted to replace the tangled woods and scrub. Fear had spread throughout  Christendom that the Aragonese had infiltrated society since their demise at the hands of the alliance. No sign of the Spanish was to be found but French agents did uncover rumours that the ancient Garduna were collecting blood money from the peasants of Navarre. Dominique De Ls Rochelle was tasked to investigate further but met a grisly end in Navarre as a lead was being followed. Prince Philippe was also to die in 1301 as he travelled to Navarre from Aquitaine. The main French army under Oliver moved to Navarre to better patrol the southern borders. He was accompanied by Robert and his cavalry. Laurent was granted Gascony as his fief once the northmen from the Orkneys had departed.

The Papal States

(Roman Catholic Civilised Religious Order)
Pope Alexander II, God’s Voice on Earth

Throughout the Christian lands new holy sites were consecrated by the Papal clergy. A Monastery was built in Paris and lesser sites throughout Languedoc, Catalonia, Santa Maria, Slovenia and Sicily. Papal missionaries countered attempts by the Akramids to convert the laity of Sicily and ensured great numbers of the islands population kept the true faith. Cardinal Carlucci was t hand to assist in the consecration of the Paris Monastery. In Stuttgart, Cardinal Straus struggled against local apathy to build a great Monastery in the city.

The Order of St Denis

(Roman Catholic Civilised Religious Order)
Aric the Bold, Grandmaster of the Order of St Denis, Scourge of Islam

After the conquest of the Aragonese lands by the combined forces of Germany, France, Orkneys and the Order, Aric oversaw the completion of the road up to the Aquitaine border before moving to Catalonia. Old remnants of Aragonese supporters fermented unrest in the city of Aragon and forced the garrison of inexperienced brothers from the city. It reverted to Aragonese control although the surrounding province was still subjugated by the Order. His atonement now becoming the stuff of legend, the ageing Ramone was finally at peace when his death came in 1304; his search for the Holy Chalice of Christ as however unsuccessful.

The Kingdom of Olbia

(Roman Catholic Civilised Open Empire)
Alexander , King of Olbia and lost Aragon

William was sent to the wilds of Sardinia to attempt to gain some much needed support for the mauled kingdom. Pedro’s son Alexander was to take control of Olbia and despite the Olbians efforts to release his father from his imprisonment, old Pedro was to die in Castellon’s dungeons. Some good news reached Alexander when Old Castille declared for him on the Orkneymens departure from the province.

.

 

Western and South Africa

Usama-Yoruba Onium of Ibo

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

New ports were built throughout the Iboan lands. From the coasts of Senegal and Gambia through to the riverlands of Gurma and Gagnoa. Great Ibo itself also grew in size along with Bini and Ijebu. King Ilbayi travelled to Songhai to promote the benefits of putting aside old differences and finally returning to his kingdom; he was aided by the noble Kwanda.. Duggo was to do the same with the lands of Goroul but had little luck with the stubborn tribesmen there.

The Mwene-Mutapa Empire

(African Unkulkulun Civilised Open Empire)
Nyambo II, Emperor of Mapungubwe

The cities of Mwene-Mutapa and Ithembala grew in size during these years. Six thousand spears were raised in Mapungubwe for Nyambo to dramatically increase the size of his guard. The emperor himself ruled from Mwene-Mutapa after ensuring that the nations merchants had their affairs in order. At last the brave warriors of Herero turned to the light of Unkulunkulu as Nyambo’s missionaries descended on the region. The roads through Phalaborwa and the Transkei were completed to link the coast with the capital. Nyambo,son of Nyambo, travelled to Herero to gain the support of the region. He offered the hand of his sister Bibi in marriage but the age of the bride caused a minor offence amongst the tribesmen. Elsewhere, Albara continued to improve relations with the region of Gorongo. Even offering the hand of Sasa to seal the alliance.

