Hegemon: Building the World
Introduction
The winds coming in from the east now, and it is time to begin construction on my next world-spanning alternative history NES starting in 1900. Rather than listen to belly-aching about my arbitrary decisions on why the world is one way and not the other, I’ve decided to take a different approach in creating a new timeline. This time, I will move forward delicately, altering the world based on player input and ideas. I do not know about the cultures, histories, and peoples of the entire world, and therefore it is exceedingly difficult to create a timeline that accurately reflects what would/should happen. This time, everything, including the Point of Departure, will be decided by all who choose to participate. Seeing as our POD will be decided in 1066, we will be covering around eight hundred years of history, divided into fifty year sections to slowly build a new timeline for a modern age alternative history NES. That means we have eighteen sections to cover and debate of history, leading to the twentieth century, almost qualifying the world building as an NES in itself. Over the next sevenish months, as I’ll be having my Fallout NES going at the same time, we’ll be building the next NES to launch in the first few months of next year. Worst case scenario is that while a new NES may not start on time, we’ll at least have the background built for whenever I am prepared to launch it, which is more than I have now. Plus, with luck, it should be fun and educational to build the timeline, and I’m always looking to learn new things! Read the below information carefully, as it is nothing like what people familiar with my NESes may expect.
On a side note, when we do get to the 20th Century stage of this NES, I’ve actually built a brand-new set of rules from scratch. No longer will we be using a constantly modified version of the World Turned Upside Down ruleset. Instead, I’ve created new ones from the beginning, integrating everything I learned from past experiences from the start this time, rather than just hoping to change it as new revelations strike me. Hopefully this will make for a better experience for all concerned, and when it’s ready in a viewable format, I’ll be posting the new ruleset in this thread.
Why 1066?
To get the NES started, I’d like anyone participating, observing, or just loitering, to post their vote on the Point of Departure. The Point of Departure is who will become King of England during the battles and wars that took place in 1066. Historically speaking, the battles that took place in our timeline were not predestined and William the Conqueror by no means was to be the definite victor. Therefore, before the meat of the NES begins, we’ll take a week to vote on who will be King of England. The contenders are:
1. William the Bastard: Wiki Link. Invader from Normandy, if William wins the vote, we’ll start in 1100 with a fully historical Europe and the timeline will instead be changed from decisions made there by players, rather than 1066.
2. Harold Godwinson: Wiki Link. The elected king of England, a local Anglo-Saxon ruler. If this Harold wins the vote, 1100 will start with an England still ruled by the Anglo Saxons, rather than by Norman nobility. The rest of Europe may still be predominantly historical, though there would be some changes in France due to the failure of William’s invasion.
3. Harald Hardrada: Wiki Link: The King of Norway, who believed himself to be the rightful heir after the previous English king passed away. If Harald wins the vote, 1100 will start with England and Norway ruled by a Norwegian king and nobility, in a personal union.
How to Join
Joining is incredibly simple. First, post which of the three contenders above you’d like to see on the English throne in 1066. I will not accept any outside contenders as valid votes. Of course, after the first update, it won’t matter too much. To be eligible to take a region, you must make a vote above. After voting for your favorite heir to the throne, take a look at the second post here, and choose which of the regions you would like to guide. Each region will have a list of the nations included in that region. The list of nations will not be provided until a king of England has been chosen, but those familiar with history should have a decent idea of what rests in their area as of 1100 AD. Once all regions are full up, I will take appeals for why other areas should be added to the NES, but to convince me, you better have a good historical knowledge of the region in question so that I can be convinced to step out of my comfort zones for the NES. Otherwise, areas like the Americas and Far East will be added as they become relevant to Europe and the Middle East.
If you do not act fast enough to claim a region, never fear! As part of the world building, after each update is posted, anyone, at any time, can freely interject and state why a region should have something other than what happened in the update happen. Of course, there is a rule for this. What happens in the update must be consistent with the orders that are given by the player guiding the region in question. Otherwise, anyone can suggest alternative outcomes for any region in question, and you can also oppose suggestions made by other players. I will keep an open mind to any suggestions and ideas and go back and edit the updates accordingly if the arguments made are persuasive and well-reasoned. The updates can and will be edited at any point up until the posting of the next update.
