Lords of the Earth
The Rise of the Classical World
Turn 3: 250-246 B.C.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Turn Cost- $5.00
If you reach a point of owing $10 without speaking to me about arranging a payment I will be holding your turn until you speak to me about it and arrange payment. This will not matter until next turn, but I do not want to be a bad guy so please at least speak to me. Thanks.
Rule Book:
We will be using 5.10.0 for the base rules of the game.
Heirs:
Although it was not common there were some female leaders of nations. But this was very rare as most men of the time would have trouble following the directions of a woman no matter how strong or talented. So I will not disallow the use of women as heirs, BUT know that there is a chance your nation will not take kindly to one of the gentler sex leading a nation.
AUTO-RULE:
Auto-rule is on for now. I am not sure how long I will keep it on. It will be removed on Turn 10.
Megalithic Constructions:
To build any Megalithic Construct you must have a Tech level that is at least 2 levels higher then what you are trying to do.
Example: The Kiel Canal from Skaggerack to the North Sea is a level 1 Megalithic Construction. So Denmark, who just reached Tech 3, can now build it. This is only the base cost. Any multipliers for region or something else are not counted in the Tech level requirement.
*Note: The Grand Canal of China is not really there. I will be removing it from the map. When the nations in China reach Tech 5 they can replace it.
Cultivation:
For any region to be made cultivated you must be at least Tech 4. For those regions that are capable of being C2 you must have a Tech level of 6+. Cultivation is a level 1 Megalithic Construction which is modified by the regional cost.
Example: Macedonia, a Tech 4 nation, decides to cultivate their lands. Since Macedonia is a Wilderness region and they are Civilized they have to do a level 1 construction with a multiplier of 1.5 for a civilized nation operating in a wilderness area. This costs 38 NFP (25 * 1.5 = 37.5 and you Round up to 38) and 75 GP (50 * 1.5 = 75).
Feudal Leaders and Allied Leaders:
Feudal leaders only receive a Combat stat. You may call them up to defend your nation or fight for you, but they are not willing to do anything other then assure the mutual defense and well-fare of your combined areas. Allied leaders receive all the stats and can do pretty much any action. If you assign them to Diplomacy the action will be for your nation but they will not be able to get the region about Allied level.
Troop Conversions
Infantry (500 men
= 1 point), Cavalry (500 men = 1 point), Siege Engineers (500 men = 1 point),
Warships (2 ships = 1 point), Transports (2 ships = 1 point).
The War of the Chinese States
Qin Versus Qi, Yan and Chu
Initial Cloak and Dagger Actions:
In Kiangsu agitators managed to rile up some of the peasants, but when it came time for them to rebel the peasants balked. They had heard horrible rumors of the happenings in Hupei and did not wish anything similar to occur to them. In Hopei more trouble was brewing and it looked like it might actually cause the region to try and revolt, but the number of Qin forces in the area made it suicide to attempt the revolt and the region stayed quite, if upset. A Qi assasin, by dress and weaponry, snuck deep into the Qin armies and assualted Prime Minister Lu Buwei. Lu was a talented fighter and managed to escape the trap, but was injured in the inital assault. The assasin was slain before any questions could be asked as Qin troops rushed to save their beloved leader. A second assasin, seemingly sent by the Chu, attacked King Zhoaxiangwang, but was captured and staked in the middle of the Qin encampment well before he reached the King due to the watchful eye of the King's personal guard.
250 BC
April-May:
In April the forces began to march. Qin forces led by the King began to move across the border into Funio which was held by the Qi and Yan forces. He had managed to quell any rebellion from his men and lieutenants and now he moved swiftly to reopen supply lines to Qin lands. Lu Kang, formally of the Chu Empire, was ordered to travel with the King and his troops were put under the kings control. At this he almsot balked, but certain words were spoken to him and he calmed himself and followed his new king. Meng Ao who had been left to guard Shensi for the past ten years also moved south to aid in the retaking of Funio as the Qin expected to face the Qi and Yan forces in Funio. But while the Qin moved on Funio from the north and the south, the Qi and Yan forces were already crossing the mountains to reach Hubei. They were led by Chu guides and so made good time through the mountains.
A small Qi force rode into Kiangsu. It was 2,500 light cavalry who found 2,500 light inexperienced infantry in the region just sort of lounging around. The Qi force attacked and easily dispatched the Qin force left to hold the region. The region was turned over to Chu control.
June:
The Qin forces arrive in Funio from both the north and the south. They find the region unoccupied as the Qi had hoped to fortify the region with supplies from home, but they were not able to arrive in time. The Qin take the month and retake the region, removing any traces of foreign control. With the connection to Hupei open, supplies are rushed south to fortify the region that seemed to be in the heart of the war.
The Qi and Yan forces join with the Chu and turn east. They begin the slow, careful process of crossing into Hubei. Word reaches them that the Qin are rebuilding the field forts and new troops are now arriving to defend the region from their attack.
July:
King Zhoaxiangwang of the Qin and his armies begin to move into Tangchou. Meng Ao moves back into Shensi to guard the capital.
By the end of the month the last of the Qi, Yan and Chu forces arrive in Hupei. The form up and prepare for the battle that will begin soon. The fortresses that had been destroyed in the fighting that went over the past five years had mainly been repaired by now, but rumors said that Lu Buwei was still healing from the assasin attack. If the Qin were to ever be pushed from the area it was now.
August:
King Zhoaxiangwang finishes entering Tangchou. He finds the region empty of enemy troops and prepares to start his assualt against the region even as fall begins and winter looms.
The Qi, Yan and Chu forces prepare to launch their assault against the first of the field forts, but the Chu are slowed down by their heavy infantry. The Qi Prince, seeing his strongest ally slowing to a halt with the coming of winter holds back. The Yan Prince, Phan Duc, leaves his men with the Qi and Chu and begins sneaking around as winter falls looking for some advantage they can get over the Qin. By the end of August he is confident that he will be able to find out much that will be useful.
September:
The Qin forces in Tangchou begin to take over the region, but as rains pound the land along the river and winter begins to creep in the Qin forces are forced to stop without having taken control of the land yet.
By September the Chu and Qi forces are already battened down for the winter. Prince Duc continues his search for vital information to pass onto his allies.
249 BC
April-May:
With the coming of April, the Qin armies in Tangchou once more begin to sweep eastward. Without anyone to defy them in Tangchou they easily take the region and declare it a pacified tributary. They then turn and continue east, the front edges of their army entering in May.
In Hopei, the forces of the Qin and Chu prepare to launch their assault. The forces of the Yan still await their prince whose location is unknown beyond being somewhere in the region.
The Chu numbered 4,000 heavy cavalry, 6,500 regular cavalry, 500 light cavalry, 12,000 heavy infantry, 6,500 regular infantry, and 1,000 light infantry. The Qi had 10,500 heavy infantry, 2,500 cavalry, 2,500 seige engineers, 7,500 light infantry and 6,000 light cavalry. They faced the Qin who have fortified the region as much as humanly possible, and had 3,500 heavy cavalry, 7,500 regular cavalry, 3,500 light cavalry, 5,000 heavy infantry, 9,500 infantry, and 2,500 light infantry. The Yan forces were holding for word of their prince when the battle occured. In Early May the forces were arrayed along a row of low lying hills were two of the field forts of the Qin were located. By destroying these two forts the Chu hoped to launch a strong attack deep into Hupei and hopefull expel the Qin from the region. On April 23rd, the Qin forces salied out, striking hard at the right flank of the Chu forces and only sending a light cavalry unit to harry the Qi forces. Or so it appeared. As the Qin forces neared and the Qi and Chu braced for the charge, the Qi Prince gave orders to turn and strike hard at the left flank of the Chu. At the same time the forces sent to harry the Qi made a tight turn and struck instead at the unprepared left flank of the Chu that now found itself open to attack as the Qi reeled from the strange order. In the Qi ranks disorder ruled as almost half exactly of the Qi forces turned and charged into the Chu ranks with the Qin harriers while the other half turned and tried to defend their allies. In a terrible turn the Qi forces struck at each other, which did give the Chu some protection on their flank, but left them alone to handle the now large Qin force that struck hard at them.
