stNNES IV: Fiddling with the clock...

Nation Name:Tartessos (or, that slightlly alternative nation that was discussed, that i woulg be even more pleased in being;))

Start Location: Southern Iberia

Core Area: Western Europe, North West Africa, and many a port on the Atlantis coast

Traits:

Isolationist (1)-Expansionist (5): 5
Pacifist (1)-Militaristic (5): 4
Army (1)-Navy (5): 2
Agricultural (1)-Merchantile (5): 4
Decentralized (1)-Centralized (5): 4
Secular (1)-Religious (5): 4
Populist (1)-Aristocratic (5): 3

Description:

Tartessos is an ancietn land, rankign with China, Egypt, Mesopotamia, and Crete as beign one of the great pillars of the beginning sof Human society; originateing from a small city state focused on the (ironic) Large city of Tartessos proper, the city soon rose to promiance -and then dominance- over Iberia, and North Africa, with significant amoutns of the rest of western europe and Western and North Africa added to it; however, while many nations ruled over lands as empires or kings, that concept of statehood never took off in tartessos, and it soon estbalished itself as a Federated Republic, all men equal, all under common authority of equal law; while a cerimonial monarchy was kept for a tiem, it was soon thrown off, populist fervor more becommin gof a true federated republic ( the exception is that formal titles such as "Knight" (Contarius)- Defender of the Realm, and other such honours are given out as rewards for service for the nation, and are usually accompanied by a land grant as well; such traidtions die hard in Tartessos.

While the Tartessian nation is not particuraley clamourus for war, it woudl br wrong to say that it dose wage war; most fo the nations existence have been a direct result fo conflict, and the result is that tartessos feilded the first professional force of soldires, men not forced by native culture to be warriors in part of thir time, but men who voluntarilly joined up, took arms, and went through the hell of vigours of trianing- both mental and physical- to become the soldires od Tartessos; and whiel Tartessos pivits itsefl on its land capabilties, it puts a good deal fo stock on its navy, and strives for the peak of excellence in both catogries, a tradition that has uphelp the Tartessian republic for mellenia.

The cream of the Tartessian military has traditionally, been its cavalry, but with the comign fo the great eras of religious strife, military orders that focused on heavy armed infantry came to dominat the battlefeild. though they kept up masterful horse rideing abilties; now that gun powder weapons have appeared, and thier slow comign into use assured to grow, tartessos has begun to chance its military stragy, and rely on a gorwing corps of elite infanty,the known as "blue", or "teal" coats, after thier distinctive unfirm sir-coat color; armed not only with a gun, but with some older forms of armour,helmets, and hand weapons, inlcuding the long sword, and pike- makign for a distinctive battle feild apperence of heavilly armed men, with both swords and gun,marching in well oprdered formations bearing down upon the enemy with sole intent to kill each and every one of them. Tartessos has known peace for the last several decades.

Though it is also well to not ethat the fmous Berbers, famed for thier horsemen ship, have always gotten alogn well with Tartessos; thier horsemanship abilties have been gradually, passed along to the Tartessian republic, due to many inhabiting tyhe empire, and generations of Berbers participateing in the Tartessian military as light cavalry, and Tartessians participateing in the armies of the berber tribes as heavy infantry

culturally, Tartesso has become relitivlly securlarized; religion is still important to many, but its thought that the gods of other peoples are merelly local names of otherwise universal dieties; monothiesitc religions are merelly extravegent cults dedeicated ot the one deity to ferventlly, that they exclude all other Gods, and Goddesses.

Well santized cities,a strong urban planning, and just the fertility of many of the areas Tartessos calls its own, and well kept farming procedures has resulted in huge, yet well mantied cities, giving tartessos a population curve equaled only in the orient nations; the result is that while agriculter is kept up to ensure that cities can be supplied by what Tartessos alone produces, fi the need ever coem to it, that the cities are very metropolitan, and are often hubs of trade; noen more so then the city of city of Greater-Tartessos itself, sitting aside the gate of gibralter, perhaps a divine gift of the economic gods ;)
 
Nope!
 
The first mini update will be tonight at hopefully 9 PM Eastern Time...