 

 

North Africa and Moslem Spain

The Empire of Egypt

(Sunni Islam Civilized Open Empire)
Son of Mahmud, Sultan of Egypt

The great city of Alexandria grew again in population and its high walls replaced. Nearly six thousand infantry were raised in Alexandria along with numerous companies of engineers. Al’Qadi on the Red Sea also grew in size and began to rival the great cities of the Nile Delta. Egyptian academics were experimenting with augmenting the Indian elephants in the Sultan’s army with armoured protection. These were successful years for the Egyptian clergy as they saw many Copts turn to Islam. Inroads were also made with the Orthodox Christians of the Crimea. Mahmud ruled from Alexandria until his death in 1304. His passing was mourned by the Empire due the great works he had accomplished. His son succeeded him without dissent such was his popularity.  Prince Badr was also to die in 1304 due to an ongoing illness. Faruq Dahrr was dispatched west to explore the Coast of Alwil and Gambia. His fleet of twenty Dhows was hit by fierce storms of the Canaries and lost with all hands except for a few survivors limping back to Alexandria. Jel Laddin was more successful as his larger fleet managed to explore down the African coast to the Inhambane Sea. The massive army garrisoned in Egypt, over forty thousand men, was moved down to Axum by the effete general Muhammed Hasen. Kamal el Dine’s diplomacy in the Crimea saw little progress in the peninsula.

The Akramid Caliphate

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

The lands of the Cheliff, Galacians and Kabilya were improved with new agricultural projects. Akramid missionaries had not given up on Sicily and many converts were made on the island. Sameer’s continued diplomacy in Leon with Arriman began to show benefits but still the region refused to fully accept his rule. Derth was dispatched to discover the fabled Canaries and managed to avoid the storms that decimated the Egyptians to find a route to the islands. The Imam Astroman was tasked with protecting the realm from Andulusia but died of a blood fever in 1301.

 

Eastern Europe

The Varangian Rus of Kiev

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

The royal road up to Polotsk from Kiev was finally completed.  Peter married his son, also called Peter to a daughter the local nobility. Meanwhile, the Kievian forces gathered in Pereaslavl in case of attack from the hordes.

The Grand Duchy of Poland

(Roman Catholic Civilised Open Empire)
Ziemowit Poznan III, Grand Duke of Poland

The Poles were content with their Kielbasa.

The Kingdom of Hungary

(Eastern Orthodox Civilised Open Empire)
Vajk Hunyadi, King of Hungary

Some of Vajk’s feared cavalry were disbanded as reward for their service against the Uighurs. The newly disbanded cavalry joined with other settlers in Banat to build the port of Novi Sad on the Danube. The remainder of Hungary’s army patrolled their borders from Banat.

 

 

Arabia and the Middle East

The Buwayid Sultanate

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

The death of Zarife saw the Sultanate enter a more reflective era. The ancient kingdom of Byzantium declared that no longer would it support the Moslems in the their campaigns.

 

Ar Rassid Imamat as Sa'Na    

(Sunni Islam Civilized Open Empire)
Sheik Saddam

Forts were built in Berbera and on the island of Zanzibar. The Sheik Saddam kept his guard close and patrolled his lands from Aden. Abdel Malik was given command of the fleet and tasked with ensuring the Adenese coast was kept safe from raiders. The Imam Zahir was travelling south from Kilwa Kivinge when he fell from his ship off Zanzibar. His body was never recovered.

 

 

 

India

Pratihara Kingdom of Kaunaj

(Hindu Civilised Open Empire)
Mohandas, Raja of Kaunaj

 

The garrison of Kaunaj was augmented with forty squadrons of elephants and the same number of archers mounted on elephants. The cities of Patna and Calcutta grew in size during these prosperous years. To further cement the peace between Rajput and Thaton, Prince Gyan took the dowager Princess Manitho as a bride. The marriage was sealed with many trade agreements. The Kaunaj road system was improved from Rewa to Kalanjara and Patna. The nations clergy were not idle during these years as Und was converted to Hindu and the influence in the Dagger grew. Mohandas ruled from Kaunaj and was blessed with two children by his Tripuri wife Aneeta. While the rest of the nobility were tasked with securing the nation, Prince Ram and the able Gurdip were tasked with improving relations with the battered Tripuri nation. The northern lands of the Dagger were to pull away from the Order and a new Hindu kingdom was created around the fertile lands of Und.