Lu Buwei, who still led the Qin forces, was not as focused as he normally would or the Chu forces may have been totally obliterated that day. The Chu pulled back towards the lines formed by the Yan. The Qi who refused to turn upon their allies and instead fought their brothers fell back with them, cursing their prince who would turn against them for the foul promises of the Qin. The Qin pursued on their horses, which outnumbered the Chu forces and slew many more of their enemy as the Chu and Qi moved to the safetly of the Yan lines. This stopped the Qin and they retreated to handle their own injured. Emperor Chun of the Chu looked over his losses and was amazed. His anger towards the traitorous Prince and the thousands of lives it had caused made him shake with rage.
June-July-August:
The Qin forces enter Anhui and find it empty. They quickly set about pacifiying it. The Qin forces in Hupei and Shensi continue to hold firm.
The forces of the Chu, Yan and whats left of the Qi regrouped behind the Yan lines. Both sides worked to regain the losses before the other could make a strong move against them. The Prince of Yan returned and took over his troops again and prepared for battle. The Qi who had stayed on the Chu side now marched under the Chu banner. Through much of June and July the two groups seemed content to watch each other and regain men. Each day both sides regained some of their losses and Lu Buwei grew stronger. The Yan added 15,000 infantry, 7,500 cavalry and 5,000 seige. This added boost was enough to make it so the allied Chinese forces were finally noticably larger then the Qin forces, but the Qin generals were more competent then the allied forces were able to field and so on August 12th of 249 BC the Qin launched another assault at dawn against the allied forces position. The Yan forces, which held the center of the line, held at first against the rush of the mighty Qin. Seeing this Lu Buwei ordered Than Tam, the traitorous Qi prince, to lead the cavalry and strike hard at the left flank held by his troops that refused to follow his command. Tam, who felt wronged by the troops who refused to follow him, led the charge. The Qi who had turned on the Prince saw him and in a fit of passion charged him. Out of the lines of battle they quickly fell to the horsemen of the Qin and with them the left flank crumbled. The Yan cavalry, still fresh compared to the others turned and slammed into the attacking Qin forces and slowed them down long enough for the Qi to regroup and move to support them. The Qin cavalry, seeing itself caught between the Qi and Yan forces pulled back. With the pressure removed from the flank the Qi and Yan together turned and struck back again at the Qin infantry and forced them back.
September:
The Qin forces in Anhui saw that the city of Souchun was unprotected beyond the small walls of the city. They launched a quick assault which quickly took the city.
248 BC
April-May-June:
Having taken all of Anhui, the Qin turn north and invade Qi by way of Honan. The Qi have built the Defender Fortress in Honan. The rest of the Qi forces are north of the river which has a small fleet blocking the way over. By the end of June the Qin have surrounded the fortress and are preparing to assault it.
As the weather warms in Hupei so do the battles. The Chu and their allies move to assault a new fort in the fart northwest of Hupei. As they move to assault the fort the Qin strike. The Qin cavalry, somewhat deminised from the previous years fighting but still strong, strike at either side as the infantry surge out of the fort to strike at the oncoming allied forces. Emperor Chun, who has the overall leadership of the allied troops, thought that the allied forces had moved far enough north to miss the main Qin forces in order to remove at least one of the forts which ensured the Qin forces would remain in control of the land. The sudden appearance of the cavalry was a disappointment, and his reaction to it was slow. After the Yan had turned the Qin only a few months before Chun was sure they could do it again. This ended up being one of the most disasterous choices of the war as the leading lines of the allied forces did not see the Qin cavalry until they came crashing into both flanks, driving deep wedges into the allied forces. As the allied armies turned to meet the Qin cavalry they were struck hard from behind as the infantry reached them. Chun, now realizing his mistake, called for the retreat. But by then it was too late. The Qin were deep in their lines and the allied troops were scattering. Calling the retreat, Chun moved south along the border with Hubei to move away from the pursuing Qin and to regroup.
July:
The Qin assualt the walls of the Defender. The Qi have a minor noble holding the post as they thought that the war would all take place in Hupei. Although somewhat bloody for the Qin forces which assualt the walls, the fortress falls in little more then a week. Honan is now firmly in Qin hands.
The Qin move to pursue the allied forces that are rushing to regroup after the crushing defeat by the Qin when they have only had a few minor victories here or there. Chun refused to cross the border to Hubei though and so the armies prepared to assault again.
August-September:
The Qi turn east, beginning the march into Tsainan as winter begins to close in. By September when they are forced to stop for the winter the Qin have entered Tsainan.
Both sides move to regroup in Hupei during August and then wait out winter.
247 BC
April-May-June:
The Qi Pacify Tsainan and then continue on their merry way..
The allied forces turn to once more face the on coming Qin. This time they were the ones to set the trap. Lu Buwei attacked the position that his scouts informed him the allied had taken, which was along a deep valley a days march north of the river. When they entered the valley they found the allied forces had already moved. Lu immediately ordered his scouts out and prepared to continue on when the allied forces erupted from behind him. They knew that he was coming swiftly and so they circled around the valley and came at him from behind. Caught unaware it was all Lu could do to get his men out of the valley and to the nearest of the forts in somewhat good order. The cavalry was so even that this point that no one recieved much advantage in that, but the Qin suffered much worse at the hands of the allies. Smiling, Chun ordered his men to follow as the two armies turned and moved once more over the battle trodden lands of Hupei.
July-August-September:
The Qi enter Shangtung and set about pacifying it as well. By the end of September the region is securely in Qin hands as they bed down for another winter.
In July both sides in Hupei have once more gathered their men and now the Chu prepare to assault the forts once more. The years are going by and the numbers of the Qin seem to only be growing, especially with their great skill at finding those who are easy to subvert. In August the rains started early and the allied forces assaulted just as one of the storms came hoping to hide their approach in the downpour, but all this succeded in doing was confusing their men who were already tired and in many cases remember old wounds. As they launched themselves at the walls of the fort the Qin were prepared and the allies found themselves getting lost as often as reaching the wall. In the confusion Lu managed to score a great victory, even sallying out with a small group of cavalry who all wore bright cloths to identify themselves. The Chu were forced to fall back into the stormy night to regroup.
246 BC
April:
The Qin forces in Shangtung move to turn north, but the blockade on the Huang Ho stops them from crossing the river. They end in Shangtung looking for a way to cross into Yen.
In Hupei both sides spend April regrouping.
May-June-July:
The allied forces move once more to attack. They have lost almost half of their forces in the fighting, where the Qin have lost a third of what they have used. Most of the Qin forces are mobile units which have moved to shadow the allied forces. The allied forces choose to mirror a fort along one of the major paths leading from the river north towards Funio. The Qin forces were much more refreshed then the allied troops though. The Qin were able to stay in the forts and thus avoided much of the hard weather. The allied troops had spent the past five years in make shift camps and so they were not as ready to fight as the Qin. The Qin forces this time stayed behind the walls as the allied forces attacked. Then when they had repulsed the first wave they salied forth and struck hard into the allied forces. Falling back Chun ordered his men to retreat to Hubei.
