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***Welcome to L27, I am your GM for this chaotic world of the dark ages; my name is Chet S. My Lords GM address is: Lords27gm@throneworld.com for orders and L27 stuff, and my NEW L27 paypal address is: lords27gm@throneworld.com
Turn fee is $6.00 donation, and there is also a $6.00 donation for a startup fee for new players. Also I do not accept any personal checks as my bank charges me a $20 fee for any bounced checks that I deposit...(Cash, money orders & certified checks are ok.)
***Any nation that reaches a NEGATIVE balance without making an arrangement with me will not be processed, and not sending orders in for three turns in a row in addition to not making payments, will force me open your country to a new player who has the time and money...
I have policy of no switching nations if your balance is in the red, until that negative balance is paid and you must also pay for one turn ahead so you're in the black.
BTW if your orders form doesn't have a yellow highlight section (with a red section under it) in the middle of it, you are using the wrong sheet and need to download a new one from the file section of this site or at the L27 home site at: http://games.groups.yahoo.com/group/Lords-27/files/L27_Excel_orders_template.xls
If you do not have Microsoft Excel, there is a free version of Office called OpenOffice that will open, edit and save Excel file at: http://www.openoffice.org/
Do not put new or old projects in the builds section of the Order form; they only go in the new or old projects section, and do not delete any part of the order form that you are not using, just leave the unused sections blank and do not add any page-breaks either.
Make sure your e-mail address is right in your orders, that is the address the program will send your stat sheet to... and that it has the right turn number too!
Troop builds: If your leader is in the region already or will be in that region to pick up your newly built troops, don't build troops for the garrison and then have him pick them up, just build troops for him (he still has to go and pick them up).
Mercenaries: Remember that you MUST specify a city where you are hiring the Mercs. Failure to do this will result in no Mercs and the money being lost. Also, mercenaries may not be hired for more than one turn at a time. This may change when the Years per Turn reduces sufficiently enough for a contract to carry over to multiple turns. PLEASE put where you are hiring any mercenaries AND how many you are trying to hire AND how much you are willing to pay per point of troops in your builds section on the order form. PLEASE put this information in the notes section at the end of your builds. Otherwise you will not get the mercenaries and the GPs bid on them will be lost.
For expanding cities please put the name of the city in location, not just the region it is in. Also for WP for fortress always put the region in for Location and for WP for cities always put in the city name for location. Last but not least in the item column in the build section do NOT write out fully what your building please use the codes, for example: your building 10 elite infantry, do NOT write "Build 10 elite infantry", instead write 10ei and do that for all units and also put no space between 10 and ei (the lords program reads it this way.).
Claimed Regions and Cities: These regions and cities will be noted by a dot in your color, not a full color shading of the region.
***Please use this order format when naming your orders: L27_T42_NationName.xls.
BTW: please use abbreviations in the rules for Intel commands (CI for counter intelligence, etc) and for units (f for field forts, etc).
Heirs and Princes: Unless stated otherwise in your orders, when a King's male child comes of age he is promoted to Heir (if he has none, then grandson, then any male child in royal family). Likewise when any male child comes of age he is promoted to Prince if there is an opening and I don't forget to check.
Please let me know if PWB are for a city or a region by putting a "c" or "r" in front of it like this: 10rPWB.
From now on if your leader has NO name he or she gets NO action.
If you have the time, it would help me write the newsfax if you write a sentence or two or even a paragraph, a summary on what your country and its leaders are trying to accomplish during the turn.
***Max Tax dropped from 2.0 to 1.9 in T45, it will be 1.8 in T46, 1.7 in T47, 1.6 in T48, and 1.5 in T49 and beyond, as the world gets darker and resources become more scarce.
***Ships must end the turn in a port, if not in a port they lose 10% the first turn, 20% the second turn, 30% the third turn, etc.
SEE (HOUSE) RULES (*** = New): http://www.throneworld.com/lords/lote27/Rules.html
***In L27, HC (Have Children) can only be combined with RULE and ADMINISTER, otherwise it's a separate action for your leader.
NEW Buy L27 T-shirts, mugs, poster maps and stuff! At the L27 Store at: http://www.cafepress.com/L27
This is not the end,
It is not even the
Beginning of the end,
But it is, perhaps
The end of the beginning...
-- Winston Churchill
Mercenaries:
| Religion | Troops |
|---|---|
| Shinto | Merc Commander M543, 20i, 10c, 10s, 10w |
| Buddhist | Merc Commander M543, 25i, 45c, 15s |
| Hindu | Merc Commander M543, 10i, 10c, 5s, 10w |
| Asiatic Pagan | Bandit Lord Sun Li M879; Merc Commander M543, 25i, 25c, 15s |
Shogun Aro watched aghast, as an entire nation was crushed in less than five years. He watched appalled, as an ancient family line came to an inglorious end. Watched, riveted to the spot (overlooking the battlefield, mwah hah hah),, as the Japanese crushed the Koreans!!! The Shogun then died of old age in 725 contented with the Shogunate's successful expansion. His death was not unexpected as he suffered poor health for many a year, and his Heir easily stepped into his sandals and finished his orders. The only only bad news to reach the capital was the news that both of the Shogunate's veteran explorers with all their ships and all hands on board were lost exploring.
