TURN 31 ORDERS DUE BACK BY:
ANNOUNCEMENTS
I really must apologize for the omission last turn of the Addresses / Costs / Other Campaigns section. It is in a linked file and as I printed the L4 newsfax at work without restablishing the link there, it dissapeared! Sorry.
My time constraints for doing turns have forced me to hand over this campaign to a new GM - Dave Salter (previously the Khazar player). This is rather sooner than I would have liked to turn over the campaign (we're still really cleaning up conversion issues) but I had no choice if there was to be any chance of turns coming out with reasonable speed. My life, and my work, as well as my B5 novel (and Lords One!) are taking up all of my time. I had a great time doing turns for you guys and hopefully Dave will be able to keep Four on track for a long time to come.
Here is Dave's address:
Dave Salter
7338 Rolling Oak Lane
Springfield, VA 22153
(703)912-6076 - After June 5th.
THE INTERNATION TRADE SITUATION
When I did the Internation Trade setup last turn I was faced with a quandary - what to do about your trade route durations? I had no idea how long your various routes had been in existence and it IS a critical part of the trade calculation. If I gave you all maximum durations, many of you would get MORE money than you deserved... So I gave you all zero durations last turn and, before I did results for this turn, I entered all of the durations that you had (hopefully) sent in with this turn; then I calculated the trade again and credited you the positive difference in your Saved Gold. This was a little difficult for some of you this turn, but was the only way that I could see to make sure that everyone got the amount of money they should.
One more note; Yes, you do make less money from trade than you did under Sean's previous Internation Trade scheme - but Sean had TOLD YOU THAT TURNS AGO! So if you were counting on making the same amount, tough, it was not in the cards.
THE LEADER PLAGUE
You will note this turn that many of your leaders died and were replaced. This is due to the fact that when I got the stat sheets from Sean, they did not include any Leader Death Ages, so I had the computer system regenerate all of them. In many cases, this meant that the calculated age was already less than the current age of the leader! So we had a little house-cleaning this turn. The new leader ratings, by the way, are randomly rolled by the computer program - so don't come whining to me about how bad they are - it's a random distribution.
MAP NOTES
I don't remember all of the changes I made to the maps, but as I think of them, I'll tell you:
The city of Akita in Akita province was renamed to Aomori.
The city of Ust Belaja in Kur province is renamed Kwangdu.
The city of Turkmen in Turkmen province is renamed Torkmen.
The city of Vladimir in Polotsk is renamed Vlatim.
The province of Otrar next to Kara-Khitai is renamed Otrarsh.
The province of Kur in Manchuria is renamed East Kur.
The Australian Current is a pair of one-way Open Ocean arrows between the Maori Sea (off of Te Ika A Maui) to the Ulladulla Sea off of Taree.
The provinces of Te Ika A Maui, Taranaki, Akaroa and Otago are all Cultivated.
There is no Ferry Point across the English Channel between Sussex and Ponthieu.
RULES ERRATA AND REMINDERS
Credit: Remember that if your Credit is shown in parentheses, like this ($2.00), it means that you owe me that amount of money! Pay up, ya deadbeats!
Public Works Support: You all do pay support on existing public works, which is why some of you with no Megalithic Constructs have a very small Support cost.
Children: Now that I'm keeping track of them, you need to worry about having them! If there is no Children & Heirs section on your stat sheet, you don't have any! So get busy.
Maximum Ratings: The numbers in brackets ( [ x ] ) following the various ratings on your stat sheets are your current maximum levels for those ratings. You may invest in a rating that is at maximum, though it will not do any good until the maximum increases. As it stands right now, if you had a rating (other than Trade Range) that was above the maximum, I moved the extra point(s) to another, related, rating that was under the maximum. I also moved any GP invested to other related ratings.
Building Public Works: Remember that PWB must be built in a location and you have to tell me where! If not, I will stick it in your homeland / capital.
Trade Route FreeCap: This is the "Free Capacity" of the Route in question. This number, if positive, is the extra number of effective MSP that can be allocated to this route to make money. If the figure is negative, then that indicates that there are too many merchants on the route and the extras are not making any money.
Outposts and Trade Ranges: Sorry, there are no Outpost cities or regions under the 5th Edition rules, and your base trade range is three (3). So, many of your current trade routes will have to be closed down or rearranged. Also note the maximum MSP limits per port!
Troop Support: You should be aware that there is a ×2 modifier for armies that have been in combat during the turn. This is in addition to any modifiers to troop support for the terrain that the army ends the turn in. So try and end the turn in a cultivated region. Also, each unit's Troop Support cost is of it's purchase cost.
Census Effects: When you take a census, you get 10% added to your tax rate, which, given the poor economic situation many of you are in, would be helpful.
King's Administration: It seems that Sean was having your King act as Infrastructure points regardless of wether he was Ruling or not. Under the 5th Edition, your King (or Heir, or Regent) must undertake a Rule action to have his "secret" administration stat act as Infra points for you. Remember, also, that Lieutenants can Administer as well, and possibly help you out in the Infra area.
Thin Government Effects: You get a Thin Government tax status whenever your nation does not have sufficent Infrastructure points (both from actual Infra, as well as your King Ruling and Lieutenant's Administering) to match or exceede your Imperial Size. If there is a shortfall, your tax rate is reduced by the proportion of the shortfall.
Changing Trade Route Merchant Allocations: When you are writing orders for this, ALWAYS include the Route Number; that's why I give it to you!
NFP Invested in Ratings: When you invest NFP in a rating, it converts to GP at 2gp per NFP. So, 5 NFP is 10gp in investment. Also, you can pay Project Support (only!) with NFP, also at 1 NFP = 2gp. For you historical nitpickers out there, this simulates the use of corveé labor for highway, dike and irrigation system maintenance.
[2.14.9] The Garrison (change)
Paragraph two, sentence two should read: "The number of units required for a successful garrison is equal to the city Gpv." This matches the requirement as expressed in [2.14.14].
[5.4.5] Demobilizing Units (addition)
Add after bulletted list, new paragraph: "When units are demobilized, they produce 1 NFP, regardless of how many NFP were used to construct them originally. One exception to this is the demobilization of Ferry Points, which is not allowed."
[5.6.5] Maximum City Wall Points (New)
The maximum number of total wall points (wp) that can be built on a city or fortress is limited to the Siege QR of the nation constructing the wall points. If a nation captures a city with more wall points than they could build for it, then they can keep the extra points, but if those points are destroyed by siege or assault, they cannot be rebuilt.
Example: The Romans fortify the city of Constantinople to their maximum (Siege Qr = 10, so 10 wall points). After many horrible events, the city is lost to the Pechnegs, who have Siege Qr of 4. Constantinople having been taken by treachery, it retains the 10 wall points. Later, the Arabs besiege the city and destroy three wall points, bringing it down to 7 wall points total. Since 7 is greater than 4 (the Pechneg Siege Qr), they cannot rebuild the lost wall points.
[6.1.5] Lieutenants (Addition)
A Lieutenant can also be dismissed, in effect, by granting them a province (Pacified or Friendly) of their own. In this case the Lieutenant and the granted province become a Feudal Ally of the nation. Note that the Lieutenant must be replaced by a Prince in this event. Which means, of course, that you must have a Prince hanging around to promote into the Lieutenant's slot.
TROOP CONVERSIONS
Infantry (200 men = 1 point), Cavalry (200 men = 1 point), Siege Engineers (200 men = 1 point), Warships (2 ships = 1 point), Transports (2 ships = 1 point).
Tom's eMail Address InterNet: tharlan@tophat.pima.gov
NOTE! The area code in Arizona outside of Maricopa County (Phoenix) has changed to 520!
THE GLOBAL EMPIRE SECTION!
LORDS ONE: Thomas Harlan, 4858 East Second Street, Tucson, Arizona. 85711-1207. (520)323-8570. Call between 7pm and 10pm MST. INTERNET: tharlan@pima.gov. Turn #177 is the latest. Openings: Mercantile Combines and Secret Empires are available.
LORDS TWO: Sean Harding, 2607 Humboldt Avenue South, Minneapolis, MN. 55408 (612)377-8440. Turn #29is the latest. Openings: None!
LORDS THREE - THE OLD WORLD: Colin Dunnigan, 5402 East Julia, Tucson, Arizona. 85711. (520)881-1402. INTERNET: cdunnigan@pima.gov. Colin has begun processing Turn 1, now that school is out.
LORDS THREE - THE NEW WORLD: Richard Ketcham, 3456 North Hills Drive, #258C. Austin, TX. 78731-3183. (512)343-6017. INTERNET: richk@maestro.geo.utexas.edu. Turn #86 is the latest. Openings: Maya, Mexico, Guiana.