August:
The allied forces regrouped in Hubei while the Qin hold Hupei through a mix of great skill and luck.
North Asia Mercs: 15 C, 10 I, 5 S
Merc Leader: None
Qin Empire
King Zhoaxiangwang
Diplomacy:
The Qin rushed to regain Funio and then resupply their armies before continuing their assault. Once more they waited for Wei support and were greatly angered when none arrived.
Wei Empire
Tien Wang, King of the Wei
Diplomacy: None
Tien Wang looked at the world around him and could not understand the madness that seemed to have thrown the Chinese provinces into such a brutal and bloody war. So he declared himself still neutral and went fully defensive. After all it worked in the past years so why change tactics now? (No Turn)
The Kingdom of Yan
Phan Wei, Lord of the Yan
Diplomacy: Anshan (NE)
Wei stayed at home and ruled his nation and tried to protect it infiltration. Rice farms were started in Koguryo and Kuo Mal was sent to the region of Anshan to try and convince the people that they should strengthen their bonds with the kingdom of Yan, especially in such dangerous times when only through strength of unity would save them. Unfortunately, the people seemed most unwilling to listen to reason and his talks had no effect upon the region.
Late in 250 BC Phan Wei began to hear rumors of a strange cult within his lands and perhaps throughout all of China. The whispers were quiet and although he searched diligently for more information he found out little. Who can say what part the cult would play in the war and the times to follow.
Qi Empire
Nguyen Nam, Qi Emperor
Diplomacy: None
The Qi fortified their home and hoped to fortify Funio, but since they did not control the land between their homeland and Funio and gave no way for the workers to get there they were unable to do that before the Qin hit the region.
Tartars
Hwang
Diplomacy:
Early in 250 BC, before the armies marched, strange lights could be seen shimmering in the night skies. For one week before the armies marched the lights came and the people grew worried about what such strange portents could mean. Hwang, who was intelligent enough to know that such talk could destroy what he was working to build, laughed at the lights and declared them nothing. His people nodded but still seemed worried about what such strange portents could mean. So when the weather was warm enough, Hwang set out with his troops to meet with Yuanti who awaited him in Buryat. Some said that he finally left the land of the Tartars because his daughters had started to grow up and badger him and he wanted a little peace. After all, slaughtering the Mongols was far better then listening to your daughters complain about how the boys their age were weak.
So Hwang and Yuanti gathered their forces and marched back into Mongollian lands. 2,500 heavy elite cavaly, 10,000 regular cavalry and 3,000 light cavalry marched under Hwang's banner and they were met by the same Mongollian chieftain who brought 11,000 cavalry of various types. The Tartars tried to assasinate the chieftain, but failed to get past the Mongolian guards. The chieftain, who had stoutly defeated the Tartars before, and who had so easily evaded their assasins had no respect for Hwang's army. This cost him badly because he failed to act in time. The Tartars attacked the Mongollian camp early in the morning and drove them from the field in disorder. The fast cavalry of the tartars contined to rake the Mongollian forces. Within a day the Mongollian forces were so scattered that there was no chance of them pushing the Tartars out. Hwang and his men, who came out almost totally unharmed, spent the rest of the years leading up to 246 BC in Mongolia enforcing their rule.
Kwanto Japan
Kwanto Dashai, Daimyo of the Kwanto
Diplomacy: Nigata (F)
Kwanto Dashai once more traveled to the land of Nigata. There he gave them more gifts and spoke to them of the greatness of Kwanto and his desire for a united Nippon. The people there were happy to hear the words he spoke, but even more happy to see the continued expansion of the defenses in their lands and the troops that were being built. While he was working on his diplomacy, Kwanto Reju was sent to raid the region of Aichi. He found the region protected by Yamato Yoshi himself and a line of field forts, plus the troops needed to support him. The raiders crashed into the heavily defended region and were quickly repelled. The Kwanto lost several of their units of peasant spearmen in the attack. When he returned he reported to Akita Morishi of the troops in the north. Together they planned out a long raid in Shimane to hurt the Kwanto's morale. Taking many new warships, Morishi traveled to Shimane. Morishi attacked hard and fast, his men launching a raid deep into the region, away from their ships. Unfortunately, the local lord and his troops had not been called north by Yoshi who had thought it wise to leave his allies to guard their own homes while he watched the border. The lord of Kwanto and Aichi were about equal in their ability to lead men but neither really expected to run into the other. In the resulting conflict several ships were burned and almost half of the levies of Shimane fell before the Kwanto sailors. Morishi was forced to flee before more aid could come and so he was forced to leave what little loot he had collected behind.
When Dashai returned from his successful visit to Nigata he was shocked to hear of the failure of both raids. But no attacks had been launched at his lands and his nation was stronger then ever before. He then spent some time in relaxation with his wife. It was the first time he was allowed to spend with her and not worry about attacks in some time. Early in 246 BC she gave birth to twins. Both were boys and the lands rejoiced at the sign.
Yamato Japan
Yamato Yoshi, Daimyo of the Yamato
Diplomacy: None
The Yamato built up the defenses against the Kwanto and kept to themselves. Yoshi and his aid, Yamoto Horitoshi split the border area and watched for any Kwanto agression.(Needs a Player)
South Asia Mercs: 10 C, 20 I
Merc Leader: None
Chu Empire
Chun Shenjun, Emperor of the South
Diplomacy:
Chun Shenjun ordered a mass conscription. His forces grew once more and he marched forth from Hubei to destroy the Qin with his allies.
Nan-Yue
Nguyen Tein, King of Nan-Yue
Diplomacy: Lingnan (NE), Dai Viet (A), Kwangtung (NT), Nanling (C ), Lingtung (NE)
Tien decided that now was the time to expand his lands while the northern Chinese states fought amongst themselves. But where they sought to increase their lands by force of arms, he would go with peaceful means. His heir was sent to speak first with Lingnan and then with the Dai Viet. In Lingnan he met with little luck. Many thought he had come closer to angering the region and turning them against Nan-Yue rather then make it more strongly aligned with them. In Dai Viet he met with more luck and the region became allied to Nan-Yue as Tein had ordered. It greatly helped that Tein had a small fishing port greatly expanded to form the new city of Vinh.
Tein sent his advisor, Tak Lay, to the north and east to speak with the provinces of Kwantung, Nanling and Lingtung. These lands were closer to the wars being fought in China, but were not willing to give up much of their freedoms to gain the protection of the Nan-Yue who had yet to show them that they would be able to do much of anything to guard them if the wars should carry that far south.
Khemer
Tak Lai
Diplomacy: Nakhon (EA), Siam (T)
Tak Lai smiled as he looked over his realm. The city of Angkor Wat continued to grow and prosper, and for now peace continued to exist in the lands directly around his. Rumors of distant wars and dreadful tales of fields strewn with battle gave him some pause though, so he ordered several thousand young men into the national cavalry in case such horrors ever grew closer to home. Happier news was the spread of farms through Khemer. Tak hoped that such farms would be a boon to his small nations economy.