See Kannagara for war's details'
Grandmaster Korizawa turned from defense to offense without missing a step, and came up with an impressive battle plan for a lighting strike against Korea. With the help of all his leaders (and Takeda troops and ships) and over 90,000 mixed troops at his command, he carried it out perfectly.
The Samurai attacked Korea in conjunction with Takeda, with themselves to siege the enemies' cites by land, while the Takeda took them from the sea. It helped the invaders that Korea was lightly defended and had no navy, and most of its cities were un-walled. The Koreans were outnumbered ten to one and easily crushed like a bug. A Buddhist army arrived too late to help and found itself hopelessly outnumbered and it too was crushed. After the conquest of Korea the Samurai were merciless as they killed every man, woman and child in Anshan, Koguryo, and Silla, and they also looted and destroyed all Buddhist sites they could find.
Emperor Kim Dae-Jung continued his father's plans of peaceful improvements but his rule was brief, because he failed to see or heed warnings about the Samurai and Takeda buildup on the mainland, hence dooming the Empire. Thus it was brutally conquered by Samurai and Takeda.
See Kannagara for war's details.
Emperor Tuoba Dao ruled as Prince Tuoba Gui and another leader helped administer. He was very displeased to say the least that his country was backsliding to the old ways. Therefore he sent a huge gold investment to the University, of the size the Japanese usually make, but he had a long way to go to catch up with them. In addition he began the changes from Clan to Feudal society, and from Agrarian to Open culture with the hope that his Empire would someday become more open to new technology. Surprisingly all of this quickly help bring the level of technology back up to a point before it slide backwards.
Emperor Lui Zhaokang again personally led the diplomatic talks (again with help from all his leaders) with the region of Kiangsu and got some amazing results, despite the fact that one of his leaders passed away of old age.
Lord Captain Hu Di gave a hearty 'yo, ho, ho,' and said 'a pirating we will go'. So off they sail to the Mekong Sea and they laid havoc to the shipping there and then returned home with their ships full of booty. (But the Pirates were not fools; they left their trading partner's ships alone and only molested those they didn't trade with.)
Mercenaries: See Orient
Emperor Hu Dong did some IMA, and then took over ruling from his inept Heir. To keep him busy, he gave his heir the command of some newly built heavy warship and told him to defend Hupei. Within the Empire massive improvements were made, and four more cities were built in addition to the five built earlier. The nation's population continued to grow and more people moved into the cities as the country was became more urbanized.
Primate Dewei was still ecstatic about the two Buddhist faiths being reunited again (after over 125 years) even although there was a lot of work to be done before things were running smoothly. It seem that the Primate was the only one in China to see the Japanese threat and he sent a good sized army to Korea to help defend its sites, but it arrived too late and got itself got wiped out and sadly the Temple's sites were destroyed. Meanwhile the Primate for some strange reason withdrew all BL and Infra grants to Hu, Honan, and the Black Dragon, but not Korea. In addition he ordered tech transferred to the Black Dragon in the form of priests traveling the countryside, spreading the Emperor's edict that advanced farming methods were mandatory and establishing that physical and technological enlightenment can presage spiritual enlightenment.
The new Emperor Temasek got started with his rule, and had his brother Prince Parameshwara do some administering. Well it seems the pirates in the East didn't escape the new Emperor's notice as he had eighty new heavy warships built to help defend his Empire. News was that the imperial court was happy the Emperor was married but disappointed that no heirs were forthcoming, and the talk around the palace was that she was barren.
Emperor Tri Jayaavarman II IMA and ruled quite wisely. His Heir was ready to react with his troops to invasions or pirate raids; but unfortunately he wasn't given command of any ships and could do nothing but watch from the shore swearing under his breath as the Pirates did their work in the Mekong Sea. As a result the Empire's shipping was damaged by the pirates.
Mercenaries:
| Religion | Troops |
|---|---|
| Hindu | Merc Commander M543, 25i, 20c, 15s, 5w |
After Primate Ben-Cupta's enlightening trip to Africa, he returned to face problems at home by excommunicating the rebellious scum in his backyard. Soon afterward the rebel Rama X was found dead in his home with a Kali dagger in his heart, wearing a garland of bones, rumors had it that the dark mother's assassins had struck.
Oh Kali as dark night, mother and destroyer of time,
as the fire of the world's dissolution.
Oh Kali of terrific countenance, wearing a garland of bones,
using a human skull as cup.
Oh Kali a dark, black and fierce goddess of death.
There issued suddenly Kali of terrible countenance, armed with a sword and noose. Bearing the strange khatvanga (skull-topped staff), decorated with a garland of skulls, clad in a tiger's skin, very appalling owing to her emaciated flesh, with gaping mouth, fearful with her tongue lolling out, having deep reddish eyes, filling the regions of the sky with her roars.
This image was reported seen by many worshipers towering over the temple of Dakshineswar in Nadavaria for a few moments before disappearing.
Grandmaster Ajit's rule was plagued by civil unrest amongst the brotherhood, and upon his death hell really broke loose (he was found with a Kali dagger in his back). With a lot of infighting and backstabbing it was all a young bother named Vishnu could do to save the brotherhood itself and keep it from falling apart against unseen forces that sought the order's demise.
