[spoilers] Commodore: Worse than Toku, it's Giggles of Siam!

[Commodore]

In 253, the aging High King of Lakeside Garden, Gil Ghem Esh, died, leaving behind no offspring. His favorite minister, Bo Wee Klee, was also a second cousin, and used his family connection to seize power within the capital. A favorite of the dominant Yellow faction, he used the coliseum thugs as a disposable army, targeting other ministers' streets and homes with riots. Confused as to the legitimacy of his claims, the largely ceremonial garrison barricaded themselves within their guardhouses and sat out of the conflict. Within a week, the city belonged to Bo.

However, the nephew of the old High King on his wife's side, one Vi Jays Ing, governor of the northern villages, refused to give up his claim to the throne. All along the riverland from Lakeside Garden to the southern foothills of Tranquil Meadow, the villagers' militia declared for Vi, who used his newfound strength to cut off the capital from anything north along the river, and then rapidly pushed west to the mines and quarries along the capital's demesnes. Fighting was irregular as both claimants to the throne were deeply paranoid about treason and rebellion among their own ranks.


The chaos within the capital led to swift reactions within the nearby cities. In Tranquil Meadow, the king of the city, Wo Dis, took upon the appellation of the "Tiger King", supported by the Hindu priesthood who were a dominant force within the city. He ruled the city as a separate state, not bothering to send taxes downriver. In Verdant Acres to the west, the scholars of the library formed a ruling council over the weak old prince's objections, closing the eastern gates of the city while collecting the rents from the Slot Valley region north of the city's hilly border.


Throughout the Generican civilization, the ripples of the capital's revolt spread. In the north The Greenways was a bastion for the old high king's family, as Prince Gil Thor Pe of the city was a great-nephew himself. However, the prince was content to merely rule his own city in peace. In Liguria to the north, the ruling Kalinites of Coldspring Way asserted their independence from the capital, but were largely engaged with a constant low-grade border war with the Aphe tribe in the northeastern hill lands. The experienced and venerable Mardoc's Company honed their reputation as the premier guerrilla regiment of the realm in those long campaigns.



The cities along the Long Salt Lake were largely unaffected by the anarchy to their west, with their generally smaller populations and strong sense of loyalty to the Generic ethnic identity dampening the fervor seen elsewhere. The prince of Willowbrooke made official subservience to all three claimants along the Great River valley, while the king of Hidden Valley declared his state neutral. In the smaller, younger city of Riverside Manor, the ruling prince officially retired before he could be approached to take sides, abandoning the governance of the city to the priesthood of Artemis, who administered ably in his stead.


Of particular note was the vast and depopulated territory of Old Zululand. The Lords of the Zulu had always ruled by tribe, until the Crusade and the Exile movements had united the Zulu people into a far more cohesive whole. The remnants, scattered and leaderless, had adopted Generican culture whole-heartedly, and over the preceding century and a half had mixed heavily with the soldiers and immigrants from the west. In the cities of Western Heights, Amazon Circle, and In Swallowdale the military governors kept order, although in the outlying districts some infighting occurred between elements of the army. North in the Stony Knob district and in the wastelands of Zaxby, the bulk of the army was still engaged in pacification of the restive remnants of the White Castle Tribe, who had maintained cohesion after the Exile.


Almost a decade into this tumult there emerged out of the west a small fleet from Hawke's Ridge. In 262, Kom Ho Dhor made landfall at the mouth of the Great River, accompanied by a small detachment of archers and a cadre of scholars.

The large island district of Hawke's Ridge had escaped notice by the claimants to the throne, sitting neutral as the prince of the large commercial city mobilized archers and charioteers from the surrounding islander populace. What was a very tightly held secret was that he was also hiding the illegitimate son of the old king's niece on his sister's side. Claiming by rights of blood and the gods, King Kom Ho Dhor, bastard nephew of the old king, was come.

King Kom Ho Dhor flew a blue banner, unmarked at first. His followers, however, embraced his symbol of blood and placed a red crown insignia upon a blue field, the flag of Generica to this day. The story of his long revolution is recounted in countless folktales and stories, suffice it to say he was successful, and his dynasty lasted for many centuries, even up to now.