Tak Lai and his son, Tak Tzung, traveled to Siam to try and diplomacize the region. Lai worked on trying to convert the nobles of the area from their pagan ways to the Hindu faith. In this he ended up being rather unsuccessful. But where Lai failed to make an impression Tzung was marvelous. He worked on showing the Siam people the great benefits of allying themselves with Khemer. This mainly relied on showing off some of the new cavalry that was forming in Khemer and making well timed comments about the dangers that seemed to be all around them. In the end Siam felt it was prudent to play along with Khemer and agreed to send some tribute in exchange for protection, but no one felt much like converting for now. Mean while, Kosal traveled to Nakhon and spent several years with the people there. While he was there he learned much of their ways and showed them many of the wonders of Khemer. The fine goods that Khemer could produce and trade with Nakhon was what really made an impression. By the time he was ready to return home and report to his king the region had agreed to many of Kosal's suggestions on trade agreements.
After Lai and Tzung returned to Angkor Wat, Lai gave Tzung time to spend with his wife while they waited for Kosal to return and plan out the next steps that the burgeoning nation would take. Lai took his wife to a small lake where they spent much of the remaining year. By the end of the year she had given birth to a little boy which came right on the heels of Kosal's good news from Nakhon.
India & Central Asia Mercs: None
Merc Leader: None
Maurya
Ashoka, Emporer of Maurya
Diplomacy: Sukkur (F), Sahis (T), Sind (F), Erdosia (F)
Ashoka ordered many new lands to be cleared for future farms. Sind, Sukkur and Nadavaria all were cleared and made to be more easily lived in by the populace. Samnath in Erdosia grew larger as people moved to be in on the trade coming from the west. The prosperity throughout the realm continued to increase under Ashoka's rule. A new game was shown to Ashoka. It was called Polo and was played on horseback. Ashoka saw that it would be good to teach to his cavalry. It was also fairly peaceful so the men would learn much about riding in crowds and swinging without falling from the saddle, but no one would be hurt. The pacifistic views of Ashoka did not stop him from worrying that one day his mighty empire would have need to defend itself.
Bahagada, the heir of the Empire, took his wife on a small trip for a few months in 250 BC. This led to the birth of another royal son. He spent the next four years working hard to keep the nation running. Maurya stretched far to the east and west and it took everything he had to keep it running smoothly. But the years passed slowly on and things in the Empire seemed very well set.
The Indian Alliance
Torugah, Lord of Pandya
Diplomacy: Seylan (EA)
Torugah stayed home and ruled his nation. He ordered both of his advisors to travel to Seylan and speak to the people there. Gaharta led the expedition and managed to get many economic agreements set up with the northern half of the island. Although the agreements stayed mostly towards only the mutual economic benefit that the Alliance and the region would share, it left high hopes for future talks between the two groups. Halfway through the talks Gaharta passed away. This ended the talks, but Gaharta's work was done well and the economic agreements continued on after him. While Torugah stayed home he, like many other kings, visited his wife. She gave him a son in 250 BC, another in 249 BC, a daughter in 248 BC and late in 246 BC she gave birth to another son. Torugah commanded workers to finish clearing the lands of Chera. Soon it was fully cultivated and waiting for new farms to fill the region.
The Middle East Mercs: None
Merc Leader: None
Bactria
Sophacles
Diplomacy: Uzbek (F), Kara-Khitan (F), Otarsh (T)
Sophacles had enough of sitting around and counting stars so he turned and headed for Kara-Khitan where he wished to make the region more aligned with the nation. The province was far to rich to allow it to possibly be swayed from Bactria. While traveling he grew annoyed at the length of time it took to move from one region of his lands to the next. Why...little messanger boys must take forever to get his decrees to the far corners of his lands. So postal roads were stretched from Bactria into Kara-Khitan. They also moved south from Bactria into Transoxania. They were little more the paths through the tough wilderness and it would not help his troops get around much but at least the cute little messanger boys would be able to run without always triping over the roots that barred their way.In Kara-Khitan he had great success, after all the new road was a benefit to all. They decided that Sophacles was a worthy leader if he could come up with such ideas and soon they were all behind him. He then traveled into the region of Otarsh, which held no Hellenic heritage. But it was a wealthy land and any land that is wealthy should be Hellenic right? There he had more trouble since the region didn't speak his language and his beliefs clashed more then a little with theirs, but he was a great diplomat and the people saw his power. Otarsh decided that it was better off for them to send some small tribute to Bactria then to wait for them to use strong arm tactics which the other Hellenic states were rumored to use. After all if the all the men died who would save the little messanger boys of Otarsh from the Hellenes?
While Sophacles was about that Metastophales was sent to the region of Uzbek. Here he found a much easier time then Sophacles did in Otarsh as the people were already given the glorious Hellenic tradition back when Alexander the Great came and conquered so much of the world that no other could ever compare. Metastophales was a good speaker who had once traveled all the way to Athens in order to learn from some of the great Orators of that city. In Uzbek he was easily able to woo the people to the cause of Bactria with his smooth tongue and easy speech. By the end of 246 BC the region was as strongly united with Bactria as Kara-Khitan.
Seleucid Kingdom
Antiochos II Theos
Diplomacy: Demascus (F)
Anitochos continued ruling his nation. This was somewhat tedious work, especially considering the high level of beuracracy that went with such a massive nation so he spent as much time in the arms of his wife as he could while still controling the destiny of his nation. His first wife grew ill, some said it was the plague which struck distant Carthage, but those in the know realized this was something else. Still in 250 BC she died of some strange weakening sickness. In 249 BC Antiochos remarried and his new wife gave him a son that year and early in 248 BC, but as she grew pregnant a third time in 247 BC she died in a strange accident while be carried on a litter through the capital. An elephant broke loose and in the chaotic scene that followed she was ran over. After a month of mourning Antiochos married again. This wife lasted only a few months before growing horribly sick at a feast in her honor. She passed on shortly after. By 246 BC Antiochos was having trouble finding a wife, but he ordered that it be done and so it was. The lucky lass provided him a son in 246 BC and breathed a sigh of relief as she managed to live out the year. Under Antochos watchful eye, massive farms were started in the region of Media, and workers were sent to Abadan to begin clearing the land for new farms in those areas.
Money was sent to the Spears for their continued assistance in the east. Some of the forces there were a little disgruntled at being so far from home, but the gold was good so they stayed and prepared to fight. Forces from throughout the Seleucid Kingdom were sent to meet up with the Spear forces and travel with Lycathius in order to expand the realm. By late 248 BC all of the forces had gathered and they began to cross the mountains between Persia and the region of Tabaristan. The forces sent were large and it took a great time for them all to pass through the mountain passes. By the time they did word had reached the men of Tabaristan and a local chieftain had gethered his men, some 7,500 odd cavalry men, and moved to block them when the mountains moved down into hills and valleys. The Seleucid force was comprised of 26,500 infantry of various types. And 4000 cavalry that acted as scouts and a vanguard. The leader of the Tabaristan forces was skillful and had kept his people safe for many years. When the two met the battle was fierce, for although the Seleucid were vast, the Tabaristans were feirce and fought to protect their homes. Seeing that the battle would be brutal, Theodocius gambled and ordered a massive shift to the right as his left flank surged into the cavalry. This surge forward distracted the Tabaristan long enough for the flanking manuaver to work. The Seleucid cavalry, which had been safely behind the infantry until this point were sent to rake the now unguard left and to hold the Tabaristan forces long enough for the infantry to try and encircle them. This manuver was wildly successful and only through the great skill of the Tabaristan chieftain did any of the men escape death in the valley. The cost on the the Seleucid forces was greater then they had hoped for, but most of it fell on the mercenaries that formed the largest portion of their army. Once that was over the Seleucids quickly took control of the rest of the region. Lycathius, who had completed his contract, worked to gain new troops to replace those who had been lost. Due to the bloody conflict only months before he had some difficulty, but as people saw the money that the mercenary forces were paid they grew more interested. In the end he managed to collect a small cavalry force to travel with him.