New player for T46.
Emperor Madahtri too felt the bite of Kali's dagger, he was found in his bed with one lodged in his throat despite a vast Intel network of what should have been successful countermeasures against assassination (many thought that the assassin must have been able to fly in order to get in). Thus rumors spoke that only the Heir was allow close enough to him to do such a dirty deed, which of course set off many clamors for the return of the retire Emperor Llore, but in the end the Heir succeeded to the throne. Elsewhere an outbreak of scarlet fever devastated the city of Male, and tons of missionaries swarmed the northlands, and were for the most part with successful.
Emperor Versha personally supervised the moving of his capital from Palas to Assam. That went smoothly except that his wife Magadha died in an accident on the way. While this was happening, his Heir returned to the homeland with his new wife and celebrated his wedding some more by having some kids, and afterwards he ruled the country. Elsewhere Prince Samudra was found dead in the city in an abandon building, he was tied to an old altar and rumors had it that he died under Kali's knife.
Emperor Admohi's took his newly promoted Heir Birju to Jaunpur to personally conduct diplomatic talks on improving relations. While they were gone a group of strange lights with a glowing red dagger in middle of the lights appeared over the capital then afterwards took off towards the east. A pair of poor diplomats in two separate occasions made with their bumbling two regions hostile to further talks.
Mercenaries:
| Religion | Troops |
|---|---|
| Coptic | Merc Commander M543, 20i, 25c, 10s, 10w |
| Zoroastrian | Jabq M7BA; Merc Commander M543, 15i, 40c, 5s, 10w |
Emperor Qutlugh again did the same old same old "him ruling and his heir administrating" scenario with the addition of the Heir's wife giving birth to a grandson. He also lavishly celebrated his Empires Bicentennial, but the celebrating turned to sorrow when, during a royal hunt, the Heir Bysmurq and his brother Prince Qapagan were killed by a large black beast that left tracks that had never been seen before. After the funeral (they put as many pieces of the bodies that they could find in a pine box) the Emperor honored his Heir by promoting one of his grandsons to Heir and one of his own sons to Prince. Elsewhere there was more death as two more leaders were killed by the Black Beast in Kush and Balkash, and it killed again (an ally) in Turkmen a year later. The Emperor proclaimed a large reward in gold for the head of the Black Beast.
Even although he suffered from poor health and the rigors of old age (in his seventies) the Shah Ahmorad personally visited Shadad and honored them with his presence during talks to improve relations. Of course the Shadads were dutifully impressed and agreed to closer relations. Maybe due to the effect of becoming senile, the Shah gave half his army to his Heir and the rest to a mere lord. Many within the royal palace were surprised that there was no rebellion from either one.
Patriarch Tulnamon founded a cathedral in the city of Sinope. He then remained hidden behind the city walls as Greek Mercs ravaged the countryside. Church Missionaries were for the most part successful with some aided by leaders preaching, but those in Mahabo had most of their good work undone by a group of Aden Missionaries those antics gave missionary work a bad name.
ShahanShah Shapur was suddenly taken ill and died the next day at age 31 (many rumors that he was poisoned). His Heir Kavadh quickly took the throne without any troubles and continued the ShahanShah's rule. For some reason the Pirates continue to leave the Persian shipping alone, but the Vikings raided Lebanon wrecking havoc there. There was more destruction elsewhere as a rouge tidal wave sacked the City of Adalia and devastated its region.
The war's progress pick up a bit with when a large Persian army took back all the regions and cities lost earlier, and a small band of Greek Mercs slipped by and loot the regions and religious sites in Carhae and Edessa. Before the Persians got there with their large army, another small band of Greek Mercs looted religious sites in Hellepontus and Patagonia. Elsewhere there were a few Intel attacks, all from the Zoro Church that the ERE easily blocked with their Intel.
Grandmaster Sanve stayed home to defend it, and react to the Greek Mercs looting some Persian regions; his army arrived just after the damage was done and wiped out the small force. Elsewhere his leaders were either defending lands or trying to establish sites.
[See The Second Romano-Zoroastrian War (681-)].
Autarch Nasim died in 725 at age 75, an old, decrepit, broken man who kept mumbling to himself over and over again the word 'horde'. His dreams of world domination lay in shambles. After the Autarch's death a Lord Afrasiab came out on top in a free for all scramble to replace the Autarch. Within the nation many became dissatisfied with the new ways and returned to the old ways of the steppes.
Open for a new player.
After Sultan Gaffar again Interfered in Mercantile Affairs (it was habit forming), he once more stood ready to react to any trouble (and even took time to dally with his wife). His Heir ruled but sadly his wife died in childbirth and he consoled himself by having a bastard with one of the Harem girls. The Sultan's realm was the most peaceful and serene of the Zoro regimes, but had that peace shattered when the Sultan sent a pair of leaders with a fleet to take on the Sea Serpent that was causing so much trouble off the coast of Madagascar. The engagement lasted months as the serpent picked off ships one by one and swam circles around the fleet, at last the fleet return home with one leader dead and half the fleet gone, and the monster still prowling the seas.