LORDS FOUR: Thomas Harlan, 4858 East Second Street, Tucson, Arizona. 85711-1207.(520)323-8570. Openings: None.
LORDS FIVE: Scott Chatham, 11030 SW Wilsonville Road, #117. Wilsonville, OR. 97070-9505. Scott is preparing to revive this campaign now. (About time!)
LORDS SIX - NEW WORLD: Scott Micheel, 1241 Glorieta Street NE, Albuquerque, NM. 87112-5231. (505)296-4454. INTERNET: warden@rt66.com. Turn #46 is the latest. Openings: Inca, Checic, Cheyenne, Tainozemi, Chimtec, South Mapuche, North Mapuche and Zacatec.
LORDS SEVEN: Sean Harding, 2607 Humboldt Avenue South, Minneapolis, MN 55408. (612) 377-8440. Turn 1 Lottery forms have been distributed and the draft day will be the 26th of May. This campaign is open only to Minneapolis metro area players. So stop whining...
LORDS EIGHT: Kwon has determined that he is unable to do turns anymore, so he is refunding all of the current turn credits for Eight-Old World. An old, non-official, New World campaign that Thomas Stemen had been running is being restarted as the Lords Eight New World. wierd, huh?
PLATE GAMES SUBEMPIRE: Thad Plate, 5333 East Thomas Road, #215, Phoenix, Az. 85018. (602)952-8929. INTERNET: thadplate@aol.com.
LORDS NINE: Turn #99 latest. Openings: Fatimid Caliphate, Twilight Kwakiutl, Parana Stargazers, Sumatra.
LORDS TEN: Turn #58 latest. Openings: Kusti, Tuluka Sakalava, Volga Balts.
LORDS ELEVEN: Turn #18 latest. Openings: Karimid, Aghlabid Sicily, Maku.
LORDS TWELVE: Dean DonArumo, 1403 Windsor, C-19, Huntsville, TX. 77349. (409)291-3348. Being transferred to a new GM!
LORDS THIRTEEN: Rich Sorensen, PO Box 779, Columbia Falls, MT. 59912. (406) 892-3752. This game is being entirely restarted. Contact Rich if you were in the previous iteration of 13 to get your new stats.
LORDS ITALIA ONE (CAMPAIGN FOURTEEN) : Fernando Bellizzi, Via Stamiria 15-7, Roma 00162, Italia. (06)44247137. Internet: mc0763@mcilink.it. Turn #10 is the latest. Openings: Principato del Rajput, Indiani Cherokee.
LORDS FIFTEEN: Jack Wagner and Jeff Martin, 5328 North 3rd Avenue, Phoenix, AZ. 85013. (602) 279-4008. Turn #26 latest.
LORDS ITALIA TWO (CAMPAIGN SIXTEEN): Claudio Forgione, Viale Giulio Cesare 183, Roma 00187. (06) 39737121. Preparing to start up.
THE RYNG'S CRUENTI DEI SUBEMPIRE: Thom & Beverly Ryng, 1435 North Pearl Street, #2, Tacoma, WA. 98406. (206)752-3923 - No calls before 10am PST or after 9pm PST. Internet: darkpenguin @eworld.com.
TARBYR: Turn #18 the latest. Openings: Hunza, Alama, Taliabu, Onzkal.
PRIBAN: Turn #4 the latest. Openings: House Quynh.
VARIOUS FEES AND LEVIES
Turns: $3.00 per turn (Local), $4.00 per turn (mailed).
Maps: Entire World [8½11] $3.00 (Local) or $5.00 (Mailed). Entire World [1117] $7.00 (Local) or $10.00 (Mailed). Sorry, no colored or "small" world maps are available.
5th Edition Rulebook: $10.00 (Local) or $13.00 (Mailed in US), $15.00 (mailed overseas).
Renaissance Supplement: $3.00 (Local) or $4.00 (Mailed in US), $5.00 (mailed overseas).
Back Newsfaxes (Available for Lords One, turns #143 - #145, #153-172): $1.00 per copy (local) or $2.00 per copy (mailed in the US) or $3.00 per copy (mailed overseas). Sorry, no back issues for Lords Four are available yet.
Newsfax Subscriptions: $2.00 per turn (mailed in the US). These will be mailed at the same time as the regular turns are mailed out.
Lords Four Back Newsfaxes: are available from Ed Heufe; 2300 Central SE #B-148, Albuquerque, NM. 87106. For the rate of $1.00 per copy (local), $2.00 per copy (US Mail) and $3.00 per copy (Overseas). Ed has all of the turns.
NORTH ASIA
MERCENARY POOL: 15I, 30C, 5S, 5W, 5T
MERCENARY AQRS: C4 I4 W4 S4
BEI SONG
Xien Chou - Lord of the Royal Seal, Explorer of the Northern Lands
DIPLOMACY: None
Work continued on Kwangdu as Xien Chou ordered the expansion of the coke furnaces on the downwind side of the city. A new lumber mill was also built. The master scout Haraja-jen made his way east through the wilderness of Tumin to the Japanese settlements on Sakhalin, where he gave much advice ("wear big fur coats and drink a lot of pine beer!") and helped the soft southerners survive another winter.
THE GOBI HORDE
Furkiln -- Khan of the Pickle-Men
DIPLOMACY: None
Gehankis, envisoning a mighty campaign against the tribes of the west, ordered all of his bannder-leaders to come to Ayaguz to learn of his plan. So too did he come to that grassy land. But, even as the Tuhnwhap and the Langshan armies rode into the camp of the Great Khan, the Pickle-Lord took ill (an badly cured cucumber) and expired soon after. Tense times then ensued, but the son of Gehankis, Furkiln, by devious means, secured the place of his father amongst the tribes.
So, the combined armies of the horde, now some 140,000 strong, struck west like a bolt of lightning into the lands of the Beshbaliki. There they found a strong clan of the Nestorian faith. Furklin's army was as vast as the high grass, however, and after some minor fighting and dickering the Beshbaliki bowed before him. So, the Pickle-Men continued west in the wooded mountains of the Tien Shan. Though his sub-chiefs argued against such an arduous trek, Furkiln had his own intent for taking the high road. And so they came to Dzungaria on the shores of Balkash and the tribes of that place fled before them into Sogdia and then, as the Gobi pursued, over the mountains into Otarsh into the lands of the Turkmen.
Ignoring the trouble that he had caused in southern lands, Furkiln now hooked north around the western end of Lake Balkash into the province of the same name. Here the Gobi tangled with the Tarhain, who refused them passage (inspired doubtless by the Otrar who stood to their west and would not give them leave to enter their lands). Furkiln was pleased to at last meet warriors with hot blood, for the flight of the Dzungarians had disgusted him. His armies shook out into the horns of battle and their lance-tips were like a bright forest of stars as they swung to the heavens. The 30,000 Tarhain raised a great cry as they wheeled to battle against the numberless Gobi. They were annhilated by the unstoppable waves of the 180,000 easterners.
Furkiln then returned to his homeland via Betpak, Osman, Tarbagatai and so on. As the Black Host moved, all tribes, hearing of the destruction of the Tarhain, offered up tribute to Furkiln. He ended AD 1255 in Tangut to feast his chieftains and to distribute the riches of his "raid" into the west. It had been quite successful. In the tents of the Khan, the priests of the Nestorians now had easy access and made many converts amongst the Gobi.
KOREA
Matsu Zhengan - Prince of Silla, Protector of Civilized China
DIPLOMACY: None (cough cough)
The Koreans were saddened by the death of the old king, Baloney, of a coughing sickness in the early winter of 1251. Though he was the most noted victim of this affliction, he was not the only one. The generals Salami and Pork also perished, as did General Beef a few months later in the south. Baloney's son, Zhengan, however, did take the throne and retrieved the army from Yun in the north and returned it to Shangtung, where he ruled from his Palace of Birds. The works in Ta'tung that Baloney had started were completed, making that frontier city one of the finest in the land. An attempt to acquire a bride from the Anshan failed when the coughing sickness consumed the leader sent to fetch the girl.
THE EMPIRE OF NIPPON
Oni Usage - Shogun of Nippon
DIPLOMACY: None
The Japanese were also afflicted with the coughing sickness (carried into their lands by Korean merchants), losing many thousands of their people, as well as the great lords Imagawa Ujizane, Takeda Shingen, the daimyo of Kagoshima and the lord of the Kuriles. Kagoshima remained part of the Empire as an allied realm and the Kuriles passed into the direct administration of the Oni family. The economic situation was also perilous, as the Shogun found that the many idle samurai were a great drain on his pocketbook. For the moment, Usage found the funds that he needed from the moneylenders .. but how deep were their pockets?