In the western portions of the kingdom things were more peaceful. Antigoni traveled with his troops to Demascus. He spent the remaining years there and convinced the city that they should fully join with the Seleucid Kingdom. With rumors of plauges in distant lands and the threats of foreign powers, the city decided that such a relationship was surely for the best.
Africa Mercs: 15 HI, 15 I, 15 S, 5 W
Merc Leader: M815- Hashamail
Ptolemaic Kingdom
Ptolemy II
Diplomacy: Tripolitania (NT)
Work on a massive canal was started in Gebel Gharib to link the mighty Nile with the Red Sea. Ptolemy II, who stayed in Alexandria to rule his Kingdom, paid close attention to it's construction. Such a route would make it much easier for him to rule his nation as it continued to expand into the neighboring pennisula. Gold was sent to the Spears in return for a general to come and aid in the conquest of Medina. 5,000 infantry was also paid for to lead the way to increasing the lands of the Ptolemaic Kingdom. Ptolemy III traveled across the empire to reach Tripolitania. The people there were worshipers of Bhaal and spoke a differnt language, but Ptolemy III was a good diplomat and with the use of an interpreter managed to get the region to pay lip service to the Ptolemaic Kingdom, even if they did refuse to send much, if any, tribute to Alexandria.
Hedonis, the leader of the Spear forces sent to Alexandria arrived late in June of 250 BC. He was immediately met by Adriatus, an official of the Ptolemaic Kingdom. Adriatis began leading Hedonis through the lands controlled by the Ptolemaic dynasty. When they reached Hijaz where the armies of the Ptolemaic Kingdom were waiting, Hedonis was given full control of the troops and ordered to take Medina. Hedonis was given command of an additional 13,500 infantry, 5,000 regular cavalry and 3,000 heavy cavalry to go with the 5,000 infantry he brought from Isle Fort. Turning he marched south into Medina where he began working to conquer the desert lands, which were notoriously difficult to hold. After a few months the resistance tightened. In May of 248 BC the Medinan's had formed a group of roughly 7,500 cavalry of various types. The two forces met near an oasis near the south of the region. Hedonis immediately launched an attack upon sighting the enemy. Using the fabled tactics of Alexander he sent his infantry on a manuver to strike at the right flank of the enemy while cavalry of the Ptolemaic Kingdom swung wide left and came hammering into the cavalry that was turning to meet both threats. In the resounding conflict that lasted a few hours, the highly disciplined Hellenic troops crushed the nomadic men of Medina. The few that managed to avoid the trap set by Hedonis found themselves being chansed down by the Hellenic Cavalry that greatly outnumbered them by the time the battle ended. Once the region was controlled entirely Hedonis set about gathering troops from the local area. Since he had no other orders he thought he would gain some more troops. But since the battle had destroyed so many of the battle aged men of the region and many hated him for his fierce victory he was unable to get many men from the region. He managed to put together a unit of cavalry made up of some of the nomads. They were highly skilled on horses even if undiscilined.
Meroe
Yorima, Chief of Meroe
Diplomacy: Adulis (T), Luxor (F)
Yorima spent his years speaking to the men of Luxor in order to strengthen their ties to his nation. In the end he was successful as Luxor became one with Meroe. Many new ships were built in Abu Simbel and sent to fish along the mighty Nile to bring in food for the people of Meroe. Imhotep was sent to the distant coast of the Red Sea to speak to the people of Andulis. His talks went well and they were very impressed with the power of Meroe. They agreed to send tribute in exchange for the protection and favor of Meroe. Things in Meroe continued much as they had for centuries. Life was peaceful and the people were content with their lot when rumors of plauge and war drifted to them.
Carthage
Hamilcar Barca
Diplomacy: Sicily (F), Syracuse (A), Baerlics (F), Granda (F), Novo Carthage (F), Malta (F)
In 248 BC a plague swept across most of North Africa. Strange bumps and leissons formed upon young and old alike. Though many surived a great number of the children of the land were killed. Many sacrifices and prayers were given to Bhaal, but to little avail as the disease seemed like the wrath of the dark god himself. And what could turn aside such a terrible anger as that.
But if the anger of the Gods seemed to be coming against Carthage, it did little to weaken the nation. In fact the opposite seemed to occur. Although many of the young perished, so did many of the elders of the various cities and regions throughout the area under Carthage's sway. Hamilcar took advantage of this. He ordered his advisors to redouble their efforts and he also turned to working on strengthening the nation. In Sicily he managed to convince them to fully join Carthage. Syracuse, by some miracle, seemed less affected then many places and so the elders resisted his efforts. But his advisors on the other islands and on the Iberian coast had little problem in tightening the hold of Carthage upon the lands. By 246 BC as the plague seemed to slow and people were able to look around at what was left, Carthage found itself still strong. Hannibal, who had remained home to rule the nation as this was all going on, spent more time with his wife. But the only child she bore for him was a son in the year 247 BC. They did everything they could to keep the child away from the plague, but early in 246 BC he grew ill and was one of the last to fall prey to the ravages of the plague.
Free
Men of Tunis
Marcilar the Bold
Diplomacy:
In 247 BC Marcilar the Bold died. The continued peace in the area made it pointless to continue. So the Free Men disbanded. Some of them settled down while others put themselves up to be hired by any who would have need of their skills.
West Africa Mercs: None
Merc Leader: None
The Desert Raiders of Kanem Bornu
Yukunah
Diplomacy: None
A new city was built in the region of Kanem Bornu along the Tchad Lake. Trade was opened with Meroe and the Ptolemaic Kingdom through the Sahara. (NEEDS A PLAYER)
The Kingdom of Ife
Iyena, Chief of the Ife
Diplomacy: Yoruba (F)
Iyena decided to once again go out and raid to his hearts content. After all it was much easier to simply take money from people then it was to go out and work for it yourself. So he built up enough troops so the pesky men of Oyo would not bother him as he moved through their region and went on raiding. He raided the regions of the Sudan, Dogamba, Mossi, Bani, Segu and Songhai. In the regions of Dogamba and Songhai the men proved to be to wily to be easily taken for what they were worth and Iyena was forced to retreat from cunning traps which killed off an annoying large amount of his men. But in the rest of the regions he raided he was successful and managed to return home with a nice sum of money. Unfortunately, the lands he raided this time were for the most part poorer then his previous raids and so he did not collect nearly as much as he had on his last romp through the surrounding lands. While he was gone Al-Karas grew larger off of the bounty he had brought home in previous years.
While Iyena was off playing Robber-Baron, his heir Ulani traveled to Yoruba and continued trying to get the region to fully join with Ife. His talks went incredibly smoothly, it was rumored that the lords of Yoruba hoped to get in close to Ife to save themselves from Iyena's raids. By 246 BC Yoruba was fully joined with Ife for better or worse.