Khan Altan led his horde his horde to Altai and had his Intel try to conceal their tracks again, but this time they failed. He then passed away at age 55, content to be remembered as one of the greatest warlords the Mongols has ever seen. Meanwhile his leaders traded slaves for agro with the Goths. In Altai the horde's troops and horses were uneasy at being close to the ruined city (none would go near it), as many saw movement there and strange lights at night, and as a result there were a few desertions.
Mercenaries:
| Religion | Troops |
|---|---|
| Coptic | Merc Commander M543, 10i, 10c, 10s, 10w, 10xw, 10t |
| African Hindu | Merc Commander M543, 5i, 5c, 5s, 5w, 5xw, 5t |
| African Pagan | Merc Commander M543, 5i, 5c, 5s, 5w |
Emperor Merakh again remained home ready to respond to any invasions of Egypt proper with his enormous army. He also saw to the burial of the charred mess that once was his Heir Abubakar II in a sarcophagus that was placed in one of the pyramid tombs of the kings. He then promoted his son Leveth to heir when he came of age, and his brother Davinion to Prince. Bishop Pretesh was given troops to command and orders to join Princess Lyrissia in Gefara and aid in attacking Tunisia. The Bishop arrived in Gefara just in time to give the Princess her last rites after she caught a fever and died a cherry red color. The Bishop then made a valiant attempt to finish her orders, but to find the outcome, you have to look in the Coptic wars section. Elsewhere some Vikings raided Crete, Levant, and Cyprus, but the huge amount of field forts in Mansura gave them second thoughts. This time a very large gold and small agro payment was made to the Pirates.
After over 35 years the Coptic War (Holy Grail War) picked up again and then came to an end. As Egypt, Thebans, Coptic Church and even Sicily attacked the Vandals and Arian Church. Funny thing was that they all attacked at different times and the Vandals could have driven them back with luck, but the Vandals withdrew from Tunisia and Carthage leaving it in the Arian Church hands. It gets even better, or should I say bizarre, as the Thebans in Gefara didn't wait for Coptic Church or even the Egyptians, and decided to grab all the glory for themselves by invading Tunisia. As they spilled over the borders, they found it surprisingly lightly defended by Arian church forces and not a Vandal in sight. The Thebans easily conquered Tunisia and this time they waited for the Egyptians to start the siege of Carthage. Soon after the Egyptians arrived in Tunisia and garrisoned it, they together started the siege. Almost on cue they noticed smoke coming from the city and soon it was in ablaze. They could only watch with amazement as it burnt to the ground. The Coptic force in Tunisia was peeved to say the least, as they thought the Arian Church had burnt their holy city of Carthage to keep them from having it, but afterwards they found out that a Sicilian fleet tricked its way into the city by promising aid and repentance, but once in they burnt it to the ground to pay the Arian Church back for them having excommunicated.
The Theban Master Octavious waited with his army in Gefara for another of his brothers to join him, then launch his quest for glory without out waiting for his fellow Coptics, see the Coptic Wars for the results of his endeavor. For indeed it was an endeavor that was fitting for the Order's bicentennial. Meanwhile a brother disappeared in the region of Egypt looking for a SE, and many rejoiced over the news that the Religious Ops had finally succeeded in lowering Sicily's religious strength.
[See The Coptic Wars (686-) in Egypt section, for the war's details]
Patriarch Cyril had disapproved of the former Patriarch's decision to pull back the Church forces to the region of Egypt when he was an Archbishop, so his first order was to have the Church forces advance back to Gefara and help with the invasion, but it was all over by the time he got there (once there he caught a fever and has never regained full health). Back home two of three leaders establishing new sites within Coptic lands suffered from poor skills (and charisma) and they were completely unsuited for that work, and got themselves imprisoned for their poor behavior. Meanwhile the third and only bishop that had any skill was killed in Axum by an Axum solider when he failed to stop at a road block.
[See The Coptic Wars (686-) in Egypt section, for the war's details]
Emperor Verhanu ruled and he did some IMA. As (most of) his leaders conducted diplomacy missions with its neighboring regions for mutual benefit and that were for the most part successful. Missionaries sent to bring the word of God to the pagan tribes of the Afrikan interior found many converts. Within the Empire some new shipping was built for improved internal trade along the Nile River. Strangely Lord Tungaru disappeared without a trace on the way to Kordofan on a diplomatic mission; the strange part was that he had 400 elite light infantry with him to protect the large gold shipment and gifts he had with him.
Emperor Vivek just ruled and IMA, afterwards he died of a sudden sickness at age 44; rumor had it that he had been poisoned by his heir. That hampered the Heir's succession, and it was touch and go for a while whether he would have any Empire to ascend to, but luckily in the end only one region revolted and broke away from the Empire. Elsewhere within the Empire, the slow integration of the former Asamakaran port of Arami into the Hindu Afraqan's nation hit a snag over the ridiculous offer of a marriage to Ally Krishnakant's relative. This overshadowed the much smaller port capital of Pratishthan, with its new growth in sea trade and the cultivation of so much of the coastline (and even territory deeper inland), the capital finally outgrew its old walls and looks to continue that growth despite many settlers heading for the newly opened tract of Kimbu.