Even after this and other mini updates, more people can join, or they can claim an NPC nation and tell me where to direct it, whereas those who already joined can modify where exactly they want to expand, who they should regard as their main foes, etc.
 
Nation Name: Maghreb

Start Location: Tunisia

Core Area: Coastal Northern Africa

Traits:

Isolationist (1)-Expansionist (5): 4
Pacifist (1)-Militaristic (5): 4
Army (1)-Navy (5): 3
Agricultural (1)-Merchantile (5): 5
Decentralized (1)-Centralized (5): 2
Secular (1)-Religious (5): 5
Populist (1)-Aristocratic (5): 2

Description: The people of Maghreb are the Berbers. Orginally they were nomads of the Sahara and still many Berbers have a nomadic lifestyle. But as closer you get to the Ocean as more cities you will find. So the Berbers are seperated into two groups. The northern and the southern Berbers.

In the big coastal cities many people live from the ocean. With their swift ships they are either fishing or trading. Often small groups of merchant ships are sailing together to protect themselves from pirates. Every Berber Vessel is armed in some way. Regardless of being a trader or a small fishing boat. In times of need the civil ships are transformed into military ships. This is often a great honour for the captain and his crew. Additionaly the ship will have certain advantages like a lower harbour fee.

Deeper in the desert the berbers don't live in cities. They are nomads and they travel together with their herds from one place to the other. Regulary their camel caravans with up to 100 animals make their way to the coastal cities or to Maghreb neighbours. On their way through the eternal sand. They have to rely on the oases where they can pause and refresh. These oases amidst the Sahara are like little paradises for the traveller.

The military of the berbers is similar divided. While the inland areas send big cavalry forces of camel riders and light horses, the coastal areas mostly provide the crews for the military ships and the city garnisions. If the nation is in great danger almost every male berber can turn into a soldier. Especially the nomadic berbers who often are in conflict with foreign nomadic barbarians are excellent warriors. But normaly each family has to send a certain percent of their sons to the army in case of war.

Regardless of navy or army, the tactics of the berbers are mostly fast and swift. At first the enemy is harrassed with light cavalry or small ships. This phase can often last weeks or even months. Then a first major encounter will take place. If the result is not positive, the forces will retreat and continue to harass the enemy. This process will continue until the enemy is beaten. And then then the berbers will go into the pure offensive. Each men will try to get as much loot as possible. The taking of slaves and other loot is valued highly in the berber culture.

The berbers have a very loose government. There is a half-yearly tribe leader council where the nomads discuss everything of importance. Similar the coastal berbers have their councils. However as the they don't have tribe leaders there, the oldest males of the families are meeting once a month. Each voice has the same value, but it is a legal and very common praxis to "buy" voices. So the rich merchants have very much influence.
 
Nation Name: The Republic of Travancore

Start Location: The City of Travancore

Core Area: Everything up to about Hyderabad, and Sri lanka.

Traits:

Isolationist (1)-Expansionist (5): 4
Pacifist (1)-Militaristic (5): 3
Army (1)-Navy (5): 4
Agricultural (1)-Merchantile (5): 4
Decentralized (1)-Centralized (5): 4
Secular (1)-Religious (5): 1
Populist (1)-Aristocratic (5): 2

Description:

The Republic has had its origins since the beginnings of civilization. Its people were Dravidians who had ventured deep into the Deccan, and eventually had settled along the regions of Cochin. There they began to settle, taking up the plow and laying down the axe. This early food production, allowed the area to develop large population densities which rivaled those anywhere in the world, save perhaps the lands of Khitai (China). The state began as a kingdom, but as the years progressed, the monarchy slowly fizzled out, never being too strong, and a repubic was established. It began as a loose confederation of states, but inner-confederate bickering soon weakened it, and it was decided that a more centralized approach was to be adopted. There was no monarch, there was only the head executive known as the Kerala, who ruled as the head of the Rajya Sabha, the House of States. Legislature and executive office was located in the city of Travancore, as well as most other functions of the government, including the General Staff of the Military.