Eastern Europe Mercs: None
Merc Leader: None
Suzdal
Yagar son of Molugar
Diplomacy: None
The men of Suzdal relaxed and let the rest of the world slowly move by. With the lands under their control sending tribute they were able to live nicely and many songs were sung. With all the new money sent to the lands of Suzdal the men were forced to take on new tasks. Scribes were made and soon the whole of the lands looked more to Yagar then before as the local lords waited for his word to act. (No Turn)
Parthia
Arsaces I
Diplomacy:
The Parthians felt very frisky and so Arsaces gave a large contigent of light cavalry to his chief advisor, Arastice, and took the rest of the army and began raiding. He began by simply readying himself to defend his nation. From 250 BC through 247 BC he and his troops were looking for trouble, but amazingly enough no one decided to attack the Parthians. Deciding that this was just to boring to continue, Arsaces led his troops on several raids. The first raid was into Bialoweza which turned out to be a decent raid. With the speed of his cavalry and the surprise of the attack they were able to get a decent sum, but the region was relatively poor and so there was only so much to take. Arsaces had so much fun that he immediately turned and raided Masuria. The region was not very rich either, and so he took everything that wasn't nailed down but that wasn't nearly enough to sate his thirst for loot. So he turned further south. Moving into Little Poland, because he couldn't reach Volhynia from Poland, he launched his third raid of the year. This one was about as successful as the last two. The Parthians rode circles around the defenders of the regions, but with the rather large lack of anything valuable to take in the region it was little more then a practice run. Sighing at the lack of loot in this area of the world, Arsaces returned to Poland.
While Arsaces was busy in the east and south, Arastice took his light cavalry and moved to Lausatia where he began his own raids. Over the years of 250 BC and early into 249 BC he raided Thuringia, Saxony, Pomern, Pomerania and Danzig twice just for good measure. His raids were all pulled off without a hitch, but with the exception of the first two regions he again ran into the problem that the regions were not as wealthy as the Parthians could have hoped. But hey, some loot is better then no loot right?
Pontus
Ariobarzanes
Diplomacy: Paphlagonia (F), Galatia (EA)
Many of the men and women which worked against the growing power of the gods in the Seleucid Kingdom in previous years found themselves moving north into the Hellenic lands controlled by Pontus. Pontus seemed safer to these people as Ariobarzanes did not show the signs that many of the other Greek Kingdoms did to turning and creating a more solid Church from the Hellenic Faith which had to this point been a loser religon then many. These people feared that by focusing upon one god in a Pantheon or by restricting the worship of the gods would anger them and horrible destruction would fall upon the Hellenic world.
In Troy work was done to make the city better. The streets were widened to allow for better access. Trade began to flow and many new ships were made and sent as far away as Rome and Ilyria. Ariobarzanes took a strong hand in ruling his nation. He feared corruption or that the anti-clerical movements that seemed to sweep through the Hellenic lands could have an ill effect upon his nation. While he was busy doing that he ordered his aid Tridarius to conduct a census of the realm. Triderius was a meticulous man and he spent from 250 BC to 246 BC carefully counting the populace that paid allegiance in one form or another to Pontus. This was a great boon to the treasury of Pontus.
Heracus continued to travel through the lands of Pontus and worked to strengthen their hold on the Black Sea. In Paphlagonia he met with many of the leading men and worked hard to gain the full alliance of the region into Ariobarzane's kingdom. In Galatia he managed to get many new economic benefits for both Pontus and the region which worked to further tie the two together. Overall, Heracus felt his trip was a success.
Antigonid Kingdom of Macedonia
Antigonus II Gonatas
Diplomacy: None
Troops were pulled from outlying regions and settled in the hills of Macedonia to start farms. This led to Macedonia becoming cultivated and many new farms to provide food for the nation.
(Needs a Player)
The Hellenic Alliance
Ariatis of Athens
Diplomacy: Lydia (+10YFC), Rhodes (F), Thessaly (F), Morea (F), Serbia (P)
Ariatis traveled to the region of Lydia where he began to speak with the people. The Ionian Greeks of the area were still quite upset at him for invading and conquering Lydia, but time heals all wounds and with the soft works of the Demokrator it would perhaps not be to long before the Greeks along the coast would accept their place in the Hellenic Alliance. While Ariatis worked to unite Lydia with the Hellenic Alliance, his advisors went through out the lands working to make the strong alliance between the Greek City states even stronger. Hystophales traveled to Rhodes to meet with Demicles and the people of Rhodes. He pointed to the completed port city of Rodos as a sign of the growing power of the Alliance. The city would offer many benefits to the island people. Soon the island was fully part of the Alliance. In Thessaly Diephonos met with Ismarros and his fellow Thessalonians and spoke of the wonders of the Hellenic World. Using rhetoric that had long ago been perfected by the Athenians he moved the crowds. Gave them joy at the wonders of the Greeks and fear of the barbaric nations to the north which even under guard still threatened them. As Thessaly was one of the northern most provnces of the Greek world, this was a troubling thought. To gain the full support of the her allies, Thessaly became a full member of the Hellenic Alliance. In Morea, Amphion met with Artickles and spoke to him and the fellow leaders of the lower pennisula about the problems in the world and the strength that was their birth right as Hellenes. Amphion was not the greatest diplomat to have ever come from Athens, and Artickles broke off talks early to go and bring the troops of Morea to gain control of Serbia from the Spears and aid them in holding the region. But even with these small problems by 246 BC the region was fully united with the Alliance.
In Serbia, Artickles dropped off his troops and looked over the area. The barbaric people of the region were numerous and mighty, even when subjugated by the Hellenic armies. Before returning to Morea for his retirement he wrote to Ariatis in Lydia and warned him that the troops in Serbia might easily prove insufficent to hold the region should the people chose to revolt. He was glad that the troops of the Spears remained to help hold the lands, but was not sure if even that would be enough. Luckily, by 246 BC the people of Serbia remained quiet, although the chains that bound them appeared to be slowly weighing upon them. For the aid of the troops in Serbia, several boatloads of olives from Attica and grain from Morea were sent to Isle Fort.
The Spears of the Isle
Tiberius, Lord of the Spears
Diplomacy: Polovotsky (NT)
Once more the men of the Spears prepared to march. Mercenaries were sent to aid the Ptolemaic Kingdom, while those in Serbia and the Seleucid Kingdom were paid to continue their contracts. Tiberius and Ophion took the ships north to the Black Sea and into the region of Polovotsky. The Spears had managed to gain some claim to the land in the past years and since they had some free time between contracts they decided to continue trying to bring the warriors of Polovtsky under their control. When Tiberius arrived he immediately began trying to gather troops. Many of the young men remembered the time not so long ago when a large mass of warriors had passed near their homes. Although no fighting had occured, it left a great impression upon the people of the region. Tiberius was a charismatic leader and his talks inside to the locals inspired thousands to flock to his banners.
A few months after Tiberius had arrived in Polovotsky, Ophion arrived with the ships after dropping Hedonis off in Alexandria to aid the Ptolemaic Kingdom. Once he arrived he began talks with the people, offering them some small trinkets and explaining the benefits of joining up with the Spears. When Tiberius finished his rounds of gathering troops he also joined Ophion and worked to get the people to become more united with the Spears. Unfortunately, although the leaders of the Spears were great warriors and more often then not charismatic, they were not known to be the best diplomats. The parties put on to gather allies often just dissolved into drunken revelry. Which did actually gain them quite a few friends in the region, but no one would agree to do more then show up and join in on the fun. By the end of 246 BC the region was a tributary in name only as it still refused to send anything of great value to the Spears.
Western Europe Mercs: None
Merc Leader: None
Rome
Cornelius Scipio
Diplomacy: Calabria (F), Tuscany (F)
Cornelius named his son, Tiberius Flavius Scipio, as heir to the Roman Republic as soon as he became of age to join the forum. Cornelius also continued to spend a great amount of time with his wife in the private bath houses of the city which led to another son being born in 250 BC, a daughter in 249 BC and 248 BC. Early in 246 BC his wife died at their favorite bath house. Through the years Scipio worked hard to improve the Republic. His work came to fruition in the south where Spoleto and Apulia both became cultivated to allow for the most farms possible, which of course was the ideal life for a Roman citizen. More farms sprang up in Tuscany as the people of Rome spread out along the pennisula.