King Lumbago gathered the nation's armies to himself and settled in to rule the country. As large scale cultivation was started in many provinces. Furthermore diplomats and missionaries worked within and without the Kingdom's borders to improve the status of the King and the Hindu religion. Life was good within the Kingdom, but there were rumors that the Zulu pagans to the South had setup a new government after over a hundred years since the last one.
King Shaka Zulu gathered his people together and formed a third Zulu Kingdom in 721, it had been many, many years since the last two: from 511 to 540, and again in 580 to 612. When he was crowned the King, he took his name from a famous and ancient Zulu leader from the past.
Mercenaries:
| Religion | Troops |
| Coptic | Kwabana M826 Merc Commander M543, 5i, 5c, 5s, 5w, 5xw, 5t |
| African Pagan | Merc Commander M543, 5i, 5c, 5s |
Grandmaster Segun Odegbami died during a sand storm in the Oasis of Adrar, his troops scattered to the four winds. When word reached home, rebel student leader Kwabana took advantage of it to lure the remaining St.Cyril forces out of their fortress by using half of his student troops as bait. The students ran from the St.Cyril troops, which of course gave chase right into a trap. Afterward the Victorious Kwabana had the fortress burnt to the ground and the Order fell apart.
The Emperor Djibuti remained at the head of his army, ever ready to respond to any invasions or rebellions. He had constructed three roads which united the full expanse of the Kingdom from East into to West. His two most trusted leaders continued their investigations into some mysterious cults, but all they found was a mysterious black staff made out of some unknown wood. Elsewhere in Sokoro, Bishop Tutu was found dead hanging from a tree, torn and frayed. He had been preaching to the masses just the day before his death.
New King Thandiwe was not to be outdone by his northern neighbor, he ordered two roads built and stated ?One day we too will have a road to unite our glorious country from West to East. Otherwise the new King just ruled and IMA just like his father before him. Good and bad news arrived by messenger for the King,, the good news was that missionaries helped the region of Kafin to fully embrace the Coptic religion, the bad news was that two of his leaders were dead, Prince Gazali washed up on the beach in Marampa with weird lines and circles on him, while Lord Banif was found dead without a mark on him in his bed with a smile frozen on his face in Khaziptioples. Also a sea serpent was sighted in the Bight of Benin and was disrupting some internal trade.
Patriarch Ralston would regret his decision to stay to defend Carthage. He kept up his excommunication of both Sicily and the Arius Knights and that led to his undoing. His forgiving nature was also the cause of his death as he gave the Sicilians a second change only to see them betray him. Although the Church took control of Tunisia and the city of Carthage from the Vandals after they left (along with Casablanca), but they didn't have it for long, as the Coptics invaded Tunisia and Sicily burnt Carthage. Before the end Patriarch Ralston was wounded by a Coptic Assassin and he was bedridden while his holy city came crashing down on him.
[See The Coptic Wars (686-) in Egypt section, for the war's details]
Mercenaries:
| Religion | Troops |
| Celtic Christian | Merc Commander M543, 5i, 5c, 5s, 5w, 5xw, 5t |
| Heretic Christian | Merc Commander M543, 5i, 5c, 5s, 5w |
Caesar Damianus II saw his Heir die in 724 (at age 50) after coming down with some kind of wasting away disease, which was lucky for him because he got to appoint a new Heir (Prince Octavious) before he died the following year of the same disease (at age 67). Thus the Empire's subjects never really knew how close the nation came to falling apart. A pair of leaders took a fleet out on patrol through English Channel, North Sea and Viking Bank. Another twosome had great success with their diplomatic mission in Northumbria.
Pope Owen felt the urge to travel south to the Iberian Peninsula to establish some sites, by perchance this happened just before the sea serpent showed up in the Irish Sea. Somehow with some higher guidance the Intel sector was able to keep it from attacking the Isle of Man, but it couldn't drive it from the Irish Sea.
Pulled to the four corners of the Earth; that was the feeling within the Celtic Church (a victim of its own success). With heretics to the West, an unknown Sea Monster bearing down from the North and the construction of new religious sites and the integration of new nations into the Church in the South and East it had never been more true.
Furthermore, with population of believers roughly doubling over the past five years diplomacy had become the order of the day. It felt as though every King, Queen, Prince and often court Jester needed a personal letter from the Pope or Cardinal to assuage concerns and to re-affirm the merits of the Celtic Faith. Lastly, great investments were made in the government and the university to accommodate the expansion of the Church.
Joyous news reached the Pope in Ispan with a report that the Religious Operations were able to halt the spread of the heresy in the West. While bad news arrived the next day that all four attempts to establish churches in Alamanni failed and to make matters worse the Church leader was thrown into prison in Holstein, and the one who wrote the report stated that he didn't see how this could have happen without the approval of the Alamanni government.
King Jensef stood ready with his army to react to any invasions, as he wondered if his Vikings were getting soft from digging in the dirt and cultivating regions when they should be off on raids. To offset that problem he ordered that some troops and ships be upgraded, and added some anti-piracy patrols. He also ordered his Heir (to risk a trip by himself as the sole leader) to take the main fleet to the Island of Man and defend the holy city there from any un-Celtic Church influences. The Heir also delivered one of his brothers in the royal family to join and someday become a bishop for the Celtic Church.