How to Play
Unlike previous NESes, in this stage of the NES, the players involved will not be directly controlling individual nations. Instead, individual players will guide regional areas through 800 years of history. Rather than by providing specific orders or managing armies, instead, players will suggest courses for the region to take in general, by following a specific format. So, to join in this phase of the NES, you must pick one of the listed regions in the post below. The entire world will not be available from the beginning, and we will add more regions as the timeline progresses. You can switch regions, should you choose to as more are added over the course of the NES. Players must select attitudes for the region among a number of choices I will provide. Furthermore, on occasion, a player will have to make an actual decision on a major issue of the time frame. In an update, a region may be presented with a choice at the end of their section of the update. Ignoring the decision will always be an option. An example of this would be:
Regional Issue: The Catholic Church is believed to be highly corrupt and having lost touch with the true nature of Christianity. Reform movements have begun picking up steam and gathering followers. As the player of the region, you can choose for it to embrace one of the following paths:
1. Embrace the Reformation.
2. Suppress the Reformation.
3. Ignore and allow the Reformation to succeed or fail by nation.
Decisions will not always be offered every update, and not to every nation. Multiple issues can be presented to a region in a single turn. If the player involved fails to post orders before I do the update, I will automatically assume they are ignoring the issue and handle the decision in question on a nation to nation basis. The philosophy here, btw, is that you are guiding your region, not handling every little matter involved with the area or even controlling the nations at all. With each update, you will select the various attitudes of your region, and I will write up the events of the 50 years in question based on your input. These will help create the initial update I write, forming the base for future modification and revision. It should be noted that large nations may span multiple regions, and it is entirely possible for a large nation to have conflicting influences in the different regions. This can easily create geopolitical conflict within a large empire, leading to revolt or civil war. Just something to keep in mind. Lastly, any of the three settings for a region are a valid choice, and there is no “right” choice, as you control a region, not any of the individual nations within it. Even if the nations die, or another region’s nations invade yours, you still will control the influences for that region. The format for the basis of this guiding is as follows, which I expect all guides to use:
A Sample Order Set
Region Name: Region
All of the following fields can be selected as “Low,” “Moderate,” or “High.”
Aggression: This influences the rate of warfare among the nations in your region of control. A highly aggressive region is more likely to both fight amongst itself and wage war against other regions. A Moderate Aggression region will find its nations seeking to expand within the region, but preserve the balance of power in neighboring regions. A Low Aggression region is less likely to have conflict between nations within the region, but also will not seek expansion beyond the borders of the region.
Commerce: This influences the emphasis on trade and trade routes to the region in question. A low commerce region will be less vulnerable to economic turmoil from other regions, thus making the nations within more stable, but likely will be less wealthy overall. A Moderate Commerce region will have ties to neighboring regions, but still be most interested in protecting national interests. A high commerce region may be able to accumulate more wealth for its member nations, but also will be more harshly affected by economic changes elsewhere in the world.
Innovation: This influences the importance of religion and faith among the people of your region. A Low Innovation region will be a more stable region internally, as the population will be less likely to revolt, though at the same time scientific progress will suffer. A Moderate Innovation region will be mostly balanced approaches, and not have a benefit in either direction. A High Innovation will be scientifically inclined, but at the same time, will lead to far greater instability, and the development of heresies towards the established faith.
Other Goals: Here you can list any goals or ideas you’d like to see for your region, or expectations you’d have towards the region as a whole. These are not standard NES orders, but rather suggestions you have for me before beginning writing the update. Any suggestions will be acceptable, but as mentioned earlier, as long as they coincide with the choices you made above. In all honesty, the choices above are the simple things, and I hope that you as players, will put the most love and effort into this section, but I understand that time weighs differently on us all, and you may not be able to commit to more than three words before the update is up.
All orders must be posted on the thread, I will not accept any orders through Private Messages. There are two reasons for this. First, I want all commenters and observers to see exactly what bases I am working from when I’m writing out the updates. This will help both to keep me honest (
) and to enable more constructive criticism from those aiding in the subsequent editing of the updates. Second, I will be doing my Fallout NES at the same time, and don’t want a bunch of PMs cluttering up the orders I’m getting for that NES. Updates and Editing
Each update will cover a time span of fifty years, meaning that we will have eighteen updates in this phase of the NES before we get to the meat of the game in 1900. I will accept orders for an update right up to the moment the update is posted, allowing the maximum amount of time for involvement by players. Of course, once the update is posted, really things are only beginning. After it is posted, I would like any criticisms, contributions, and so forth, to be posted in the thread. If you disagree with my assessment of the regional orders or think that something should have happened another way, then you should make your case. Updates can and will be edited up to the moment that the next update is posted. Unlike previous NESes, when an update is posted by myself, it is not set in stone. Anything about it can be changed, and will be changed based on what you all say to me and what cases you make. If you can provide evidence of your claims based on a superior knowledge of a region or nation, you should, as it will help me make up my mind. I will not tolerate flame wars between people though, and any arguments should be civil and rational. If you go beyond that, expect me to pretty much ignore everything you have to say from that point on. Everyone is allowed a single second chance, and no more.
Stats and Information
There are no stats for this NES. On the front page there is a list of regions and a list of nations in that region. By each region there will the player name who is currently guiding it. Also on the front page, I will provide a running list of monarchs/heads of state for each nation on the relevant map and the dates they have ruled within the span of the NES so far. This is to provide additional background for the main NES to come. Any other relevant information will be added to the front page as the NES progresses.
Starting Map
There will be no starting map until all votes are in for the King of England. Voting closes Monday, June 24, 2014.
