I got terribly impressed with The Great War, written by Ricobirch. Here's my bit for describing the game as interesting as possible. Enjoy and please give feedback.




Alexander watched carefully the priests slowly moving over the hills. Their blessing would purify the lands, and if the omens were right, the Greek tribes would finally settle. They had wandered for many years, crossing the great plains of the east. Perhaps this would be the end of the long search for a homeland.

All was silent. The men, women and children sat silent, praying that the God men would find the hills appropriate. Only Alexander stood, his long hair flowing in the southern wind like a ravens wing. He clenched his jaws shut hard, and continued staring at his priests. He knew his people were tired. They could not search much longer for their promised land. If they were to stay united they needed a place to live, now.

Far away, the white robed priests stopped. For what seemed an eternity, they stood like statues, silent and still. Then, suddenly, the breeze gathered force and swept over the people like the breath of a God. All looked up, and saw what clearly was the sign of the ancestors, three eagles riding the wind on powerful wings. A deafening roar shattered the silence. There could be no doubt. This was the site where the Greeks would live, safe from raging barbarians, disease and the toil of travel. Like a wave, the people burst forth, running over the grassy slopes, laughing and shouting.

Alexander could not join in the celebrations. The moment was too much for him. He had sworn at his father’s grave, all those years ago, to lead his people to safety. Now, when his great task was accomplished, he felt as if all his strength fled his body. Tears ran down his face as he slowly sank to the ground.

Pythagoras, the head priest, smiled as he made his way through the cheering crowd towards Alexander. He sat besides his lord, and shared his silence. Finally he spoke.

“The Gods are pleased, my son. You have led their people well. Now you must rule them. The journey has all but begun.”

Alexander looked up through misty eyes. He met the kind gaze of his priest and said;

“I shall name this place Athens, and my people shall always own these hills. I cannot see the future like you, old friend, but I would be surprised should the Gods not look kindly upon us as long as we stay in these lands.”

So say the legend of the foundation of early Greece. The place where the legendary Alexander led his people was indeed a bountiful one. Rich fields surrounded the city that soon sprawled over the hills. Wine was easy to grow, and on the valleys south of the city, several farms littered the countryside.

The first great project of the Greeks was the now famous Spartan Road, which connected Athens to the sea. On the hills overlooking the Mediterranean, a second city, Sparta, was founded.

Although the early years of Greek history is shrouded in mystery and telling myth from fact is hard at best, it seems that another wave of migration occurred shortly after the foundation of Athens. Smaller bands of Greeks travelled both east and west. Nomad tribes were incorporated in the Greek commonwealth supplying both knowledge and soldiers. Archaeological evidence proofs that Greek outposts existed both in Spain and beyond the Ural mountains at this time.

The Gates of Fire, as the early Greeks called the mountain passes connecting Europe with Asia, became the outer boundary for the Greek Commonwealth. Here distance made communications with the government in Athens hard and barbarian tribes on the other side of the mountains hampered any attempts of colonization. It was at the Gates of Fire that the Greeks first met the people that would become their nemesis for centuries to come, the warlike Egyptians.

To be continued (will hopefully play some tonight!)