CHIN CHINA
Y'Ling Huan-ti - Emperor of the Middle Kingdom, Master of the World
DIPLOMACY: Chekiang(t), Hai'an in Chekiang(nt)
Much like the Japanese, the Korean coughing sickness struck the Chin hard, filling the streets of the cities of Chianghung, Daw-Hni and Than-xi with the dead and dying. Regardless, Y'ling ordered his son, Di-wong, to take the Imperial Army south (both to get it out of the sickness and to improve the state of the realm) with the ailing General Fah in tow. Fah did not last long, dying in Jiangxi, but Di-wong pressed on (aided in crossing the Yangtse by a large river fleet) into the south, crossing the Cathay border into Nanling, in April of 1253.
SOUTH ASIA
MERCENARY POOL: 30I, 5C, 5S, 5W
MERCENARY AQRS: C5 I5 W3 S3
THE SOUTHERN CATHAY DYNASTY
The Cathay thought at first the the rumored coughing sickness had come upon them with the sudden death of Qiou Dou, but the court physicians quickly repudiated such a claim, showing that the excess of black bile in his stomach showed that his balance had been fatally disordered by a lesser demon. Prince Shay Dou smirked at this assessment, knowing full well that the lesser demon in question was now feeding the koi at the bottom of the Hung'shu. The noble general Chiang then moved against the patricide, but was betrayed by his wife and murdered. Indeed now Shay Dou ruled without dissent, though now the realm was woken by the distant thunder of Chin hoofbeats.
The Chin Prince Di-Wong came down out of the wooded valleys of Ganzhou at the head of an army of 40,000 men into the fertile fields of Nanling. There they found the province held by a feudatory lord of the Cathay, a noble that resisted their efforts to sweep through. While the Chin were busy running this fellow to earth and slaughtering his men, Shay Dou marched in haste with his army up from Zhanjing and encountered the lead Chin elements on the Lingtung border, at the market-town of Dakengkou (August 1253). There he made a stand with his brave 10,000 in the barricades of the town and along its outskirts.
Dakengkou was a complete disaster for Cathay arms. Trapped in the town they were encircled and then driven out when the Chin fired the buildings. Fighting in the smoke and flames, the superior weight of Chin troops slaughtered the Cathay. Shay Dou escaped, disguised as a corn merchant. The Chin secured Nanling and then Lingtung. Unopposed by the Cathay, whose army had been destroyed and scattered, the Chin then punched south through Lingsi and Lingnan into Annam.
Thanglong in Annam fell to the Chin siege engineers and Di-Wong completed his remarkable campaign by marching back north and securing the provinces of Kwangsi and Kwangtung. Now, he was hailed as conqueror of the south. Shay Dou, for his part, fled into exile in Khemer - bringing his bad luck with him.
THE GREATER EMPIRE OF KHMER
Rama Tiboti - His Most Serene Highness, Cloak of Buddha, Mask of Hidden Glory
DIPLOMACY: None
The Khemers, determined to at least match the glorious realm of the Pandyans in largesse, expanded the cities of Xie in Arakan, Paghan in Ava, Mandalay in Burma, Vijaya in Champa, Tun Son Nha in Cochin, Dai can in Dai Viet, Tani in Kedah, Angkor Wat in Khemer, Vientienne in Laos, Barahur in Malay, Mar'gu in Mon, Mangfu in Nakhon, Savanarkh in Nampung, Bassein in Pegu, Mallaca in Perak and Ca Mau in PhanRang. In addition, a massive complex of canals, temples, raised rice paddies and other works was undertaken around Angkor Wat and Bassein. In all, the realm of the Khmer became one of the richest in the world.
However, all was not well in the land of the grey-green temples. The brother of the Serene Highness, one Bao Dai Rama, indulged in one too many plots and suddenly found himself charged with treason against the Emperor. Rama, enraged at such a base accusation, sent his assassins to deal with the enemy that had framed him (General Kuzsaen). It was just a hair too late, however, as the Emperors Guardsmen came to arrest him. Rama was dragged away, screaming protests and placed in a deep cell under the palace. Meanwhile, Kuzsaen and the Emperor had met in Kuzsaen's chambers to discuss the accusations against the Prince. Jayavarman refused to believe that his brother had conducted such perfidities and summoned his scribes to carry a write of release to the prison. It was then that Rama's assassins broke in and attacked the General and his guest. A bloody fight ensued, with Kuzsaen hewing down two of his attackers before taking a throwing dagger in the eye. Jayavarman defended himself as well, but soon was coughing blood as he slumped to the floor. The surviving assassins fled, little realizing that they had struck higher and harder than they knew.
Jayavarman left no sons, and in the great chaos that ensued when his death was discovered, the ordered execution of Rama was carried out by the prison staff. The vacuum of power in Angkor was then filled by the captain of the Imperial Guard, a Thai named Rama Tiboti, who founded his own dynasty. His consolidation of power did lead to bloodshed, with thousands killed in fighting in the capital and the other great cities. During this "time of troubles" the provinces of Hmong, Thaton, Ava, Changmai, Cochin, Lampang, Laos, Mison and Perak all revolted. Tiboti, distracted by his own concerns at the center of the Empire, was unable to stem the collapse of the periphery.
Things became more difficult when the Avan garrison, which had been very strong, crushed the local revolt there and then raised its own commander, a pure Khemer, as a rival Emperor. The western provinces then hewed to this leader, one Jyanmahan, who declared that he would oust Tiboti from the throne of the Lotus.
THE KHEMER EMPIRE OF BURMA
Jyanmahan, True Emperor of the Khemers
DIPLOMACY: None
The True Khemers, upholding all that is right and good and proper in the universe, seized control of the provinces of Ava, Tungoo, Pegu, Prome, Burma, Samatata, Arakan and the Andaman Islands. The Emperor vows to defeat the rebel insurgency of the Tiboti Thai in the old Empire.
ISLAND KINGDOM OF JAVA
Palmsarasayan XVIII - King of the Spice Isles, Master of the Spice Trade
Diplomacy: None, really...
The Javans shuffled their merchant shipping about, just in time to have their primary trade partner (the Khemers) break into two pieces amidst a vicious civil war. Palmsara was quite disgusted by this, but then, that was the way it went some times. Missionary activities in Utara were undertaken, to some success, though not quite as much as the Javans would have liked. The Javans were also afflicted in some slight way by the coughing sickness brought down from the north - Lord Selamut and the king of Natuna Besar both contracted it and died. Natuna Besar became a fief of the Crown. Selamut's mission was a bust, however, as there was no one to back him up.
POLYNESIA
MERCENARY POOL: 20W,10I
MERCENARY AQRS: I3 W3 S1
THE MAYORI KINGDOM OF TOOWOMBA
Phredd - The Supreme Lord of the Australian Outback Pygmy
DIPLOMACY: Papua(ea)
Phredd, concerned with the state of his realm, ordered the beautification of the capital of Ewa, which was done. "Our city shall be the jewel of all Oceania," he proclaimed to the citizens as they herded their kagaroos past the court. Prince Kroc was sent into the northlands, to Papua, where he found the native tribes to have some peculiar customs. He also acquired a wife, who introduced him to some marital customs that he found quite revolting; but eventually they grew on him, so to speak.
In a distressing event, catamaran-riding raiders ravaged several villages on the coasts of Taree and Goolburra, taking much grain, stock animals and other goods. Phredd vowed to deal with these sea-pirates!
THE PRINCIPALITY OF FIJI
She-Girl-Yun - Keeper of the Emerald Isles
DIPLOMACY: Bora-Bora(nt)
The Fijians were quite busy, building a city, Kotholon on Vanuatu, and expanding the capital of Te Akau on Fiji. Some catamarans were sent north to see if there were any civilized people on the coast of the Land of Heads (New Guinea). Their mission was successful in that they met up with the Prince of the Toowomba in Papua, but failed to find anyone to trade with in that area. Apparently the Toowombans had cities and goods in the south, but that was beyond the range of the Fijians to reach on a regular basis.
The chief of the Samoans made a trip to Fiji to receive the gift of many cargo catamarans. His return home, however, was marred by his death in a shark attack. His lands became the property of She-Girl-Yun, the wife of Hoth-Poth. Indeed, the death of Hoth-Poth by sea-snake attack in 1255 left her ruler of the Fijian islands. The Keeper's trip to the east met with some success, though not nearly as much as she wanted. Back in the west, General Waimea took a war-fleet to the Solomons, whose island tribes he suppressed in battle, winning many single combats and slaying entire villages in his wrath.
TE IKA A MAUI MAYORI
Ko-Mano-Wan, King of the Mayori of the Island of the Long Cloud
DIPLOMACY: None
The Maori struggled to make the disbursement of gifts to the warriors, but were aided by the construction of a large town (well, city) in Te Ika A Maui - Ropopongi - from which their growing realm could reach out to trade with the other nations in the vicinity. Iha-Ngau-Aha, who had masterminded these improvements (as well as extensive irrigation and land-clearing works throughout the realm) died a happy ruler, knowing that his people would soon be prosperous and happy. Ko-Mano-Wan, his brother, became the new King of the Long Cloud.
