[RFC:E] . The Roman Emperors

[Danger Bird]

ΟΙ ΒΑΣΙΛΕΙΣ ΡΩΜΑΙΩΝ - The Roman Emperors

Spoiler :

This is an RFC:E story, with 1.3 patch. I'm quite unfamiliar with this mod, so in some ways I will be as ignorant as the emperors that I play regarding what is coming next, and that's the way I like it. I do know a few things (e.g. Arabs will rise from the east). And I welcome general advice from experienced players of RFC:E, such as what civics I should change to, what general research directions are best, but I prefer not to know specifics (such as "The Arabs will flip Jersualem at ___ AD.") And of course I welcome corrections to my Greek.

ΟΙ ΒΑΣΙΛΕΙΣ ΡΩΜΑΙΩΝ - The Roman Emperors: The Biographies of the Basileis​

Prelude
Timeline
Αναστάσιος Α' - Anastasius I
Ιουστίνος Α' - Justin I
Ιουστινιανός Α' ο Μέγας - Justinian I 'The Great' (Part 1: Nephew and Uncle)
Ιουστινιανός Α' ο Μέγας - Justinian I 'The Great' (Part 2: Reclaiming the Empire)
Ιουστίνος Β' - Justin II
Τιβέριος Β' - Tiberius II
Μαυρίκιος - Maurice
Φωκάς - Phocas
Ηράκλειος - Heraclius (Part 1: The Bubble Expands)
Ηράκλειος - Heraclius (Part 2: The Bubble Breaks)
Ηράκλειος νέος Κωνσταντίνος - Constantine III
Ηρακλωνάς - Heraklonas

​

Prelude​

Constantinople, 499 AD - In the wake of the great migrations of Europe, the once imposing Roman Empire (Βασιλεία Ρωμαίω&#957 was reduced a dim reflection of its former greatness. The eastern Mediterranean lands it had inherited were rich in resources, but, ravaged by barbarian incursions, left undeveloped and precariously connected. The cities and towns were depleted of men by the strife and instability of the past dozen generations, and trust in the rule of law and civic responsibility was worn thin. Devotion to Constantine's Right Christian faith and awe at his Great City kept the provinces of the empire from spinning apart, but only, as the planets, because they had no place else to go - a collection of regions ruled at various degrees of inefficiency by governors appointed either by questionable merit or by blameless connections, all ruling according to their own peculiar principles.

The Empire at 500:
Stable. State religion: Christianity.
Treasury: 1000 million solidi. Total commerce: 157.
Tax income: 47, Research: 92, Espionage: 18.
Expenses: 67 (Military maintenance: 17, City maintenance: 7, Civic maintenance: 43).

 

[Danger Bird]

508 - Incursion of Taulanti barbarians in Macedonia.
524 - 1st incursion of the Sassanids at Aleppo.
536 - 2nd incursion of the Sassanids near Ceasarea in central Anatolia.
544 - Reconquest of Neapolis.
544 - 3rd incursion of the Sassanids north of Aleppo.
564 - 4th incursion of the Sassanids, and the loss of the Antioch-Aleppo road.
573 - Official visit of the 1st Thraki Tourma to the Papal State.
584 - 5th incursion of the Sassanids at Caesarea, defence by the Charsiadon Archers.
602 - Phocas' bloodless coup
608 - Troad rebellion
610 - Heraclius executes Phocas and establishes the Heraclian dynasty.
612 - 6th incursion of the Sassanids, in Armenia, Trebizond, and Paplagonia.
616 - Reconquest of Carthago.
621 - The Anatolian plague spreads for Caesarea, soon to Tarsus and the eastern Mediterranean.
632 - The plague reaches Smyrna, and it falls to Troad rebels.
640 - The fall of Aleppo to the Arabs.

 

[Danger Bird]

(excerpt)

The Emperor Anastasius I decided at last, in the eighth decade of his life, that he would try to make a mark on history. Born in the land of Epirus, now lost to barbarians, he knew well the malaise that had settled on the empire. And having no great experience as a soldier, he thought that he would leave conquest for those who came after him, and make a modest contribution as an administrator. That is, he would ask questions and give directions.

First he inquired of his friends in the aristocracy what advances were most sorely needed by the empire: they replied, naturally, that the rural economy must be organised and made profitable, and the bureaucrats of the palace were thus directed to bring forward a plan for manorialism.

He next inquired after the quality of the land, the prosperity of the cities and towns, and the state of industry. He was told that the land was still bountiful, but that large swaths were considered unsecured from bandits and raiders, and that, even where it was safe, the output was low. For food, most people lived on a meagre diet of wheat and some meat, the urban workshops had a very inconsistent supply of wool from Palestine, silk from the Aleppo region, and silver from Phrygia, producing comfort but not a great deal of luxury. For weapons and ploughs, ironworkers had an adequate supply from the mines of Thrace, Thessaly, and Aleppo.