Bjorn Olaffson, taking up the mantle of his father, felt middle age warring on him, seeing to the mercantile growth of his nation and fostering a modernization of society. With his newly-appointed foreign secretary, Leif, he set out to Vasterboten to talk with the local lord, Grendel, about joining his kingdom. Bjorn was also unmarried, and perhaps this helped him in the talks. By the end of the talks, he wasn't a bachelor any longer, Vasterboten was part of Norway, and he had a newborn son.
Elsewhere, the Vikings took to the seas, passing over their new Christian brothers, and instead sailing into the eye of the Holy Grail war to carry off Persian & Egyptian wealth alike. In their voyages, they made some progress in exploring the ways of the vast Atlantic.
King Fils continued to rule somewhat majestically over his Kingdom.
Open for a new player.
King Nordberth ruled with grandeur and gave his poor wife a rest from baby making. Sadly Lord Meinrad give up his dream of finding his sea monster, as it had moved too far away and he was getting to old for any more adventures. Prince Norwulf and Lord Georgi had a successful go at a diplomatic mission to Estonia. Another pair of went slave raiding to the East and West. As Prince Meinwold found nothing in his search for secret societies in Livonia, although rumors had it that he spent more time in some ladies' bedroom than in back alleys. Again Missionaries messed up so bad and enraged the populace so much that many of them were hunted down and killed, this time in Courland.
Mercenaries:
| Religion | Troops |
|---|---|
| Celtic Christian | Merc Commander M543, 10i, 10c, 10s, 10w |
| Pauline Christian | Merc Commander M543, 5i, 5c, 5s, 5s |
| Pirates (Pirate's code) | Merc Commander M543, 5w, 5xw, 5xi (Med Only) |
King Alaric ruled quite steadily. He allowed the Mongols to use the Bolgar Trade center to upgrade their troops (not there was much he could do about it). He also had one of his Princes trade some agro for some slaves with the Mongols before they left. Therefore he was so never so happy to hear that they rode off into the East back where they came from. He also ordered the Knight Defender's sites protected even although they had been excommunicated, which led to riots in the Kingdom's cities which kept the Assassin Corps busy putting them down. Speaking of cities, the capital was rocked by an earthquake that left its port high and dry, and the city damaged.
Emperor Asparukh II was pleased that the Church based on the teaching of Paul, to be called 'The Church of Paul' even got its own cross symbol and a little better organized. His son Motilor was doing well as the new head of the Church.
No Orders.
Emperor Basileus Garrisoned Thrace and stood ready to react to any Zoro invasions. He ingenuously used Greek Mercs to cause havoc in Zoro lands, keeping his own troops out of harms way as he continued to build up his Empire's defenses. He sent some gold to the Knight defenders hoping to convert them to Celtic eventually, although his efforts to lower their religious strength failed. By the way another Persian assassin attempt failed to harm the Emperor and they were becoming so common placed that it didn't even faze him.
[See The Second Romano-Zoroastrian War (681-)].
Emperor tried to rule but his poor health worsened and his death cause the government to stretch thin. His sister took the throne as the country had a history of female rulers.
No orders.
Emperor Helmat Wise-Counsel gathered some troop and return home to rule. He ordered built a new port city and another city expand. His royal court was pleased with the explanation, but displeased that he didn't get married and start siring some heirs as the royal nursery was empty and filled with spider webs.
Lord Capt Red Markusum ordered his mates to host up the mainsail, for we got a whole lot of pirating to do. He set half of his ships to do the Coptic bidding (as his pockets were lined with Coptic gold), they were to intercept the Vandals and keep them from leaving Africa, but the Pirate fleet was damaged by a storm in the gates of Hercules, and had to turn back. Of course they raided on the way home so it wasn't a total loss. The rest of his forces stormed the island of the Balearics and easily took control of the unclaimed island (control dropped by Vandals). But (there is always a but) a Knight Defenders fleet (with troops) surprise attacked them just as they were settling into ruling (whoring, drinking, etc) the island and they were driven off the island.
Mercenaries:
| Religion | Troops |
|---|---|
| Arian Christian | Merc Commander M543, 5i, 5c, 5s, 5w |
| Celtic Christian | Merc Commander M543, 10i, 5c, 5s, 5w |
| Heretic Christian | Merc Commander M543, 5i, 5c, 5s, 5w |
| Pirates (Pirate's code) | Merc Commander M543, 5w, 5xw, 5xi (Med Only) |
Alistar II, Mark of Ispan, left Portugal thinking the Viking dogs wouldn't dare return anytime soon after the whopping that was given to their raiding party. He journeyed to Estremadura to hold talks with the local to get them to become friendlier to his nation. The locals were so impressed with the new Mark's smooth diplomacy that they fully joined the Lombards by the time he was done. In addition Alistar II, in a bold move, ordered a pair of his leaders (one an excellent general) to drive the Sicilians off the Iberian Peninsula. The pair, with their army of 20,000+ assorted troops (but lacking siege engineers) easily took over Catalonia, but came up hard against the walls of Sagunto. Unable to break through the city walls, and with no ships to blockade the port, the siege went nowhere. Elsewhere a Prince in the homeland with orders to administer fell off his horse during a hunt and broke his neck and died (he was too drunk to feel anything), unfortunately this caused the government to become spread too thin.
