AngNES I: A Divine Wind

[Angst]

AngNES I: A Divine Wind​

Welcome to AngNES!

My name is Angst (Some refer to me as lord_joakim which is also fine), and this is my first attempt to host a NES in this account name. This is a cradle fresh start NES that will attempt to model an alternate Earth with several exotic cultures and their nations contending for power. As a player, you will create a nation and attempt to stand the test of time.

This NES will be unique in that I will host as many things as possible externally (Through Google Docs): HTML formatting is a clumsy, clumsy thing and I rarely have access to what I wish to have access to at the pace I wish to have. It's already bothersome enough to go through PMs to comprehend orders, and I never have any understanding of what's going on. This formatting is an attempt to have modding make sense to me. All that said, here are the necessary links for you guys. Please read the whole ruleset and the "Joining" section if you're joining as a non-NPC, also, do read up on how to send orders, as I am very specific in my orderset preference. It's in the FAQ.

Spoiler Current map (Update 1) :

Spoiler Starting map :

Documents and Contents table

Rules
Introduction
How to play (Not particularly relevant to experienced NESers)
Setting
The Stats
- Nation name
- Dynasty/player name
- Religion
- Government
- Economy
- Population
- Military (army and navy)
- The domestic trifecta
--- Literacy
--- Confidence
--- Culture
- Projects (Wonders of the World)
- Description
Examplary stats

Joining
Join template
- NPC
- Creating a new nation
New nation template
- Player/dynasty
- Desired color
- Area
- Nation
- Political description
- Cultural description
More information

Pre-update 1 information.
Starting map
Our first Cultures
- The Sivetes
- The Thlayllians
- The Thrachesians
- The Illyans
- The Copper river peoples
- The Darians
Ancient resource routes and trade
- Important resource sites
- Trade routes

FAQ
General
- Everything confuses me!
- What is this?
- How do I "win" this forum game?
- What does "OTL" mean?
Formalities
- How do I make alliances? Will it punish me to break them?
- How do I send orders? (IMPORTANT FOR EVERYONE! PLEASE READ THIS, EVEN IF YOU ARE AN OLD-TIMER)
Gameplay
- I’ve run out of ideas how to increase EP! Please help!
--- Domestic
--- Trade
- Can you suggest how to increase stuff like literacy, confidence and culture too?
--- Literacy
--- Confidence
--- Culture

Obsolete rules and documents.
Old pre-Turn 1 join template

 

[Angst]

Reserved for updates links and stats links.

Update 1 - The Benevolent Suns. Thread post. History. Political map. Stats.

 

[Angst]

Reserved for background, story and flavor links.

YOU MAY NOW POST AND/OR JOIN.

Please tell me if you need any kind of clarification or you found any kind of inconsistencies or incompleteness.

 

[North King]

I'll reserve a spot on the island just partially colonized by the Illyans.

 

[alex994]

Was "Thlayllians" deliberate?

 

[Angst]

Was "Thlayllians" deliberate?

Well kinda. I've always liked the word Thlayli, whatever it means. It's not that I particularly preach him as my god or anything (I have nothing against the guy either). I just took the word, misspelled & multiplied it, and made it a river civilization. It's not supposed to be taken as if I've become his boyfriend or anything: I just did it because I felt the word fit.

 

[thomas.berubeg]

<Kethesh>
Player: <Thomas.berubeg>
Desired color: <Green>
Area: <Mouth of the Copper River>
Nation: <City-State of Kethesh>
Political description: <An Oligarchy ruled by a number of distinct merchant families, each of which controls a section of the city as well as an aspect of the trade in and out of the city. They Balance of power is both stable and precarious, as most families act to limit the influence of the others. Each Family claims Descent from one particular God, the iconography of which is used as a the family's seal>
Cultural description: <Originally a Sabut tribe established on a rich copper extraction site, The Kethesh quickly grew to control the trade up and down the Copper River. The vast markets of Kethesh are now home to merchants from all the cultures of the world, all supervised by the heavy hand of the Ruling Families. Kethesh itself is a numerously walled city, spanning both sides of the river, though the various rings of walls are old and crumbling and the city has spread far beyond their protective embrace. Recently, the Rulers of Kethesh have given up on trying to contain the spread the spread of the city beyond the walls, trusting in their wealth and military power to prevent raids.>

Is this OK?

 

[Angst]

It's perfect.

 

[Arrow Gamer]

I'll be joining as an Illyan.

 

[Angst]

Excellent to hear people willing to join. I'm looking forward to all of your contributions.

I'm torn between the use of two different political map styles. One utilizes transparent terrain and the other clear colors. If you wish to have influence on this, please tell me which you prefer of the two in this link with your reasons why. It's of course better if you manage to tell me over IRC (#nes) since then this thread won't be spammed.

EDIT: Also, yes, that is a very early draft of Kethesh. Do not consider it a final shape, size or form, but thomas.berubeg may feel free to feel a warm fuzzy feeling in his belly when seeing his fledling nation.