The Roman economy, as seen from Constantinopolis.

Freeman and slaves were organised into work camps and set to work on developing the most urgently needed resources - the salt deposits of Anatolia, the copper mines of Achaea, and the stone deposits near Alexandria - and in Egypt all labour was directed towards building a fishing fleet.

The wayward provincial governors were also called into line, and asked to report with concrete plans towards the development of institutions and infrastructure in their major cities: first, a belfry to be attached to the Hagia Sophia in Constantinopolis, then markets in the cities withe the greatest existing trade (Athinai, Antioch, Nicaea, Iconium, Hadrianopolis, Smyrna, and Tyre), granaries in the outposts of Tarsus and Cyrene, a courthouse in Caesarea; the governor of Jerusalem was told to encourage the development of a Jewish quarter in the city, for the economic benefits it might one day bring.

The needs of defence were also met, imperfectly, by the ordering of new barracks in Thessalonica, Aleppo, and Athinai (although the market would get priority there). Anastasius was not popular in military circles, with the complaint often made that he was blind to concerns of defence because he spent his entire life behind the thick Theodosian walls that kept the world at bay from the palace and the capital.

In 508, his attention was finally drawn to the military by an incursion of Taulanti barbarians on the western marches of Macedonia. The 1st Thessalonica Tourma was sent to guard the iron mines, and reinforcements were sent from Hadrianopolis and Athinai.


Taulanti incursion in 508.

This time, the invaders were dispatched easily, but in years to come the threats would multiply, from east as well as north and west. But these challenges would be met by another, as the increasingly senile Anastasius' world had by then shrunk to the walls of his chambers and his loyal bodyguards.

By 516, the reforms of Anastasius had barely begun to bear fruit. Overall commerce had increased to 163 million solidi, of which 99 were re-invested into the economy (spurring on modest technological advances, 46 were collected in taxes, and 18 disappeared into dark Byzantine alleys of intrigue.

The Empire at 516:
Stable. State religion: Christianity.
Treasury: 910 million solidi. Total commerce: 163.
Tax income: 46, Research: 99, Espionage: 18.
Expenses: 67 (Military maintenance: 17, City maintenance: 7, Civic maintenance: 43).

 

[trexeric]

First Sub Post! Great!!!

 

[hoplitejoe]

I like your stories so much I will forgive you for being Byzantium

 

[Tycho]

Interesting. I will be paying close attention.

Great work so far!

 

[Red_Spy]

Great Work!

 

[MoreEpicThanYou]

Your Persia story was amazing! Let's hope this is just as good!

 

[momo1000]

Nice! I love RFC:E!

 

[nightcreature]

w/ METY
great job so far keep it up!

 

[Yoshiegg737]

It's...it's Danger Bird!!!

Subbed 100%

 

[Lone Wolf]

Yeah, the Byzantinomania is spreading on this forum. Someone, put a stop to it

 

[hoplitejoe]

Yeah, the Byzantinomania is spreading on this forum. Someone, put a stop to it

Byzantinomania is a hereditary disease in all strategy game forums.

 

[NinjaCow64]

Woo! Another Danger Bird story.

Definitely Subbed.

 

[Alexius08]

I'm expecting a proper ending for this one. On the previous one, the cliffhanger was never resolved.

 

[christos200]

Great update. Thanks for having another byzantine ( greek) story.

And of course I welcome corrections to my Greek.

As a greek i can say that your greek writing is correct.

 

[Danger Bird]

trexeric, hoplitejoe, Tycho, Red_Spy, METY, momo, nightcreature, Yoshiegg, Lone Wolf, NinjaCow, alexius, christos: Welcome. Thanks for the encouragement. Hoping I don't disappoint by crumpling in the 7th century.

Lone Wolf and hoplitejoe: I just happened to be reading a lot of stuff that references Byzantium lately, and found a new version of RFC:E, wanted to play from the beginning, so Constantinople it was. Plus I may have (subconsciously) been affected by reading Lone Wolf's marathon game (apologies: I might steal your idea of using coinage for the emperors from time to time).

alexius: A proper ending is what I will aim for. Probably not UHV, because I think I want to take it beyond 1453 (but who knows).

christos: Thanks for confirming the Greek. I was guessing a lot there.

And, nightcreature: Thanks for the tip on my sig's broken link. I think it's fixed now.

 

[thecaesar]

Looks good! You'll probably die eventually, though...

Oh, and there is NOTHING wrong with Byzantium!

 

[christos200]

Oh, and there is NOTHING wrong with Byzantium!

Yes, because byzantium is greek.

 

[Civ'ed]

Yes, because byzantium is greek.

Here we go again....
subbed, looks great! I never manage to play Byz but yeah.
One question:
How will you survive Venezia?