INDIA THE GLORIOUS
MERCENARY POOL: 30I, 15C, 10S, 10W
MERCENARY AQRS: C4 I5 W3 S3
THE KINGDOM OF TIBET
Fu Ming - The Holy Llama - High Priest of the Buddhist Faith
DIPLOMACY: None
Fu Ming was busied by the many tasks of government, and he summoned his prelates back to Holy Llhasa to consult with him about the progression of the realm. Wither would Tibet go now, with the Khemer in disarray and the Cholans growing ever stronger?
THE CHOLA MANDELA EMPIRE
Krsna Deva - The Left Hands of Vishnu
DIPLOMACY: Cochin in Chera(a), Somantha in Surashtra(f)
The Cholans, eager to see their mighty realm grow even mightier and more grand, began many projects in the provinces to improve roads, to build new irrigation canals, to build granaries, to clean up cities and towns. As part and parcel of the massive economic boom, the cities of Somantha, Raishah, Surat, Kalyani, Banavasi, Tanjore, Tamralipti and Bhadracham were all expanded. Further, a highway of metalled (surfaced) road was built from Tanjore in Chola south to Kollam in Pandya. So too was a great wall built in Gaur to defend the border with Assam. Situated behind the broad brown waters of the Bhramaputra river, it made that frontier immune to attack.
All of these mighty works did exceede the capacity of Somatha's coffers to supply sufficent coin to pay the thousands and thousands of workers, so he borrowed large sums to complete the endeavours. His was a rich realm, and would easily be able to repay these lenders. His death then, came as an unwelcome portent (what with the confusion in Khemer lands), but no foul play was suspected, only a weak heart at last burst with age.
And so his son, Krsna Deva, became master of the greatest empire the world has ever known. As the new ruler, he found himself presiding over the change of rule in various provinces - like Belur, whose raj had been killed in a hunting accident, leaving only a daughter. Krsna was quick to appoint himself guardian of the young woman and the Belur lands became part of his personal demesne. The situation in Malabar, however, could not be handled so easily, and the new raj of that province refused to renew his father's obligations to Krsna Deva. The Nasiki then left the Empire due to the death of their rajah in an odd double accident that also took the life of the Satavan prince. The Satavans also left the empire when Krsna attempted to seize their lands.
Despite these mild revolts, the Cholans did manage to make some headway in securing greater control along the Rajputana coast. Krsna Deva did continue to have trouble controlling the fringe elements of the empire. The hill-tribes of Gangas also revolted, since the Malabari had revolted and had not been crushed, so they had thought that they would do the same. Pawar also revolted for much the same reason.
THE KINGDOM OF SIRINIGAR
Akbar Singh - Khan of the Kush and the Indus
DIPLOMACY: Gujerat(t), Ajmer(nt)
The Sirinigari, unfettered by the chains of an empire grown too large to control, conducted a census, expanded control in the southlands, and celebrated when Akbar Singh was blessed with the birth of a son, Mokten. Trade was also restablished with the Shebans.
THE KHANATE OF SCYTHIA
Qura-Hulagu, Khan of the Scythians, Lord of Afghanistan
DIPLOMACY: None
The Scythians, proud in their revolt against the Turks, rule the provinces of Zaranj, Hazarajat, Afghanistan, Sistan, Registan, Siahan and Baluch, as well as the cities therein.
CENTRAL ASIA AND THE MIDDLE EAST
MERCENARY POOL: 11HC, 16C, 18HI, 24I, 10W
MERCENARY AQRS: C5 I4 W4 S5
THE KHANATE OF OTRAR
Vitidimines - Great Khan of the Otrar, Tarhain and Khirgiz
DIPLOMACY: Khirgiz(a), Ob(a), Kazan(a)
With the Great Raid of the Gobi, the provinces to the east of the Otrar were heavily depopulated and the Tarhain defeated, so the Otrar expanded into these empty lands, finding new graze and water for their herds. At the same time, the prince Vitidimines travelled west into the realm of the khan of the Khirgiz, where he managed to acquire wives for both himself and his brother while cementing an alliance between the khans of those lands and the Otrar khanate.
THE EMIRATE OF TURKMAN
Jyn-al-Nur - Shah of Bukhara, Emir of Merv, Sultan of the Silk Route
DIPLOMACY: None (due to the death of Aban-Adil)
The Tukmeni started things off on an ill foot with the murder of the Shah Gyn-al-Nur at the hands of his younger brother, Jyn, who had recently returned from the southern provinces. The explusion of his brothers's advisors and adherents from the capital completed Jyn's coup. He was not, however, prepared for the sudden movement of the Dzungarians over the mountains into Otrarsh and was forced to take the army out from Torkmen and up the Jaxartes valley to deal with this incursion.
The lord Aban-Adil, meantime, who had been travelling amongst the tribes in the trans-Balkash, was killed by Gobi outriders while trying to avoid the sweeping movement of the Pickle-Men. His death, and the failure of his mission to the Sogdians, was part and parcel of the collapse of Turkmeni influence north of the Jaxartes. Balkash, Betpak, Sogdia and Ravina were all lost to them. Similarly, due to the harsh actions of Jyn in deposing his brother, the loyalty of the princes of Khurasan (the old Prince having been arrested by Jyn's adherents for protesting the murder of the old Shah - he then died in a cell in Merv) was lost and with it the connection to the southern lands.
Jyn-al-Nur, meantime, had marched his army to Tashkent, where he found that the Dzungarians had already besieged the city and, as it had no walls, had captured it and were busily looting it. The young Shah ordered his cavalry elements to immediately attack the nomads and the battle was met. The battle of Tashkent (May AD 1252) pitted 36,000 Turkmeni against the 22,000 Dzungarian horse. Unfortunately for Jyn's debut battle, the Dzungarians fled immediately upon the charge of his cataphracts, swinging around behind the city. At the same time, the Turkmeni infantry was still struggling to reach the field. The Dzungarian scouts, seeing that the Turkmeni forces had become separated, flanked the Turks and fell upon the unsupported infantry (which was still marching along the road). They caused a great slaughter amongst the support forces, as well as seizing Jyn's baggage train. They then engaged the cataphracts and grivpani with little effect before withdrawing.
Jyn, shocked by the fluid maneuver of the Dzungarians and the killing power of their horsebowmen, abandoned the untenable city and fell back south to Samarkhand to regroup. Once in Samarkhand he was distracted by news of the revolt of the Scythian feudatories in the south and was not able to take the field against the Dzungarians again until late 1253. During the intervening spring, the Dzun had seized Singanakh as well and threatened the city of Torkmen. Jyn now advanced with more caution, his grivpani forming a screen before his heavy horse. The remaining heavy infantry had been left behind at Samarkhand to guard the city.
Several months of inconclusive marching and skermishing ensued, with the Dzungarians at last retiring north into their own lands, laden with loot from Otrarsh and Singanakh. Jyn, wounded in the useless fighting, returned to Torkmen to recover and plague his wives with a very foul mood. During this time he was visited by a Nirizimi embassy that requested leave to travel about the land, seeking donations and preaching the word of the Prophet. Unwilling to pick a fight with the High Iman, he acquiesced.
During the Dzun invasion, you see, the Scythians in the far south (having been settled in the inhospitable highlands of Registan and Sistan) had been ordered to make a campaign into the equally vile provinces of Baluchistan and Shadad in search of slaves and loot. This did not seem to be a very profitable endeavour and when Qura-Hulagu, the prince of the Scythians, learned that the Shah Gyn (to whom he had sworn fealty) had died and that the critical province of Khurasan had revolted against the Turks, he repudiated the oath to the al-Nur and seized the provinces of Zaranj, Hazarajat, Afghanistan and Baluch as his own. Needless to say, this did not improve the demeanour Jyn-al-Nur.
HOLY IMAN OF ALL ISLAM
Ali Rashid - The Highest Follower of Allah
DIPLOMACY: None
The Shah of Nirizim, seeing that the original intent of his realm, to serve as the focus for the divine light of Allah and to provide the Moslem world with a sure and steady religious vision, had become clouded and filled with distractions, undertook substantial changes in his stewardship of the lands in central Persia that he had ruled. Direct control over the provinces of Abasigia, Al-Zagros, Arbiliq, Azerbaijan, Dasht'elKavir, El Burz, Georgia, Isfahan, Kurdistan, Media, Neyriz, Persia and Shirvan was relenquished. The city of Alamut in Tabaristan became a Holy City, being the seat of the High Iman. The armies of the Shahdom were reduced, leaving only the fiercest and most skilled warriors as the "Swords of Allah" to serve the High Iman and to protect the Holy City of Alamut from the heathens.