Grandmaster Petros personally oversaw the successful building of an Oratory in Granada. Also, to assure that new sites were established in the important cities of both Kent and Ile de France, he sent both leaders and Intel to establish them and both were established. Other news was not as good as a leader died mysteriously in Kent without a mark on him, and another leader disappeared in the Med with a fleet of 34 ships, mostly heavy transports carrying 3,400 mixed troops. Rumors said they were captured by the pirates or sunk by the Greeks, either way many thought it was foolish for only one leader to chance the Med with the Pirates and the Coptic war going on. A third leader attempted to restore the Order's status in the ERE, but he failed due to the lingering hard feelings over being betrayed by the Order.
King Artos ruled and even dabbled in some espionage which was something you don't see a ruler do very often. Maybe that's what got him killed, as he fell from the ramparts of his palace (rumor said he was pushed) a couple years after he also foolishly gave command of most of his troops to his Heir (the rest of his troops went to a couple other leaders). Fortunately his heir had a good alibi, he was off on maneuvers with his new troops, and upon his return he was crowned king. Meanwhile the Kingdom's missionaries were successful for the most part in Poitou and Burgundy.
King Sarantino II personally led a fleet loaded with troops and got his bloody revenge against the Arian Church for excommunicating him. He used his high charisma and some Intel help to talk his way into the city of Carthage with promises of repentance and help in the war. Once inside he ordered the holy city burnt to the ground (with grim satisfaction that it had been in the Church's hands and not the Vandal's), afterwards he returned home with a smile on his lips and damnation in his soul.
While the King was gone, nothing good happened back home as a leader sent to the Balerics and its city and was killed by the Pirates. Also the Heir died of the old age of 63, but the talk around the royal court was that he had been poisoned by an Arian sympathizer.
Epilogue: Upon his return the Sicilian King announced: "It is time now for Sicily to strike out on the best path that suits Sicily. The Arian Church has abandoned God, Christianity, and the people of Sicily. This apostate church must be stopped. If the Lord is going to use the forces of darkness to accomplish his plan, then far be it from the King of Sicily to abandon God's plan and work counter to those who would act to bring his divine mission to fruition."
Grandmaster Armand declared his Order a Mercenary Order to wash away the last traces of the Arian Church. He signed a charter with the Kingdom of Sicily for it to be the first nation under their protection. He stated the Knight Defenders must react to protect those who were misguided too, and defend the Knight sites that lay in those territories. Therefore the Grandmaster ordered that Knight Defender troops seize and hold the Islands of Baelerics and the city of Palma for the immediate future. Well, it did work out that way, but just not against the Vandals, for when the Knight troops and fleet arrived they found the Pirates there. They caught them with their pants down having their way with the womenfolk and easily drove them off. Back home the Grandmaster made another proclamation that the city of Arius would be renamed to Eusebiys to honor our last Grandmaster. Elsewhere a leader was in Catalonia trying to establish a site when the Lombards attacked, he his best to help defend the region and died in battle honorably.
Emperor Maximus continued to rule with gusto, and despite being in his seventies the old goat fathered a few more kids. He was surprised that his new Heir Theodosius survived his trip to Burgundy to see to the defense there. A pair of leaders overwhelmed the local lords of Aquitaine with gifts of gold and brought closer ties to them. Another leader was sent out with his fleet to defend the Tyrrhennian Sea against those dreaded pirates, but the Pirates must have been busy elsewhere...
NOTE: The Albions bought horses to the new world and the cavalry count has been completed and there are herds of horses roaming the Great Plains along with the buffalo ... (Completed for Central America too, but not South America)
Mercenaries:
| Religion | Troops |
|---|---|
| North Amerind | Merc Commander M543, 3i, 3xi, 3c, 3s, 3w |
| Pelegian Christian | Merc Commander M543, 5i, 5xi, 5c, 5s, 5w |
Chief Eaglewing ruled quite adequately with the help of Prince Strongbow's administering. The Chief sent his Heir Eaglewing II on a diplomatic mission to the region of Sokoki with Leader Seesfar, but they found the region empty except for some herds of deer. Luckily Seesfar had some troops with him so he could claim the region for the Iroquois. While in Sokoki the Heir went to bath in the Saint Lawrence River and noticed that across the river lay a ruined city shrouded in shadows. Since he had no orders to explore it he stayed in Sokoki and did some hunting, but he did send a report of it back to his father the Chief. Within the nation technology improved a little with new ways of faming that was mostly learned from the Mississippi Federation.
Chief Running Wolf again stayed ready to react with his army to anybody that wanted their gold until he died in 722 after a harsh winter. Before he died he was forced by a group of warrior nobles to make an agreement to abide by a Warrior Council's console. During this time his Heir ruled (and sired some kids of his own until he was made Chief) with the rest of the Nation's leaders administering which had mixed results...