The City is its own seperate Prefecture, holding within its gates the massive port of Travancore, quite possibly the largest in the world. Thousands of goods flow in daily, and just as many flow out. The port is also the home base of the mighty Travancori fleet, of which no nation can attest to. An elite police corp is kept, mostly of Sikh holy warriors, their blue turbans being a supreme sign of authority, and though the city is a bustling port, it is suprisingly well policed, and well administered. Sanitation systems are kept up to pristine condition, and it is considered essential for all cities to be clean, or else risk the horrors of disease.

On the question of Religion, the republic is amazingly secular for its day. It was and still is Hindu, for the most part, but the government maintains a policy of separation of church and state, as to not anger any.

Its economy is highly prosperous, centered on the massive trade of the Indian ocean regions. Trade policies are highly regulated, audited, and examined frequently to insure that there is not a trade imbalance, and that trade continues to remain prosperous for the nation. Because of this massive focus on trade, the nation has become a center of mathematics and science in the world, fielding a huge army of civil accountants to regulate every aspect of official trade income. The economic system is a sort of proto-social capitalist system. The state provides many benefits, and deals in all official trade, but the economy is still dominated by the Merchant class, leading to a small aristocracy that is essentially non-existant.

Now, for the exciting part, the armed forces. The army is not very big for its population, but is well-trained and well equipped. It fields the latest technologies, and has already armed an impressive 70% of its soldiers in firearms, replacing their older weaponry. This suits their style of warfare well, as they are merely support for the great instrument of Travancori gunboat diplomacy, the Travancori Armada.

The Armada boasts huge numbers, far greater than other nations, and far better equipped. It has completely adopted naval cannonry as its prime instrument of warfare, and its crews are superbly trained. Travancori ships are not the largest in the world, no, that distinction resides with the Chinese, but they are by far the most nimble. Their fleets follow a doctrine stressing ranged naval warfare, in which ships stay afar from the enemy, bombing them into submission. They see boarding as a foolish enterprise, and rarely engage in ship-to-ship melees. Instead they keep their extensive marine corp. for naval landings and city raids, by which they can assert the naval dominance of travancore. Many a foolish king have been humbled by the grand flotilla.

That is not to say its army is feeble however, as many invaders from the north have found out. Speaking of the north, Travancore has remained pretty much isolated from Northern Indian politics, instead seeking to maintain a 'balance of power' while it accumulates maritime dominance over the Indian oceans......
 
NPC me please for this turn :)
 
Northking when are you gonne update? I wanne finish my description first :/
 
according to NK, its gonna be in about 3 hours. So dont fret just yet my friend
 
Goody :)! Here in Germany 9pm was 3 hours ago.
 
Yeah, yeah, it's 9:47... There was a good show at the local theater, what can I say? ;) Beginning Thefirstminiupdatewhichbythewayonlycoversthetimelineto1CEsodon'tnecessarilyexpectallthatmuch.

;)
 
whos common era though? always the proponent of such things, no christianity (or perhaps even monothesitic-Judaism) woudl be interesting, with an alternate "common era" coming about.
 
personally, I like this arrangment; I've grown a little dis-enfranchised with the basic 3000 BCE start, though, I have talked to a few people about... "spicing things up" a little bit, but nothing that seems to pan out any time soon.
 
Xen: :mischief:

Blackheart: That defeats the purpose. Then again, if you guys really like the situation at 1 CE you can tell me to stop. :p
 
OKie, map done, my eyes are bleeding. Write Up (short and too the point) soon along with map.
 
personally, I like this arrangment; I've grown a little dis-enfranchised with the basic 3000 BCE start, though, I have talked to a few people about... "spicing things up" a little bit, but nothing that seems to pan out any time soon.

I agree with Xen, enough 3000 BC Neses. They're all the same... Although I also grow tired of prefabricated NES histories...

I guess its cause we all want to make our own nations, except for some of us we never get to reach the most interesting time periods...
 
Short writeup, the completely arbitrary division of times, 1CE.

Okie, let’s review our history. Here’s what’s happened.

In the far northern areas of Germany, or the Baltic coast, really, the Teutons have founded a great empire. They’ve killed a bunch of fellow Teutons in the process, and fended off some Slavs, but apart from border skirmishes with Novgorod, they haven’t really fought a big war. Saxony might prove a problem, soon, though.