A great mosque was opened in Baghdad and another outside of the city in Mesopotamia as well. The Iman Beykanor was sent east to bring the word of these momentous events to the Emir of the Turks, and Iman Khameni was sent south to bring similar news to the Shah of the Safavids. Finally, the son of the High Iman, Ali, made a pilgrimage to Jerusalem to the Dome of the Rock. While he prayed at that holy site, his head bent in the presence of Allah, the voice of an angel whispered in his ear that his beloved father, Mohammad, had suffered a seizure in his rooms in the Palace of Paradise in Alamut and was dead.
SAFAVIYYAH DYNASTY OF BAGHDAD
Umm Akbar Cedid Ayatollah Shayzar - Spokesman of God, Chosen of Allah, Guide of the Faithful, Shah of Baghdad, Most Learned of the Holy
DIPLOMACY: None
The Safavids, faced with critical economic problems, undertook to trim down the size of their army and to expand the agricultural production and harvests of Mesopotamia. Vast efforts therefore were undertaken, though the smooth and easy implementation of these efforts were undermined by the death of Akbar Ibn Cedid in 1251 due to food poisoning. The immediate problems of his death were exacerbated by an attempt during the funeral by General Sameh to murder the Prince Umm Akbar and his putative heir (in turn) Lord al-Shamzar. This plot was foiled and Sameh and many of his clan were put to death. This distracted the new Shah for a time.
During this interval, al-Shamzar took a strong force of cataphracti west to see to the disposition of the western provinces so recently acquired in war. However, as he advanced to Sancelade in Carhae, he learned (to his disgust) that the news of the death of Ibn Cedid had sparked a general rising in the west, with the provinces of Aleppo, Cilicia, Isauria, Lebanon, Pamphyla, Phyrgia and Syria exploding in revolt. The general had a sick feeling about this, but his duty was clear.
The Safavid army attacked the principate of Aleppo first, easily crushing the rabble of their army and recapturing the city of Antioch, whose walls had still not been rebuilt from the last siege. Al-Shamzar then turned south and attacked Syria, whose defenders he also defeated. Now, however, much of his army had been bled away in garrisons and battle casualties so he marched his men over the Shuf mountains into the Lebanese coastal plain and there managed, by dint of marrying a Druze princess, to secure at least the nominal allegiance of the Lebanese. He then returned to Aleppo to regroup, rest his men and to wait for reinforcements from Baghdad before essaying any campaigns in Anatolia.
AL'RIADYH HORDE
Quo-Far - Bey of the Shi'ite Nomads
DIPLOMACY: None
The al'Riyadh found themselves in the forests of Abasigia with little chance of loot, or glory, or new lands to rule in sight. Thus, with the connivance of the Khazars they swept north, riding in endless files with their womenfolk and animals in tow, through Kuban, Taman and into the Crimea. There they defeated the Khan of the Crimea in battle at Topoloplis (April 1254) and then made passage through his lands. Amongst other things, this victory cost the Byzantine Empire control of the Crimea. From there, through Polovotsy took them to the Dnepr and beyond it the lands of the Pechnegs.
The Pechnegs contested the al'Riyadh in their crossing of the Dnepr, but were defeated anyway, and the moslems came to Pechneg itself, on the frontiers of Europe proper. In those lands, finding good graze and much water, Quo-Far elected to rest his people for a time.
THE BYZANTINE EMPIRE OF THE EAST
Constantine von Hapsburg - Emperor of Constaninople, Protector of the Patriarch of Constaninople and Jerusalem, Roman Emperor of the East
DIPLOMACY: Thessaly(a)
Constantine found himself faced with a severe dilemma. His recent campagin against the tribes north of the Danube had won him great victories in arms and much new land, but to be honest, those lands were well nigh worthless being grassy plain or forest. Nary a stead of farmland amongst them. The expense of maintaining his armies north of the Danube was tremendous so (after supporting the state for a time with heavy loans from the coinlenders in the capital) he abandoned Banat, Transylvania, Moldavia, Wallachia and Ialomita. Ludgorie was maintained as a feudatory province to secure the southern bank of the Danube.
With this and the return of the Emperor to the capital, things began to settle down. As usual, agents of the Shahdom of Nirizim continued to sneak about the greatest City in the World, but the vigilance of the Office of Barbarians continued to snoop them out. Missionary works by the reorganized and rebuilt Patriarchy were undertaken in Dobruja to some effect. Constantine also managed to acquire himself a wife, one of the Thessalian Nikodomedes. Upon her return with him to the capital, she presented him with a bouncing baby … girl. Damn.
At Corinth, the army lost the popular Philip Arginus to a bloody flux, and then took ship with Jason and the fleet to Augusta in Bithnia. From there, with the Italian Scaurus in command, they marched east into Paphlagonia. The original intent had been to resecure the coastal province of Galatia and the port of Samatsagna from the withdrawing al'Riyadh. Now, however, the Office of Barbarians brought word that the dynastic troubles of the Safavaids had cut loose all of Anatolia. Scaurus now accelerated his plans, pushing his men forward into Galatia.
Under Marcus' able leadership the weak Moslem bey of Galatia was defeated and the ornery townsmen of Samatsagma were brought under Imperial rule. With the northern coastal littorial secured, he then marched south into Psidia. Three years of hard fighting ensued as Scaurus and his army hacked their way through the moslem provinces of Psidia, Pamphyla, Phyrgia and Isauria. All of those lands, having been just conquered and then abandoned by the al'Riyadh, were weakly held by the latest crop of noble lords to spring up there and the Byzantine army found the weeding to be relatively easy work.
EASTERN EUROPE
MERCENARY POOL: 20I, 20C, 5W
MERCENARY AQRS: C4 I4 S3 W3
KINGDOM OF THE KAZARS
Jacob II of Sarkel - Patriarch of Judah
DIPLOMACY: Bolgar(f), Kuban(f), Levedia(fa),
Jacob dealt with the common problem of a lack of ready gold to pay his men by ordering the Kubani and Bolgars to settle in lands around Itil in Astarkhan and become landowners. Begrudgingly they accepted the soft and pampered life. Amongst other things this made the administration of their provinces much ... easier for Jacob. Otherwise, the Kazars watched with interest as the great host of the al'Riyadh passed through their lands in the south, heading west.
THE KINGDOM OF AUSTRIA
Ladislas von Hoern, Reichwarden of the East, Protector of Civilized Europe, King of Austria
DIPLOMACY: Slovakia(nt), Hungary(t), Bosnia(t)
The Reichwarden was not pleased with his realm being known as the Ostmark (it implied that he was some kind of vassal of the HRE) so he renamed his demesne the kingdom of Austria and himself as king. He also dickered with the Slovakians, and they paid him some attention. The withdrawl of the Poles from the Hungarian plain also allowed him to extend his purported domain east as well.
VARANGIAN RUSIA
Alexsander Andreivich - Tsar of all the Russias
DIPLOMACY: Kur(f), Livonia(t), Rhzev(t)
Alexsander, now able to actually rule his domain, undertook some works to improve the lot of things in Polotsk and was understandably concerned by the arrival of the al'Riyadh on his southern borders. His realm, however, was poor, and he had hopes that the Moslems had richer targets in mind. Alex also bethrothed his daughter Greta to Bearisovitch of Kur and made that doughty warrior his heir. Too, Bearisovitch's efforts expanded the realm northwards.
THE KINGDOM OF POLAND
King Stanislons Walushesk - King of Poland
DIPLOMACY: None
In an effort to restore some semblance of control to his overextended kingdom, Stanislons ordered his lords to abandon control of the provinces of Bialoweza, Bosnia, Carpathia, Hungary, Masuria and Pomerania. Too, essentially the entire Polish army was hired out to the German Empire as foederati in exchange for the Germans paying the room and board of the knights and the suzerainity of the provinces of Lausatia and Meissen as well as the city of Brandenburg. With this Stanislons hoped to build a new state that could support itself and provide the foundation for a new, stronger, Polish empire.
In familial news, Princess Anastesia was married off to the Duke of Prussia, who was only 81 years old (and she eighteen). His life was short after this, though Anastesia was pregnant ere he died, but she in turn died in the birthing, taking her baby daughter with her into the afterlife. Considerable land clearing and irrigation work was undertaken in Greater Poland as well.
Duke Rovir oversaw the movement of the Polish army, some 25,000 men, to Anhalt in the German Empire, where those knights and men-at-arms swore fealty of service to the Emperor Frederick the Young (also known as the Third). Many in the service of the King were heartsick at this, for now Poland was little more than the feofman of the German, a ward on the east against the Slavs and the barbarians. Sad days indeed.