Chief Ten Bears promoted his son Prince Pouncing Lynx to Heir and gave him a few troops for him to start learning how to command. Together they were on react with their armies to counter any threats to the Federation. He in addition ordered the tithe increased to the Pelegian Church, and the Federation's first royal road constructed, just as the new bridge across the Ohio River was finally finished.
Chief Wild Oaks performed the ole "him ruling and his heir administrating" scenario except it was his prince that was administering because he had no heir which of course gave his tribal council fits. The rest of his leaders were given no orders and had nothing to do but twiddle their thumbs. The nation saw a returning to the old ways and this was seen as a rejection of anything Mississippi.
Chief Hatawin II ruled and sired some more kids with his third wife, while his heir Hatawin III and his first wife kept having kids too. A pair of leaders claimed new lands (one dying in the process of smallpox) while the rest did nothing.
King Barrett II did thee ole 'King rule, Heir administer' dance step with positive results. Also he and his advisors couldn't figure out the Crystal Skull, but for some strange reason its eyes lit up three times. Meanwhile the King was displeased with the news that Lord Louis Mazati was lost at sea exploring the south, and that a minor official was caught embezzling from the royal treasury and executed.
Mercenaries:
| Religion | Troops |
|---|---|
| Arian Christian | Charles the Bold M754 Merc Commander M543, 10i, 10c, 10s, 15w, 15xw, 15t |
| Pelegian Christian | Merc Commander M543, 5i, 5xi, 5c, 5s, 5w, 5xw, 10t |
| South Amerind | Merc Commander M543, 3i, 3xi, 3s, 3w |
Emperor Pryzaka vowed bloody revenge for his heir's death by pin cushion. But rather than deal with it personally, he sent his new Heir Mathew on the mission of vengeance. As well as the population, Mathew (and his army) killed every other living thing in Pisones, burning every stand of trees, every herd of goats (that his army didn't eat), and poisoning every well before he was done. Early on he [Mathew] supported the Intel activity attempting to determine who killed his father, which provided plenty of minor nobles that were tortured for info before they died (if they wanted a blood cult, well, they're going to get one). Also the mysterious altar was shattered and buried in rotting corpses!!! Almost as if in answer to the Mathew's bloodbath and altar shattering, a volcano exploded in Huave destroying the new public works built there. Two more volcanoes appeared to its south; in fact the whole entire southern horizon was shrouded in darkness. In addition this seemed to cause wave of anti-clericism throughout the Empire that foiled efforts to raise religious strength as many rejected the white-man's religion and returned to the old ways.
Patriarch Cullen ap Denez waited for orders as he expanded the Church somewhat. But unfortunately a new volcano destroyed a site in Huave
Open for a new player.
Emperor Gareth II ap Grania ac Mian for some strange reason issued no orders yet again and after that coup attempt last year he locked himself in his royal chambers and refused to come out.
No Orders for second time in a row. (After three times in a row, it is time for a new player. )
Lord Captain Blackjack Sparrow stood ready to counter any attack; furthermore he would use all of his considerable skills to defend what is his and take the fight to any enemy that dares attack him for he would utterly crush them. While at the same time he built up his little empire some.
Open for a new player.
Emperor Juan Valdez II first reinforced his army from the regional garrison. Then he prepared and held a huge religious ceremony at the new religious complex that he had built, the ceremony was for his son when his son came of age and was made his heir (and also married to a noble girl from Valdivia). In his son's honor hundreds of slaves were ritually slaughtered.
Those that went to check out the mystery city down south had returned home to the city of Yubec and brought back something with them that soon killed off the whole population of the city and was to be called "The Black Death".
Emperor Garvin withdrew from Carthage, handing the keys to the city to the Arian Church. He then began the "Great Vandal Migration" to South America, as word went out to all Arians and Vandals "to gather at Casablanca, for we are bugging out. Bye Coptic dogs!" (So like rabbits running before a fox) Everything including the kitchen sink was shipped to their new home in South America. Surprisingly everything went as smooth as silk except that Prince Joachim was kidnapped, while Bishop Alex Gemeinhardt was wounded by those hated Coptics (even the Arian Mercs even joined them with their commander) and a few ships were lost on the way.
Somewhere in South America, Emperor Garvin with tears in his eyes looked around the round oak table (in his just finished grand hall deep within his sparkling new palace), saw his son with his wife and the triplets, the rest of his family, and friends. He proclaimed: 'A toast to all that made this possible, to those that gave up their lives so we could be here, and thanks be to God for watching over us, amen!'
[See The Coptic Wars (686-) in Egypt section, for the war's details]
Chief Tovaro ruled and kept his Heir administering although he wasn't any help at all, but the heir continued to get his wife to produce some grandkids, so he was good for something beside diplomacy. Elsewhere Lord Laroso went to Pacoja but never arrived, rumors were that something in the jungle ate him, more rumors spoken about a new group of white-man arriving in South America in their big wooden ships or was it some more pirates.
Trials, temptations, disappointments -- all these are helps instead of hindrances, if one uses them rightly. They not only test the fibre of a character, but strengthen it. Every conquered temptation represents a new fund of moral energy. Every trial endured and weathered in the right spirit makes a soul nobler and stronger than it was before.
-- James Buckham
Copyright © 2006 Lords 27