While Cornelius dealt with stuff in the heart of the Republic, Gnaeus Cornilus Blasio was speaking to the men of Calabria and Manius Valerius Messailla were sent to aid him these efforts. Together they did great work in addressing the concerns of those lying in the outlying regions of the Roman Republic. In short order they managed to bring the region fully behind the Republic. While they were there, Titus Quinctius Flaminus was sent to the region of Tuscany, to speak with the allied leaders of that region. With the new farms that were appearing through out the region due to the Republics support, the people were most happy to see the representative of Rome and by 246 BC Tuscany had also fully united with the Republic.
Massalia
Eclesties
Diplomacy: Lyonnais (NT)
Eclesties returned to Languoduc and decided that he had done enough work on his lands for now and spent the next few years with his wife Beatrice. She bore him a son in early 248 BC, but during the pregnancy grew very ill. Although she managed to survive childbirth she was weak for some time after. Eclesties stayed by her side as much as he could over the resulting years and slowly both mother and son grew stronger. By 246 BC both were doing fine, but Eclesties did not get any other children.
The defense of the land was the top priority for most of Eclesties allies and advisors. While he spent time with his ailing wife they watched out for enemies of the state. Only Ulysi continued the work of expanding the nation. He had some very minor successes in Lyonnais, but in the end could not get much in the way of tribute to be sent north. Over the years Massalia continued on peaceably and new trade began to come in as they sent their ships to distant lands and their peddlers through the mountain trails to the lands north and south of them.
Bohemian Empire of Westphalia
Ulgar, son of Hulgard
Diplomacy: Lorraine (EA)
Ulgar returned to Westphalia where he took direct command of his warriors and sat down to rule his mighty empire. With his presence in his capital and the requirements of all of his men, the city of Ulgario grew larger and began to produce more for the royal treasuries. Farms were added in Lorraine and Garthor was sent to them to speak to them at length about the benefits of being part of the Bohemian Empire. He brought some gifts to show how important they were to the Bohemians. The people of Lorraine enjoyed the resources that the Bohemians were putting into their lands and agreed to some economic benefits that would be sent to the Bohemians for their past and hopefully future aid to the region. Garthor was somewhat disappointed that the region would not join all the way with the Bohemians, but at least some more headway was made.
Franconia
Mylguard, son of Rythorn
Diplomacy: Alsace (F)
Mylguard ordered a fortress placed near his capital. He then agreed to let anyone around trade with him and soon trade flooded into the port city of Saarbrucken. Some did wonder why he didn't send trade of his own off to these distant lands, but even just getting the ships of foreign nations into his lands allowed Franconia to make a small profit. Mylguard then secluded himself with his wife and in 249 BC she grew pregnant. By 248 BC Mylguard had a strapping young boy to follow him if that was the will of the gods. He then traveled to Alsace and spent a great deal of time talking to the men of the area and convincing them of the wisdom of fully joining with the Franconians. With the sudden surge of trade into the region the people of Alsace realized that joining with Franconia held many benefits for them and by 246 BC the region was fully united with the Franconians.
Parisii Gauls
Veroclot, Chief of the Parisii Gauls
Diplomacy: Orleans (F), Anjou (C ), Nivernais (NE), Burgundy (FA), Vermandois (A)
Veroclot began the years by counting his growing population. He also ordered trade started with several of his neighbors and wanted to sign a treaty with Massalia. Unfortunately, no one else seemed to know what this treaty was about and Massalia did not sign the treaty in the following years. He then traveled to Orleans to speak to the people there. While traveling to Orleans he stopped along a small lake in Nivernais and spent some time with his wife. This led to a beautiful girl being born shortly after they reached Orleans. The people of Orleans were some of the most easy going in the area and they took the birth of the new girl as a good sign towards their relations with the Parissi Guals and soon after the area was fully behind their neighbors in all things. Veroclot then continued on to Anjoy where his luck seemed to mostly dry up. The people there did not seem as trusting and all he was able to do was make light claims to the region which meant little more then they allowed him to travel through without to much trouble. By the end of 246 BC he returned to Ile De France.
Meanwhile, Casitalo traveled to Nivernais in order to bring the region even closer to the Parisii Guals. But the region was tired of listening to them constantly try and get more money and men from them with words and in the end nothing of importance happened in Nivernais. Although there were times when it seemed that the people would attack Casitalo. So in 248 BC he was more then happy to move out of the region and travel to Vermandois. There he was met in a considerably more pleasant manner and the people listened to him over many a feast. A local lord supported him and in short order the men of Vermandois were fully allied with the Parisii Guals.
Pierete, an ally from Champagne, was sent south to Burgundy in order to convince his neighbors that it was a good idea to join with the ever growing union of the Guals. It took several years of talks but in the end Burgundy agreed to lend their troops to the Parissi Guals in return for the benefits that such an alliance would bring to the region. When that was done Pierete returned to Champagne to celebrate his success in the south.
Breton
Thrane, Son of Rhyum
Diplomacy: Northumbria (T), Mercia (UN)
Thrane continued to rule his nation. Thrane dropped his claims to the land of Mercia, and instead decided to continue to look to the sea as many new ships were built and sent to trade with the other powerful clans and tribes in Europe. A great sum of money was spent on supporting the scholars that lived on the isle. Thrane wished for his descendants to learn from nature and grow more powerful with that knowledge. He sent his son to have children so that the family could grow bigger and stronger. In November of 250 BC his son's wife grew pregnant and by mid-249 BC a new son had joined the household. A year later a young girl was born to the heir and his bride, this was followed less then a year later by a second daughter. During these years a terrible drought struck all of Breton. Crop sizes were cut almost in half as the storms seemed to circle the island. People cried out to the gods, but nothing seemed to alleviate the horrible drought.
While the royal family grew and trade boomed, Thrane's lands continued to grow. Arias traveled from Mercia to the lands of the Northumbrians and spoke to them of the burgeoning power of the men of Breton. He spoke passionately, although not always in the most eloquent of ways, and the Northumbrians decided that it was wiser to send tribute to the growing power in the south instead of fighting them. Thrane was most pleased to hear of this addition to his growing influence on the isles.
The Ilyrian League
Torgus
Diplomacy: Slovenia (F), Croatia (NT)
Torgus put most of his troops to guarding his new capital. He had many new boats built to begin trade throughout the Meditteranean Sea. He also took a strong hand in ruling his small nation as his borders continued to expand. He sent Phyocles to Croatia to speak to the barbarians of those lands in order to get a route to the river. Some of his people grumbled at the idea of taking those who had never felt the swell of the ocean beneath their feet into the growing nation, but when he pointed out the large river that flows next to Croatia most of these grumblings subsided. He considered taking a bride in Croatia, but since he had one from Slovenia that was following him around still he was unable to do so. What good is a royal marriage if you know that your daugther will not bare the heir? He did manage to get the people to agree to claim limited allegiance to the Ilyrians. This was not an easy feat since the barbarians did not take kindly to those of Greek descent and the language barrier made it hard to explain things to each other. Meanwhile, Archimadus was left in Slovenia. There he spoke at length with the people who shared much with the Ilyrians. After his speeches many shifted their views on how close Slovenia should be tired to the Ilyrians. By the end of 246 BC the Slovenians were in pretty much complete agreement and through the mgiht of the entire region behind the Ilyrians.