THE KALMAR REPUBLIC
Bengt Torstensen, Altkansler of the Kalmar Senate
DIPLOMACY: Ilmen(t), Lithuania(a)
The city of Soderham was dark, draped with the black of mourning. The frigid grey morning air was still, broken only by the slow clop-clop of horses hooves. The last king of Sweden, Ilumivar Varda, was carried in state on a bier of holly branches by a hundred men. Slowly, timed by the pacing of the honor guard before them, the funereal procession wound its way through the narrow streets down to the stone quays of the harbor. Above the bare heads of the men in the procession, every window and balcony was filled with the silent faces of the people of the city. All wept quiet tears at the passing of the honored king. His spirit had fled to Odin with the coming of spring, after a long sickness. Now, with the land blooming with green at last, and Father Winter lifting his icy hand from the streams and lakes, the people of Soderham, and all the realm, found themselves at a passing.
Seven days after the lighting of the resin torches and the last voyage of the king on a ship of flame, the great nobles of the land met in solemn conclave in the village of Kalmar to debate the course of events in a thing of serious import. Many wise men spoke before the assembled host, and of them, the merchant, Bengt Torstensen, proposed a solution to the vexing question of who should rule in the place of the king.
"Ilumviar left no issue, son or daughter, to lead the people, and none amongst his cousins is strong enough to take the throne by force or wit. Too, Queen Magda is old and desires not the weight of rule upon her shoulders. I say that we should turn to the wisdom of our ancient fathers and choose, by vote of all the landowners of the kingdom, a new altkansler to lead us.
"Let this man rule for a span (ten) of years and then let the jarls of the land vote again to choose a new 'kansler. During the seating of this man, all will abide by his decisions, as though he were high king. To aid him in the exercise of his duties, let each jarldom (district) vote amongst themselves to choose their wisest and most canny to send to the kingseat at Soderham as the 'wise voices' to give counsel to the 'high counselor' ."
Long was this measure debated and at long last the nobles of the land were faced with the prospect of a fair settlement in this wise, or lengthly war amongst themselves. In this the wisdom of the One-Eye must have been upon them, for they chose the path of wisdom and turned away from war and the bloody field. So did Bengt Torstensen, the son of a cooper, become the ruler of the realm of Sweden. To commemorate the decision, the land was now called the Republic of Kalmar, for that was where the thing had sat to make the choosing.
WESTERN EUROPE
MERCENARY POOL: 25HC, 41C, 31HI, 45I, 29W
MERCENARY AQRS: C5 I5 W5 S4
THE UNITED KINGDOM OF GREATER BRITANNIA
Lucas - King the United Kingdom of Greater Brittania, Holder of the Royal Seal of Flanders, Keeper of the Irish Talisman of Faith
DIPLOMACY: None
The Angevins were pretty fat and happy, seeing as how their realm was one of the most powerful in Europe and spanned much of the west. Thus the deaths, in short succession of Queen Eleanor and then King Henry, were a sad occasion. Young prince Lucas, who had been just trying to pass his latin and rhetoric classes at the Sorbonne, suddenly found himself elevated to a position of supreme power at the tender age of nineteen. His enemies and putative advisors, however, quickly discovered that the charismatic young man was no mean ruler and possessed of a quick political wit and a savvy judge of human nature. Lucas' brother, William, was sent into the Green Island to ride about ahd show his face to the subjects, as well as the troops and nobles there. The royal scribes and administrators were also occupied by a great census that Lucas had commissioned to set the head-tax and other royal levies.
THE HOLY ROMAN EMPIRE
Frederick III, Emperor of the West
DIPLOMACY: None
The largesse of the Empire was well tested, with the royal house of Walushek bending its knee to lap at the German coin-purse. A great force of Polish knights came to Frankfurt to swear oath of service to Frederick, who now styled himself more than simply Emperor of the West. His hand weighed heavy on the scales of all Europe. German merchants made port in Byzantine, Kazar and Portugese lands, bringing all manner of goods back to the thriving entrepots of Marseilles, Haarlam and Liege.
The provinces of Meissen and Lausatia were turned over to Polish rule as part of the arrangements made with the Walusheks. This pleased the German knights and landowners in those provinces about as much as you might expect. At great expense, a postal road was driven south from Freiburg in Swabia through the mountains of Switzerland and down into Italy, to Milan. At much the same time, the cities of Marseilles, Genoa, Frankfurt, Munich, Liege, Kiel, Milan and Hamburg were all expanded.
Frederick, despite the acquisition of the Polish troops, was a little concerned at the deaths of such notable commanders as Duke Andre, or Albrecht of Kane, or even the notorious Cardinal Priapi (who was well known in some circles...). Still, this was the mortal coil and all must shuffle off...
THE REPUBLIC OF VENICE
Giacomo Tiepolo - Doge of Venice
DIPLOMACY: Calabria / San Paulo(t)
The Venetians were quite busy, what with making a sweet deal with the Papacy to extend their temporal rule southwards even to the walls of the Holy City. At the same time, they were hard at work at home, expanding the cities of Taranto, Spalata, Triest and Venice. Other works were undertaken to drain swamps in Romagna and to clear new farmland near Arezzo. Matteo Zeno and Marco Falier were also sent south to the principate of Calabria, where, with some help from the local archbishop, they managed to convince the principe that attempting to resist Venice was a bootless cause. Old Taddeo, who had ruled for so long, finally had a heart attack and young Giacomo was forced to step in and take up the lumpy purple hat of rule.
THE CHURCH OF ROME
Honorius III - Caretaker of Christian State, Bishop of Rome, Pontiff of the Apostolic and Reformist Catholic Church, Successor of the Prince of Apostles, Servant of the Servants of God
DIPLOMACY: None
The Church of Rome, which had not given up the fight in Spain by any means, was given pause at the beginning of 1251 when an outbreak of measles in Rome cost the lives of both the Pontiff and his right hand man, Palini. Indeed, due to the various troubles, the Cardinals did not elect a replacement until the end of 1253, when they chose the librarian of the Sanctuary of Compostela, one Cencio Savelli, to become the new Shepherd. Upon his selection, Savelli took the name Honorius, being the third to do so. Bags of gold were still dispatched to Spain to bolster the cause of Gibraltaros, however.
In reaction to severe internal criticism by some of the more pastoral elements of the Church, Honorius took severe steps to shed the material trappings of the Roman Church. The provinces of Tuscany, Latium and Campania were all ceded to the control of the Venetian Republic. By this Honorius hoped to separate the Church fathers from the more compelling sins of the world.
Still, Hans Wegerer, the Frisian mercenary who had been serving as the 'fist of God' of late, marched a sizable army of Papal troops across southern France to Aquitaine to deliver the aforementioned bags of gold. He was he who reported back to Honorius that the Spanish cause had been lost in drunkeness and despair. Still, he took Princess Caroline with him and made her his ward, so that the Spanish line would not die out altogether.
THE KINGDOM OF IBERIA
A broken man, demoralized by the crushing defeats inflicted upon his cause by the Moslems, Gibraltaros and his few remaining supporters made their way north from Navarre to Toulouse in Aquitaine amid a cold and bitter winter in 1251. The king, stooped with age, barely survived to reach the Angevin city and died just after Christmas of a racking cough. His son, Jaiji, was first of good heart - emissaries from the Angevin court and from Rome had assured him that new lands would be his, and gold to hire men to reclaim his fathers kingdom. These bright dreams did not outlast the spring. Nothing was forthcoming; no armies, no money, no lands. In late summer, penniless, Jaiji sold the last of his father's accoutrements to keep a roof over the heads of himself and his men. Even that was not enough and his armsmen began to drift away, seeking service for their swords.
Drunkeness, and then a Moorish assassin found him. In the end, only his daughter Caroline survived to carry his wine-soaked body to a paupers grave in the middens below the walls of the city. There, amid the filth of the nobles of the city, did the Papal general Wegerer find her, rooting amidst the discarded linens. By his hand she recieved succor from this, but the realm of her fathers was no more.
THE ISLAMIC STATE OF PORTUGAL
Al Nur bin-Khal - Protectorate of Islam, Knight of Allah
DIPLOMACY: None
The Moors were stricken by the death of the great Al-Kalhil, for he had delivered them from evil and the hands of the Christian infidels. Spain was once more safe from the cruel depredations of the Cat-licks. Al Nur-bin-Khal vowed to continue his father's work - and did so, striking in secret against Gibraltaros in exile, ending the life of that pesky fellow. Some missionary work was undertaken in Cadiz, to little enough effect.