The Western Dhara

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

 

The city of Kata was raised in Kakatiya and the lands around it protected by a series of hill forts. Pajama II ruled from Satava while his generals were dispatched to subdue the Ceylonese. Wapali had command of nearly eight thousand cavalry, over five thousand infantry and several companies of engineers. The Ceylonese were only starting to rebuild after their nation fell apart during previous generations and had little in the way of resistance so fell easily to the attacking Dharans. Wapali took control of the Ceylon nation from its erstwhile rulers in Rajput and subjugated it to Dharan control. Paga II died quickly of a fever in 1301.

The Palas of Bengal

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

 

Three thousand horse were raised in Bihar and a further three thousand lancers in Maghada. The lancers were augmented by three thousand light spears. The city of Gaur grew in size and its walls rebuilt around the new city quarters. Cultivation of the far north continued with the wilds of Gtsang, Sikkim and Bhutan all being cleared. The Bengalis attempt to kill the Dali Lama by ambushing his caravan in Lhasa but the venerable monk was well protected and the would-be assassin thwarted.  Whereas the influence of the Bengalis in the Dagger grew stronger through the efforts of their Brahmin. Spending these years with his son Hardeep, Sanjay ruled from Gaur and sent Prince Gyan to increase his standing with the Bhutanese. Chassam was to take command of the newly raised cavalry from Bihar and along with nearly seven thousand men from Tzukan moved into capture Om’Chu from the Tibetans. His bodyguards stopped an attempt to kidnap the leader as the Bengalis moved into Om’Chu Later interrogation of the kidnappers revealed that they were monks from Lhasa. In retaliation and part of Sanjay’s ongoing war against the Wheel, the monastery at Om’Chu was fired and razed to the ground. The old Brahmin Gandhi died of a fever as a travelled to Bhutan to aid prince Gyan.

South East Asia and the Islands

Kambujadesa

(Hindu Civilised Open Empire)
Vireakboth II, Emperor of the Khmer

 

Angor and Feranga grew in size and their walls rebuild to accommodate the new citizens. A great palace was build in Angor and named Phnom Penh by Vireakboth. The king himself was to spend 1301 treating with the nation’s merchants and sailors before settling down to rule from Angor; his garrison the city being augmented by five thousand new recruits. His clergy saw the nation’s piety increase as Vireakboth prayed to the mighty Vishnu for guidance. Haomkong was tasked with transporting colonists to Tengah and Selatan from Chi. He also took two thousand men to garrison the newly gained regions from Khemer.

The Kingdom of Thaton

(Buddhist Civilised Open Empire)
Achara, King of the Thaton

The cities of Mandalay, Loikaw, Taunggyi and Myitkynia all grew in size during these years and the nation’s prosperity was not confined to the cities as many regions benefitted from improved agriculture. More missionaries were sent to Pegu and the region became totally Buddhist. Achara ruled from Thaton and recruited fifty companies of engineers to secure his capitals defences. The Nanchao were tired of Burut Prem’s paltry gifts and refused to entertain the emissary at court for most of the time. The times he did see the Nanchao king he was ridiculed and ignored. The Princess Manitho was married to Prince Gyan of Kaunaj; Achara was pleased to get the aging dowager out of the Thatonese court.

 

The Dai Kingdom of Annam

(Buddhist Seafaring Open Empire)
Bhadravarman, King of Annam

 

After a brief but unsuccessful tour of Tonkin, Bhadravaman returned to his palace in Annam to rule his kingdom. With the Nanchao being particularly un-amenable, Haramasanta was lucky to get an alliance from them. Without the promise of a marriage to Annam’s heir, Bhadramonte, for one of the Nanchao’s kings many daughters he would have been thrown out of the Nanchao court.