Across the North Sea, in England, the people enjoy their isolationist state. Of course, when I say enjoy, I mean they are slaughtering each other, as quickly as possible. Not much else to say, let’s just say every state is at war with someone at all points in time.

To the far south, around the war Mediterranean are most of the world’s great cultures.

Tartessos, run mainly from the city of the same name, has grown to absorb almost all of Iberia, especially after their recent alliance with the Basques. However, despite their best efforts, wars with both Rome and Maghreb have failed, and they must wait for their age of glory. The trade income still flows in, though, and they are fast becoming rich off of various Atlantic trades.

Rome, meanwhile, has been simply expanding without end for the past few thousand years. They have shattered all opposition in Italy, conquered the lesser Mediterranean isles from Rhodes, and secured bases in Iberia. Overall they are the most powerful militarily of all Med powers. So far.

Maghreb, on the other hand, is another flourishing trading power, coupled with a nomadic army that is the scourge of all armies in North Africa. They managed to conquer part of Sicily from Rhodes, and drive off Tartessian attacks, but otherwise are surprisingly at peace.

Rhodes is perhaps the richest state in all the Med. Their colonies bring in wealth, but even more so do their trade ships which move through every port on the Med. They started conquering a great empire with their colonization of Cyprus, which launched a war with the militaristic Syrians, which they won. Their conquest of Anatolia after the Hittite war brought in more wealth, however, reverses in the Western Med are forcing military reform.

Akkadia has been stagnant, meanwhile, they have made little progress against Maghreb or Syria. However, they are still rather powerful, owing to their large armies and much grain.

Syria, meanwhile, has been a massive success story. War after war has brought them more plunder and loot, and they are very rich because of it. However, despite successful wars against the Hittites with the Rhodians, and against the Akkadians, and against the Cilicians, they too, are forced to face reality in that they cannot conquer the world. This was realized after long, indecisive wars with Babylon, and of course the disastrous war against the Rhodians over Cyprus. Their navy has been rebuilt from conquered Phoenician cities, though, and their armies are ready for another go at Babylon...

The Crimean Empire has been one huge, ever growing monolith. Unfortunately, the Huns are at their doorstep, but they are rich from trade (especially in the form of exporting grain), and they aren’t likely to be TOO troubled. Armenia is another nuisance to their south.

Babylon is squished in between Persia, Syria, and Armenia... Not a good combination. Despite this, they have flourished nonetheless, and are wealthy enough from trade and have an extremely powerful army that drove off the Syrian hordes time after time.

Travancore has expanded considerably, taking most of southern India and the nearby islands. The states to the north are little threat, except for Magadha, but they aren’t very close, anyway. They are all great trading partners, and Travancore grows rich, and has a powerful fleet to boot. A power to be feared, especially with the massive diamond mines in southern India.

Malacca is the most trade based power in the world, with one of the most powerful fleets. Very rich, they have colonized a considerable area, though lately large states are finally becoming a challenge to their regional dominance.

Wu has managed to conquer both Yue and Chu in the fight for dominance in China, but unification is far from complete, with Wei and Qin competing with their massive armies. Wu is probably the most powerful of them all, but Wei has a better trained army and Qin has mountains, so it is a draw.

And of course, looming above all, is the Mongols, who are trying to conquer the world. However, their conquests so far are just other steppe tribes. They are raiding china, of course, vigorously as well. But they are not yet quite strong enough to conquer.

* * *

OOC: Map Below, naturally. Post after this. You can now post modifications to your original template if you wish, like a change of traits (don’t skew them too much). Or you can point out an area to conquer, or an alliance or union to seek.

PLEASE, NO LONG PMS FULL OF MILITARY TACTICS... THAT’S FOR THE ACTUAL NES... :p


PS: Very few organized religions have risen up. If you want, you can write something about one.

PPS: For that matter, I encourage you to write. Extensively. About Everything. This is a rather short history for 4000 years, you can flesh it out with your stories nicer than that, I think.
 
Mappalla of doom the first.

Do note that the next miniupdate will hopefully be more detailed... I was rushed.
 
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