The Moorish troops in the Christian north withdrew to the south, taking the body of al-Kalhil with them, Barcelona and the lands of Catalonia and Valencia were pillaged by the retreating army to deny the Papists any worth. The barons of those lands were warned that the Moors would tolerate their religion, but only if they remained independent of any Christian realm.
AFRICA
MERCENARY POOL: 15C, 30I
MERCENARY AQRS: C4 I4 W4 S4
ALMOHAD EMIRATE OF MOROCCO
Johar Kahliq - Emir of North Africa, Sultan of Sicily
DIPLOMACY: None
The Almohads minded their own business to a great extent; having sufficent problems within their own domain. The Ajn Bana at last died at the advanced age of eighty-one, which precipitated some dashing about by the Umm Qasr to deal with the consequences of his death. Too, the Sheikh of the Cheliff was killed in a duel with General Faruk over a woman and his sons repudiated their oaths to Kahliq, becoming an independent (and angry) province in the midst of the Emirate.
SULTANATE OF MAMALUKE EGYPT
Grand Sultan Malik Omar - Sword of Allah, Defender of Holy Shrines, Master of the Seven Seas, Invincible Overlord of Mamaluke Egypt
DIPLOMACY: None
Things in Egyptian lands became somewhat interesting with the secret and unexpected return of the Prince Omar to El'Qahira incognito. There the sly prince consulted with the Lord Jabar Mohammed and the Vizier Ali Bandar. The state of the Sultan's mental health was at question, for he ignored the affairs of state, allowing taxes to go uncollected and the provincials to refute the authority of the Sultanate. These observations, coupled with the eager desires of Omar for power, led to an long expected visit to the chambers of the Grand Sultan and that aged and feeble potentate's death at the hands of Omar. Follwing this shocking act, there was some trouble in the city with the Lord Habib al-Dawla, but his arrest and execution put a stop to that!
The Lybians and the Safajans, however, were a more interesting porposition and Ali Bandar was forced to contest them in battle in the camps outside of the city. He defeated their forces at Heliopolis (May 1251) and the lands of the Lybian chiefs were forfiet. The Safajah, however, declared their independence. This convolutions cost the new regime of Omar considerable support amongst the more traditional dependencies of the Sultanate - patricide was an evil crime. Aswan, El Wahat, Faras, Hijaz, Siwa and Taif all revolted as well. There were rumblings as well amongst the Coptic populations of the Upper Nile.
THE KINGDOM OF AKSUM
Selais - Lord of the Coptic Wilderness, Lion of Judah
DIPLOMACY: Quarra(t), Ilubabor(ea)
The Aksum, despite a very tight financial situation, managed to mobilize enough corvee labor to begin various projects in Sennar, Atbara, Shoa and Funj - all devoted to improving the state of the coin coffers of the King. Neither Kilwa nor his son Shaka saw the fruition of these efforts - Kilwa died of the dengue fever and then Shaka was killed in a duel with his younger brother, Selais, soon after his coronation. Shaka had desired to have himself proclaimed Patriarch of the Coptic Church, a move that was fiercely resisted by the actual Patriarch, Cyril of Meröe, and Prince Selais. These ecumenical arguments ended in the death of Shaka at the hand of Selais and that worthy fellows ascension to the throne of Aksum. As a reward for his faithful support, Selais then granted Cyril great autonomy in his affairs, leading to the creation of the Patriarchy of Shoa (see next).
Further excitement was occasioned with the successful mission of the King of Harar to Egyptian Alwa - that sly fellow met with the Prince of Alwa and after many negotiations the Prince abandoned his allegiance to the embattled Egyptian sultanate and hewed to Selais of Aksum as his lord.
THE PATRIARCHY OF SHOA
Cyril of Meröe - Pope and Patriarch of the Christian Church of Alexandria, Defender of the Faith
DIPLOMACY: None
The Patriarchy is widespread throughout the Horn of Africa and the Sudan. Doubtless now it will grow much stronger...
THE SULTANATE OF SHEBA
Sheik Omar - Sultan of the Sheban Throne, Patriarch of Islam
DIPLOMACY: Asir(f), Lamu(a), Oman(f)
Like many nations, the Shebans found themselves in a bit of monetary crunch, so many thousands of knights and men-at-arms found themselves given grants of land and mustered out. Still, this did infuse the provinces with a surge of economic activity and increased cultivation. Not a bad thing in all. The famed Alibooboo had a successful sojurn to Oman, but later fell off of a camel and broke his neck.
ARGUIN DIRECTORATE OF GHANA
Bu'hed Ibn Khzir - Khan of the Sunni Sword, Protectorate of Kumbi-Salem, Conqueror of Timbuktu
DIPLOMACY: Senegal / Dakar(f)
The Arguin suffered a heavy blow with an outbreak of the black plague in their lands - within a fortnight; Prost, his son Qaz and Lord Beavis were all stricken by the foul disease and perished. In the confusion that ensued, Lord Bu'hed proclaimed himself Khan and seized the capital with the aid of Walatan troops. His capture of the government was quick and, despite the ravages of the disease, pretty painless. In the west, however, his new rule did not go over well, for the Takrur and Adwaghosti revolted against him. Still, there was time to see to those rebels after Bu'hed had cleaned out his enemies at home...
THE KINGDOM OF MALI
Lord Ankonish IV - Great-great-grandson of Ankonish, King of Akan, Protector of Benin
DIPLOMACY: Niete(f)
The Mali were not untouched by the plague that merchants from Ghana brought south to them. Though the city of Zuzak in Akan expanded, and a new city, Niamey, was raised in Oyo, the populations of Idah and Kantli suffered horribly due to the effects of the "black spots". In particular, the royal family was almost wiped out, with Akonish III, Lord Korone, L'Buno and the Niete chieftain all being infected and slain. Akonish IV took the throne amid great lamentation and wondered if his realm would ever recover from the blight that had afflicted it.
THE KANEM-BORNU CONFEDERATION
Kapotecta - Supreme Chief of the KBC
DIPLOMACY: None
Both the Kanem and the Bornu were quiet.
THE KINGDOM OF THE KONGO
Betsiwana - Captor of the Throne of Bone
DIPLOMACY: Omote(ea)
Betiswana sent many of his warriors back to the farms that they had come from. Too, he settled many around the capital in Kongo, so that they would be close at hand, if he needed them.
THE CENTRAL AFRICAN EMPIRE
WiliWooWoo - King of the African Jungle
DIPLOMACY: None (due to hippotami...)
Wili forced the lords that served him to grant him greater control over their lands. Many Lundans and Kariban warriors were given grants of land from Wili, rather than their chiefs. This angered the chiefs, but what could they do before the power of Wili? Lord Takemau attempted to make the journey to Chokwe, but was dragged from his canoe by a hippopotamus while travelling up the river and devoured.
GREATER ZIMBABWE
Ezzura - King of Sofala, Master of the City of Round Towers
DIPLOMACY: None
Ezzura came of age at last and Sofia was able to take a break and get some sewing done. She did, however, see to the breakdown of the last of the slave traders and bagnios in the land. Much later she would be remembered as the "liberator" to her people.
THE KINGDOM OF SOUTH AFRICA
Malinemma - King of the Southern Frontier
DIPLOMACY: None
Malinnemma spawned, begatting two sons upon his many wives. In this he was pleased, soon there would be other hands to take up the work that was kingship.
THE EMPIRE OF BETISIMARSAKA
Urg-Nub In - King of the Isle
DIPLOMACY: Mahabo(ea)
Sunni priests made their way south from Izzer in Sakalava and made such great progress amongst the barbarians of Mahabo that that entire province now professeses the faith of Mohammed. Prince Suli also acquired himself a wife from amongst the Mahabans, as well as a boisterous crowd of relatives who then came to live with him.
W
ell, it has been real, guys, I hope this campaign continues as strongly as it has so far, and all pray for regular turns!