Leon
Gurandor, Chief of Leon
Diplomacy: Portugal (F), Old Castille (FA),
Early in 250 BC the great library of Leon (which happened to consist of two books bought by the king on a whim from a traveling peddlar who needed the money to buy a horse to get back to something resembling civilization) faced a great tragedy. Gurandor, while trying to decipher the strange symbols on one of the mighty tomes with his advisors, got to close to the fire which warmed his wooden house they were staying in when his young son came barreling into him acting like a fierce bear. Momentarily caught off guard Gurandor dropped the book to grab onto an advisor and save himself from falling into the fire. Unfortunately, the book fell into the heart of the fire in his place and in one moment of bright light half of the great library was destroyed.
Gurandor then gave his trusted advisor, Baltazar, some information on the regions of Portugal and Old Castille to aid him in getting the regions to be more strongly aligned with Leon. In Portugal Baltazar met with great success and the region became fully joined with Leon. In Old Castille things did not go as smoothly. The people had time to consider the threat that outsiders posed to the Iberrians, and so they were willing to send troops to aid in the defense of the lands. In the end they refused to send more money then they had to since their troops were going to be dying with the men of Leon should the outsiders press further in on them.
While Baltazar was off on his diplomatic missions, Gurandor stayed at home and watched over his growing nation and his family. He spent a great deal of time with his wife, but no children came of it until early in 247 BC. Gurandor grew incredibly happy at the thought of his family growing bigger and stronger just as his nation was, but a few months into the pregnancy his wife began to grow very weak. Several months before the baby was supposed to be born both the mother and child passed on. Gurandor mourned their pssing and threw himself into the daily work of running his nation in order to forget the pain of his beloved wife's passing. This drive to running his country and the resources poured into it led to a shift in the small nation. Where people had once looked to their local chieftan for protection and leadership, they began to instead look to Gurandor and his advisors who worked diligently to spread and improve the small nation.
Northern Europe Mercs: None
Merc Leader: None
Estonia
Viktor Eestigard
Diplomacy: None
Viktor decided that after his hard work in Novgorod in the past years that a good fishing trip was in order. So off he went in a boat and fished. Early in 249 BC he was doing some deep sea fishing when he saw he huge white fish. Viktor was determined to take the great white for his trophy and so for the next few years he searched the Baltic for the great fish, never managing to do more then catch glimpses of it before it mocking slipped deep below the frigid waters of the sea. (No Turn)
The Danes
Hfalgard, son of Beorgard
Diplomacy: Skane (EA), Halland (UN), Smaland (NT)
Hfalgard started by trying to count his peoples, but he was so busy spending money in other places that he did not have the resources to allocate to that. So he saved what he had and watched for trouble that might come at his nation. While waiting for a good fight in Havn he had ships built and sent to the farthest reaches of the known lands to trade with the people there. New foods and riches began to come into the Havn which would help Hfalgard in his plans for the future.
Hfalgard sent his son, Thoradin, to the region of Skane to further the talks which had started before. Although Thoradin was a fairly skilled speaker, the people of Skane were a stubborn group and so they would agree to little more then additinal trade benefits for the Danes. When Thoradin grew tired of the talks he tooks his wife to a small lake in the mountains and proceded to have a great deal of quality time until his father ordered him to do something else. This led to a son being born late in 257 BC. Thoradin hoped to have another child, but in the middle of 256 BC his wife died when she fell through the ice of the small lake while ice skating. Thoradin grieved for a month before he found a new bride from the region. She was unable to bare him a child before the year came to a close.
Shortly after Hfalgard sent his son to speak to the men of Skane, it was rumored that one of his closest advisors greatly upset him. Cort, who was the advisor, was ordered to travel to the land of Halland and convince the people to become a tributary of the Danes, albiet one that owed little more then just allegience. Many whispered that this was the end to poor Cort as the region was still quite hostile from the raids a few years before which had greatly reduced the wealth of the region. Cort, although not as eloquent as Thoradin, proved to be a good diplomat when backed into a corner. He was lucky enough not to be killed outright when he reached Halland and after a few years of hard talks he managed to get them to stop poking him with sharp objects as a means of greeting him. Although he failed to get the region to declare any sort of alliance with the Danes, he did stop them from being hostile and he opened room for further talks. Once he was done in Halland he moved to Smaland where he again found himself in a tight position. Although the people of Smaland were not openly hostile with the Danes, they were fiercely independant of others. Through a great amount of luck and wonderous timing, Cort was able to convince the men of Smaland to join with the Danes in name, even if not in deed or tribute.
North America
Anasazi
Lonalitia, Chief of the Anasazi
Diplomacy: None
Once more the Anasazi watched as their corn grew and contemplated the future. Some still remember the distant lights from the past years, but things stayed very quiet. (No Turn)
Moundbuilders
Hotaphali, Lord of the Mounds
Diplomacy: Michegamea (F), Shawnee (NT)
Hotaphali stayed home and continued to run his nation. When his oldest son, Ailahpatoh, came of age he named him heir to the nation. While this was going on he ordered his ally, Hyutha, traveled far and wide along the rivers to try and get more people to trade for the food and trinkets made by the Moundbuilders. Chief Otoics was summoned to the Lacrosse fields to provide security for the next Great Lacrosse Games. Many tribes once more sent teams to compete for the title and in a surprise victory, Atakapa won.
Meanwhile, Nashalati continued to travel around on his diplomatic missions. In Michigamea he met with great success and within a small time the area was fully joined with the Moundbuilders. He then traveled to Shawnee lands to try and get them to also join with the growing empire. There he met with only minor success as the region agreed to some small concessions but refused to send tribute to the Moundbuilders.
Work continued on the Holy Mound. Though work was slow the site would eventually be finished giving the Moundbuilders a center of religion in their lands.
Atakapa
Athypata, Chief of the Atakapans
Controls: Atakapa
With their stunning victory at the Great Lacrosse Games and the promise of new money coming in from trading with the Moundbuilders, the people of Atakapa were growing to be a power along the base of the great river.
Central & South America
Maya
Tiahuacan
Diplomacy: None
The Mayans watched the skies as time slowly flowed by. They did heavy research into finding the perfect time to take a nap. With the sweltering heat of their jungles, this turned out to be about two-thirds of the way through the day. (No Turn)
Chavin
Mapoea
Diplomacy: Inca (NT), Nazca (T)
The land under Chavin control continued to grow and prosper. Several new farms were started in Moche to help feed and make money for the growing nation. Mapoea worried that his nation would be attacked from across the deep blue sea and so he ordered transports made to hold his mighty army. Now he could quickly travel to anywhere in the defense of his nation. He spent time with his son during this time, since there was not much to do until someone actually showed up to fight his great army. He declared the boy his heir.
Throughout the lands his advisors continued their diplomatic work with the other tribes in the nation. In Inca, the Shaman Hoyea was sent to gain a stronger allegiance from the lands. Many aids were sent with him, but they proved to be more of a detriment to him then an aid. In the end the great Shaman made some headway, but could not yet get the Incan tribe to agree to send tribute to their powerful neighbors. In Nazca, the Shaman Alberlo traveled alone to the region to explain to them the benefits of life under the rule of Mapoea. Alberlo was much better at convincing the people of Nazca that they should ally themselves with the Chavin tribe. Without the aid, or hindrance, of the aids sent with Shaman Hoyea he was able to make many deals with the Nazca tribe and gain a rich tribute from the region.