The God Empire of Sri Vijaya

(Buddhist Seafaring Open Empire)
Samaratungga, The God Emperor

 

A port was built on the island of Beiltung called Badau. These years also saw Sirivijaya grow in size as the nation’s prosperity increased. The God-Emperor Samaratungga ruled from Sirivijaya while Rakai Pikatan was dispatched to Kediri to improve relations there. Sadly, his death in 1301 prevented any progress with the Kediri. Jayanasa was tasked with the defence of Singaraja but succumbed to a fever in 1302. Sri Vijayan missionaries to Pajajaran saw some converts from amongst the Hindus.

 

 

Manchu’ko and Nihon

The Minamoto Shogunate

(Shinto Civilised Open Empire)
Kojiro Yasumori, Shogun of the East

 

The harbours around Heian in Yamato were improved to allow shipping and trade to reach the land-locked city. Furthermore, the road was extended west through the Great Wall to Shimane and Yamaguchi and north to Nigata. The last remaining Buddhists in Shimane were converted to Shinto. With such a charismatic father in Daiei Yasumori, the young Kojiro struggled to follow in his footsteps. However, he had no choice but to take command of the Shogunate when his father died from food poisoning in 1303. The efforts of Eiji in the Taira Shogunate further fanned the flames of war and he was lucky to escape with his life. Luckily for Eiji the news of Reiji’s attack on Kagoshima had not reached the Taira Shogun., Reiji set sail from Shimonoseki with Yoshi and the Minamoto fleet. Seven thousand marines and around two thousand horse were carried by the fleet and Reiji attempted to gain a beachhead in Kogaoshima. Yoshi was to fall ill during the short journey and died of a fever as the fleet drew up their battle lines. Kagoshima was well defended with over six thousand cavalry from Saga and about half that in infantry. The Tairan fleet was almost equal to the attacker’s forty warships. Against such a solid defence the attackers died in the waves as they attempted to land on the shoreline. The Minamoto fleet was destroyed but considerable losses were taken by the Tairan fleet with nearly two-thirds of their number being destroyed. Ships were sent north from the Kurils and south from the Kazan Retto to find new lands for the Japanese.

The Goryeo Kingdom

(Buddhist Civilised Open Empire)
Wang Yong, King of Goryeo

 

The third child of Wang Insu, young Wang Yong, took control of the kingdom on the death of his old father. It was thought that the rough journey to Kutai with the Goryeon army was the cause of Wang Insu’s death; however he was well into his seventies and becoming frail. Further attempts to convert the northern tribes of the Khitan to the light of Buddha came to nothing as they stubbornly held onto their pagan beliefs. The road north was extended from Parhae onto Ta’Ting in Liao-Tung.

 

 

The Land under Heaven

The Kingdom of Koueichou

(Buddhist Civilised Open Empire)
Dai Shang, King of Koueichou

 

The city of Tai’de grew in size during these prosperous years. Sadly, the death of Queen Dai Ling soured this otherwise enlightened period. Dai Shang was able to take control of the kingdom without any conflict. The city of Kwa-dei was brought back into the kingdom through the efforts of Ma Setai, Tai Po and Pei Mei. Ko Vai died in 1302 from a fever whilst on patrol on the eastern borders.

The Empire of the Western Song

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

 

The threat from the Mongols seemed to have receded during these years as no more demands were forthcoming for tribute. Zhi Kuo ordered that the kingdoms plentiful resources be spent in repairing the losses from the great plague. Houma city grew in size and the army was strengthened by many cavalry. An alliance was gained from the city of Ta’Tung through the efforts of Tsao Kai and Yu Zhang. Zhang’s efforts were minimal as he was killed in a brawl during the hot summer of 1301. Startling news came late in 1305 that a new threat had gained the allegiance of the Mongols. The Bulgari had come from the far west and after besting the Mongol elite had taken control of their army. Envoys arrived in the autumn demanding much gold from the Song to prevent their lands being overrun.

 

The Wudan Masters

(Buddhist Civilised Religious Order)
Li Wei, Wudan Grandmaster

 

As the Wudan once again looked out over the expanse of China, old Grand Master Li Wei instructed his most loyal supporters to increase the Order’s influence throughout the lands.