- Thomas Harlan
ISI RANKINGS FOR TURN 30: ANNO DOMINI 1251-1255
Rank Nation Name MSI ESI Player Name Phone TR Email address and Notes
1 Chola Mandela Empire 265.1 2 Bill Rakowski 01-410-483-9635 44.4 magic@clark.net on Internet
2 Chin Chinese Empire 173.2 12 Colin Dunnigan 01-602-881-1402 12.4 cdunnigan@pima.gov on Internet
3 Holy Roman Empire of Germania 167.5 1 Rick Stevens 01-415-441-9654 57.5
4 Safavid Dynasty of Baghdad 153.1 5 Warren Bruhn 01-916-757-1874 23.8 wkbruhn@ucdavis.edu on Internet
5 Empire of Korea 131.4 11 Jim Frediani 01-707-942-5201 19.1
6 Greater Britain 124.1 4 Michael Work 01-412-441-6159 21.2 shogun+@pitt.edu on Internet
7 Kingdom of Aksum 109.8 13 Charles K. Hurst 01-503-653-1178 11.9
8 Emirate of Turkman 105.3 9 Phil Baird 01-503-231-6025 9.8 ikyphil@telepost.com on Internet
9 Mamaluke Egypt 102.3 3 (Ed Huefe) None 14.8
10 Empire of Nippon 99.6 17 Jim Farris None 15.9
11 The Kingdom of Tibet 90.0 18 David Franze 01-612-824-1631 1.4
12 Empire of Great Khemer 86.6 8 Joel Halfwassen 01-217-367-0302 26.2 joelhalf@prairienet.org on Internet
13 Almohad Morocco 86.6 15 Tom Anderson 01-310-426-6649 10.5
14 The Byzantine Empire 84.6 16 (Eric Miller) 01-215-723-0798 16.0
15 Kingdom of Mali 83.7 24 (Bret Bruhn) 01-503-623-8823 10.7 bret.bruhn@pii.com on Internet
16 The Kingdom of Sweden 83.3 7 (John Schmid) 01-412-441-6159 14.4 magus@netcom.com on InterNet
17 Arguin Directorate of Ghana 77.1 21 Sam Ullman 01-412-683-3349 8.9 sdust@pitt.edu on Internet
18 Khanate of the Kazars 72.6 26 Brian MacDonald 01-612-431-3897 7.2
19 The Roman Catholic Church 71.7 6 (Kurt Fangemeier) 01-520-326-8267 10.1 fangs@ccit.arizona.edu on Internet
20 The Republic of Venice 66.1 10 Eric Lindberg 01-408-738-2037 17.1 eric@tss.com on Internet
21 Kanem-Bornu Confederation 60.9 31 John Cahill 01-612-922-4955 3.6
22 The Kingdom of Toowomba 55.3 39 Ken Larsen 01-602-887-8186 2.2
23 Holy Iman of All Islam 55.1 19 (Bret Bruhn) 01-503-623-8823 2.0 bret.bruhn@pii.com on Internet
24 Islamic Portugal 53.4 27 Corey House 01-409-764-9444 7.3 chouse@eesun2.tamu.edu on Internet
25 Island Kingdom of Java 52.7 20 (John Stephenson) 01-612-869-6349 15.9
26 The Sultanate of Sheba 52.0 25 Charles McGovern 01-206-329-9311 4.8 74011.620@compuserve.com on Internet
27 Kingdom of Sirinigar 50.3 14 Ted Kaminski 01-608-253-9231 10.8
28 Kingdom of Poland 49.6 23 Steve Paek 01-213-487-0524 5.3
29 Khanate of the Gobi 47.3 40 Josh Mehl 01-412-922-0168 2.8 jcmst15+@pitt.edu on Internet
30 Central Afriqan Empire 44.9 38 Brent Halfwassen 01-217-367-0302 2.5 halfwass@ux5.cso.uiuc.edu on Internet
31 Great Zimbabwe 40.8 28 (Steve Cameron) 01-215-352-3126 5.3 cameron@astro.ocis.temple.edu on Internet
32 Principality of Fiji 40.8 35 Todd McDonald 01-602-321-1964 3.5 mcdonald@neuromancer.hacks.arizona.edu on Inet
33 Varangian Rus 38.8 29 Scott Micheel 01-505-296-4454 5.9 warden@rt66.com on InterNet
34 Kingdom of the Kongo 35.6 37 Margaret DeLoriea None 2.4
35 The Otrar Clansmen 35.1 43 Kyong Kwon 01-213-666-1884 0.6
36 The Kingdom of Austria 34.5 33 Jed Lewis 01-415-441-9654x512 1.7
37 The Bei Song Kingdom 34.4 32 Thad Plate 01-602-952-8929 4.8 thadplate@aol.com on Internet
38 Te Ika A Maui Mayori 28.9 41 (Tom Groh) None 0.8
39 Patriarchy of Shoa 28.7 30 Open For A Player! None 1.8
40 Empire of True Khemer 27.3 22 Open For A Player! None 10.6
41 The Al'Riyadh Horde 25.7 44 Charles Monson 01-206-522-1779 0.0
42 The Khanate of Scythia 17.0 34 Open For A Player! None 2.9
43 Empire of Betisimarsaka 15.8 36 Trevor Johnson 01-612-432-7937 1.4
44 Kingdom of South Africa 9.6 42 Tom Towner 01-505-275-3095 2.2
Note: Players whose name are in parentheses owe me money, so pay up! NOW!
Societ Code GPc NFPc Unit Name Cargo
y
Barb. C 3 1 Cavalry 3
IC 1.5 1 Inexperienced 3
Cavalry
LC 2 1 Light Cavalry 2
LIC 0.5 1 Light 2
Inexperienced
Cavalry
EI 4 2 Elite Infantry 2
I 2 1 Infantry 2
II 1 1 Inexperienced 2
Infantry
LI 1 1 Light Infantry 1
LII 0.5 1 Light 1
Inexperienced
Infantry
S 5 1 Siege Engineers 2
IW 2.5 1 Inexperienced (1)
Warship
LIW 1.5 1 Light (0)
Inexperienced
Warship
LT 3 1 Light Transport (2)
LW 4 1 Light Warship (0)
T 4 1 Transport (3)
W 5 1 Warship (1)
Civ. C 4 1 Cavalry 3
EC 8 2 Elite Cavalry 3
EHC 9 2 Heavy Elite 4
Cavalry
ELC 7 2 Light Elite 2
Cavalry
HC 5 1 Heavy Cavalry 4
IC 2 1 Inexperienced 3
Cavalry
LC 3 1 Light Cavalry 2
LIC 1 1 Light 2
Inexperienced
Cavalry
EHI 7 2 Heavy Elite 3
Infantry
EI 6 2 Elite Infantry 2
ELI 5 2 Light Elite 1
Infantry
HI 4 1 Heavy Infantry 3
I 3 1 Infantry 2
II 1.5 1 Inexperienced 2
Infantry
LI 2 1 Light Infantry 1
LII 0.5 1 Light 1
Inexperienced
Infantry
F 4 1 Field Fort 0
S 4 1 Siege Engineers 2
HT 4 1 Heavy Transport (4)
HW 5 1 Heavy Warship (2)
IW 2 1 Inexperienced (1)
Warship
LT 2 1 Light Transport (2)
LW 3 1 Light Warship (0)
T 3 1 Transport (3)
W 4 1 Warship (1)
Nom. C 2 1 Cavalry 3
EC 4 2 Elite Cavalry 3
HC 3 1 Heavy Cavalry 4
HEC 5 2 Heavy Elite 4
Cavalry
IC 1 1 Inexperienced 3
Cavalry
LC 1 1 Light Cavalry 2
LEC 3 2 Light Elite 2
Cavalry
LIC 0.5 1 Light 2
Inexperienced
Cavalry
I 2 1 Infantry 2
II 1 1 Inexperienced 2
Infantry
LI 1 1 Light Infantry 1
LII 0.5 1 Light 1
Inexperienced
Infantry
TBL n/a n/a Tribal Point 20
S 5 1 Siege Engineers 2
IW 2.5 1 Inexperienced (1)
Warship
LIW 1.5 1 Light (0)
Inexperienced
Warship
LT 3 1 Light Transport (2)
LW 4 1 Light Warship (0)
T 4 1 Transport (3)
W 5 1 Warship (1)
Societ Code GPc NFPc Unit Name Cargo
y
Seafar C 5 1 Cavalry 3
.
EC 10 2 Elite Cavalry 3
HC 6 1 Heavy Cavalry 4
HEC 11 2 Heavy Elite 4
Cavalry
IC 2.5 1 Inexperienced 3
Cavalry
LC 4 1 Light Cavalry 2
LEC 9 2 Light Elite 2
Cavalry
LIC 1.5 1 Light 2
Inexperienced
Cavalry
EI 6 2 Elite Infantry 2
HEI 7 2 Heavy Elite 3
Infantry
HI 4 1 Heavy Infantry 3
I 3 1 Infantry 2
II 1.5 1 Inexperienced 2
Infantry
LEI 5 2 Light Elite 1
Infantry
LI 2 1 Light Infantry 1
LII 0.5 1 Light 1
Inexperienced
Infantry
S 4 1 Siege Engineers 2
EW 6 2 Elite Warship (1)
HEW 7 2 Heavy Elite (2)
Warship
HT 3 1 Heavy Transport (4)
HW 4 1 Heavy Warship (2)
IW 1.5 1 Inexperienced (1)
Warship
LEW 5 2 Light Elite (0)
Warship
LIW 0.5 1 Light (0)
Inexperienced
Warship
LT 1 1 Light Transport (2)
LW 2 1 Light Warship (0)
T 2 1 Transport (3)
W 3 1 Warship (1)