[oledavy]

So, what's going on here?

[Nicolae Carpathia]

Sounds like somebody's conquest bloated empire almost collapsed from internal intrigue. Shall the the weaknesses be explained by a particular aspect of the national character or on foreign influences ?

[Commodore]

So, what's going on here?

Yay, Davy's back!

To answer the question in the general, PB8 has been the most epic game RB has witnessed in a long, long time, as evidenced by the largest lurker activity level since PB2. Nonstop action, crazy shenanigans, and honorable clock behavior all abound. In specific here, I found myself trapped in a cul de sac without good metal options, with impi-Zulu growling at me. Exploiting traits, Scooter/Pindicator's caution, and a bit of psychologically devastating luck, we beat them in the border clashes, securing first metal and then eventual victory with a raze or two. Rather than fight it out they left to greener pastures, an epic story I'm sure in its own right, and now they own India, but we own Old Zululand and have a strong land advantage over the field at large.


Currently, the issue is overexpansion. As can be told from the demos, MFG and CY are looking very good for an 11-player game, and GNP is world-best when I can turn on the tech like this. However, it's expensive to run this big empire, which is why CoL is a good next target (courthouses, forbidden palace). The plan is to bulb Philosophy for Taoism and then shrine the religion if at all possible, and then some manner of Parthenon/Music or MC/Machinery or Civil Service chasing is in order. Make no mistake, though, the others in the top 4.5 are probably all making a better tech rate.


The top 4.5 are us, Plako, Slowcheetah, Serdoa, and (probably) Lewwyn/Bigger. We all have pretty good prospects, and barring shenanigans I expect we'll have hundreds of turns' more action to go. Wooden ships and iron men should feature prominently. I've mentioned our advantages and problems above, for the other contenders:
-Serdoa has a great pile of wonders, an awesome economy, and no iron without a reach. Oh, and difficult expansion prospects.
-Plako has a weak Arabia that he can dispatch at leisure (probably knights) and evidently a fair bit of land. His issues, such as they are, are murky.
-Slowcheetah is out there in the fog nailing Aesthetics wonders and expanding like a plague. If he were a more veteran player, we'd probably figure he had this in the bag, as it is, he's got a heck of a close. Also murky, dark spot in the map.
-Lewwyn/Bigger are interesting. They have a good empire, consistently top MFG, and lots of land. They also need to kill Azza, who has proven with Praetorians to be a hard nut to crack.

Xenu/Brick/Scoopin are in the "need a miracle" category. Merohoc/NakorFool are doomed. Azza is doomed too, long-term, with the unfortunate privilege of being in between Lewwyn, Serdoa, and us.

Sounds like somebody's conquest bloated empire almost collapsed from internal intrigue. Shall the the weaknesses be explained by a particular aspect of the national character or on foreign influences ?

I actually think it's a third explanation: Some uncaring massive pointer in the sky ordained that the civics of the empire should change radically, without the slightest worry about the massive loss of life and decades of disruption that a turn of anarchy represents.

[Ceiliazul]

I like how, even in empire-wide shots, there is no mistaking the red elephant standing guard over the empire.

[oledavy]

Yay, Davy's back!

Started reading your thread yesterday, and it looks pretty damn epic so far. Defeating Zulu in an ancient era war? Color me impressed.

Do I get a unit named after me?

[Commodore]

Do I get a unit named after me?

Of course! Ozzee is next in line, but you're next after him. Unless you'd like to hold out for the first trireme?

[Ceiliazul]

Hey, I'm still in line for a mammoth, right?

[Commodore]

Hey, I'm still in line for a mammoth, right?

Naturally. Mammoths are on hold a bit, as they are going north renting us furs and rice from the Dutch, but I'll be making more, no worries. Knight-immunity is a very valuable thing.

[oledavy]

Unless you'd like to hold out for the first trireme?

Prefer navies to armies, so sure!

I just now expect that there will always be a Generican vessel bearing my name