Rise of the Reichstag: A German IAAR

Very good! I'll assume you're a man of his word and award you, "Baseballpie's Cookie for Enthusiasts of Epic Movie Trilogies."

Aww, man, too bad I didn't see that earlier.

The book was better, though.

Election of 935 A.D: A Handful of Karlings​

Disclaimer:
1. -These candidates and many more in the future are not and will not be entirely historical. Many will be either purely fictional, real but anachronistic, or inspired by real people.
2. -Additionally, this game progresses on Normal speed, meaning each candidate will only rule for a short amount of time. (Each turn takes ten years until 1400 AD. The current year is 940 in-game, 935 in-universe)
3. -All locations (ex. 1W, 5N) are relative to the starting location.
4. -If a certain policy is not stated in a candidate's information, (ie. Change tech to Engineering) then that specific policy will likely remain the same as his predecessor.
5. -Not all game terms will be stated like game terms. Phrases like "Wishes to develop an ocean-faring ship design" will roughly equate to "Research Optics"

Candidates:

Ruling Dynasty

Konrad - Karling

Information
Konrad is, in fact, the great-grandson of King Konrad; the only son of the only son of Konrad's eldest son. He inherited the Duchy of Swabia upon his father's death. For now, all the campaigning and policies are made by his regent, as he is only 6 years of age. However, rumor has it that his regent is a power-hungry schemer who has set out to seize the throne for himself. The regent, Helmut Hohenzollern, has stated that he plans to immediately prioritize the military, especially near Berlin.

Heinrich - Karling

Information
Heinrich is the nephew of the late king, Konrad's younger by over 40 years. Known as a man of few words, he prefers contests of martial ability; as such, he is the Champion of the Joust in Germany. He is a tough soldier with a reputation for cruelty and a complete lack of regard for human life. Served as chief executioner for 15 years. Wishes to to venture out into revolutionary siege mechanics, meanwhile focusing on other parts of the military. Believes taming the wild Polish horses could lead to superior cavalry.

Arnulf - Karling

Information
Arnulf is a distant relative of Konrad's; Konrad's uncle's cousin's grandson's nephew's cousin, or something like that. The self-made Duke of Carinthia, he turned a backwater county into the rival of Europe. Knowing Frankfurt as a possible powerhouse, he would plan upon commissioning a glorious monument to dedicate to the German people, meanwhile focusing on expansion to Austria in the south and continuing to train military regiments. Likes to experiment with art.


Reichstag

Otto - von Liudolf

Information
Otto is the Duke of Saxony, and arguably one of the most powerful men in Germany, if not all of Europe. A mild-mannered, temperate man; he is a very likable person. However, he is, at the same time, bold and courageous, a true knight in all senses of the word. He has engineered a daring plan to extend the empire's borders to never before seemed heights, planning to use legions of catapults to knock down the walls of Northern Italian kingdoms.

Václav - Přemyslid

Information
Václav is the ruler of Bohemia and one of the most pious men in all of Europe. Known as "Good King Václav" by his subjects for his saintly Christian devotion and generosity. A bit of a xenophobe, distrustful of most non-Slavs, including Germans. His propositions include a large Christianization project and an immediate severance of all foreign ties.


Current votes:

Konrad: 0

Heinrich: 0

Arnulf: 4

Otto: 2

Václav: 0


______________________________

Voting is over.

Otto.

Arnulf and his complex family tree.

I'm extending voting for another day. Thank you.

Sorry guys, but I've been distracted recently, namely by:
Age of Empires II,
Crusader Kings II,
and TV Tropes.

But I'll go ahead and finish up the election anyway.

AoE II is the best thing ever.

CaterpillarKing said:

AoE II is the best thing ever.

Click to expand...

Have you ever tried the Age of Chivalry: Hegemony mod for AoE II?

Votes:

Konrad: 0

Heinrich: 0

Arnulf: 4

Otto: 2

Václav: 0

Recap:
His main opponent, Otto von Liudolf, was noticeably stunned by the outcome, but he took his defeat gracefully and swiftly. Otto was, quite frankly, Arnulf's only competitor, with all other candidates garnering microscopic proportions of the vote. In an address given after the votes were tallied, Arnulf promised that he would stick to the plans outlined in his campaign and that "I will not let you down". The Hohenzollern family, despite lots of outside pressure, had no candidates in the election, and has begun to fade into obscurity. The von Liudolfs, however, are beginning to grow in power, and are quickly filling the hole left by the Hohenzollerns. Several families have also grown in power and are expressing their intention to put forth candidates upon King Arnulf's death. But the real story here is the cementation of Karling rule in Germany. With Arnulf's crowning, it is shown that the Karlings have only just started growing in power.

DKVM said:

Have you ever tried the Age of Chivalry: Hegemony mod for AoE II?

Click to expand...

I downloaded it but got rid of it. Realized that I didn't put it in correctly. I haven't actually played it in a while.

Also, glad to see Arnulf in office. Not my first vote but he has a great name

935 - 972: Empty Promises​

The first thing on Arnulf’s agenda was to commission the band of Austrian emigrants he had pledged during his campaign. Recruitment went slowly.



Work on an elaborate church began in Frankfurt; it was to become a beautiful work of Gothic architecture.



After construction on the Church finished, a regiment of archers was trained in Frankfurt to serve as an escort for the Viennese settlers.



Frankfurt had plenty of stone in the hillsides, and the establishment of several quarries in the region gave a nice boost to the local economy.



But soon after, things went horribly wrong. The Karlings were beginning to go extinct. Konrad Karling’s line remained as the last living branch with any notability. The fact that Arnulf had no children did not assist matters either. His reign began to suffer, as the Dutch began to encroach upon Hamburg’s territory. The citizens of Hamburg started to leave the city, worried that their livelihoods would be ruined by the Dutch.



Frankfurt, however, did not suffer the same fate as Hamburg. While Schleswig-Holstein to the north stagnated, Hesse and the Rhineland flourished, with Frankfurt as a center of activity. With plenty of food and resources, it was becoming one of the most influential cities in Europe. Pork became a favorite among the Frankfurters.



King Arnulf was always a strong, healthy man, even into his 60’s. He regularly parried swords with his nephews, and often won. He was in great shape and great health. He often went on the hunt, and usually organized a Grand Hunt for his vassals each October. During the Hunt of 973, tragedy struck. While in the process of chasing down a magnificent white stag, a stray arrow overshot the stag, instead finding purchase on Arnulf’s right shoulder. He was rushed back into his hunting cabin, where the arrow was quickly removed by his personal medic. Unfortunately, King Arnulf could not escape infection, as the insanitary medical customs of the day led to a deadly bacterium crawling into his bloodstream. He died several days later, mid-October 972, leaving the empire with an uncertain future, never having fully completed what he set out to do.

Wow that was sad

RIP Karlings

Wait! Was that on purpose?? Who did he go hunting with?? CONSPIRACY!

CaterpillarKing said:

Wait! Was that on purpose?? Who did he go hunting with?? CONSPIRACY!

Click to expand...

Maybe it was Link!