 

[North King]

Evet
Player: North King
Desired color: Crimson
Area: The central island with an Illyan colony on the northern tip.
Nation: City of Evet
Political description: A kingdom with inheritance running through the male line. There is no secular bureaucracy (yet), though: day to day affairs of the lower levels of the kingdom are run by temple staff, collecting tribute from various farmers or the merchantry.
Cultural description: Evet bears many of the hallmarks of Illyan culture: an emphasis on maritime trade, a cuisine full of fish, abstract patterns in their pottery and murals, and so on. But a few things separate them. First, the Evetians view themselves as the highest of cultures -- a place of beauty, art, and learning. Philosophers, scholars, and artists gather in the courtyards to discuss and collaborate, and the kings regularly patronize all of them. The island's thousand caves are home to catacombs and ancient tomes stored against the end of all things. And, of course, Evetian priests tear the hearts out of men and women alike to appease the wrathful sky and sea gods.

 

[thomas.berubeg]

Totally there. Warm and fuzzy.

 

[Angst]

Thanks for your submission NK

Map prototype: Link. Remember, a work in progress - the barbs will be removed if needed be and the nation shapes are not final. If you planned to place your nation somewhere, don't despair, we're definitely not done yet.

Anyways, I think I'll go with that style unless anyone complains. NK's color is actually more magenta-hued than seen on this map, but it's because the terrain overlay is green.

 

[mythmonster2]

Lasche
Player: mythmonster2
Desired color: Brown
Area: The point where the Thraches river splits in the Thrachesian lands, on the island formed by the two rivers and the sea.
Nation: City-State of Lasche
Political description: Hereditary monarchy passed through the man's side.
Cultural description: Initially a small village on the split of the Thraches river, Lasche grew to prominence with the aid of its powerful priest class. Their religion is similar to that of other Thrachesians, basically being the Akvurian pantheon with some gods renamed or reassigned. The king is always aided by the priest faction as to which actions the gods would approve of or not. Farmers make up the majority of the population of Lasche, with the fertile lands around the city. Merchants and artisans make up the middle class, mostly trading with other cities or villages in the area, although an intrepid few venture out to the Thlayllians or even Darian lands.

 

[Lambda Ignaceae]

Is there going to be a map showing geography to greater detail, mountains etc?

 

[Angst]

There is a terrain map in the "Joining" document, although it is not particularly great detail, mostly just an overview of arid/grassed and hills.

EDIT: I'll link it to you here.

Spoiler :

 

[Angst]

While we have only three (Potentially four - or five, regardless of whether edit: Terrance888 joins or not) players, I'm thinking I should get this moving. I think that the submission deadline for the first turn will be Thursday. And so, I imagine Update One will be up that night. If you join later, dear lurker, you won't be included in the first update. That said, there'll still be plenty of opportunities for you, even if you join late - I will do my best to make sure that this world will never be stagnant.

Others already in here, you may feel free to change a few things if you want before Thursdag. That said, I've actually already gotten my update half-written, so I'm sorry if I make any mistakes about your nation in the update. That said, I'll attempt to format the update in such a way that mistakes will actually make this more interesting. You'll see.

 

[Lambda Ignaceae]

TRIBE
Player: Lambda Ignaceae
Colour: Purple
Area: River mouth Darian
Nation: Womad
Political description: Hereditary monarchy passed through the male side.
Cultural description: A violent tribe, painted faces and quick to brandish a spear. They are a strong and resilient race. They a tightly linked with nature. They do not "respect" nature, they are in awe of those who can tame it and use it. Tearing down the forest to make way for farmland, penning up pigs and horses and other animals they might capture and train. A mucky, messy, violently growing tribe, fat on the fortune the river mouth gives them.

 

[Terrance888]

<CITYSTATE of USHARRO>
Player: <Terrance888>
Desired color: <Orange?>
Area: <Copper River Peoples, not Coastal>
Nation: <Tribe of Usharro, Usharron People, The Usharros>
Political description: <Priests during peace (Speaker of Usharro), Warriors during war (Spear, Shield, Sword of Usharro)>
Cultural description: <Sabut, although it doesn't mean much to me atm?>

Spoiler Basic Description :

The Citystate of Usharros is home of the strange Tribe of Usharro, named after the legendary hero Ushar Knutu. They are most known for their fear of water, passed down for generations since the mythical Great Flood. Based on a loose social caste-and-clan system, the most defined castes are the "Soiled" Getu, the "Priestly" Knutu, and the "Warrior" Planu. The greatest of the Knutu, proclaimed the Speaker of the Usharro, leads during times of peace. The three most respected warriors of the Planu, proclaimed the First Sword, Spear, and Shield of the Usharro, lead during times of war. Economically, the Getu perform the disdained but vital tasks of irrigation and dockworks. The "Normal" Deru castes and clans manage general agricultural tasks. However, the wealth of the Usharro increasingly come from their rich Copper Mines, where the "Forgotten" Koru lead the way to wealth (and a better future) deep beneath the earth.

Spoiler History/Mythos :

The Usharro have a traumatizing history. Their histories speak of a vengeful water god who seeks revenge on those who rely on land. Great beasts from beneath the surface plagued the young Pre-Usharron tribes. This was only worsened during the Great Flood, when the sky conspired with the seas to cover the lands in death. Only the legendary Ushar Knutu and his great Ark saved the young tribe. Naming himself the first High Priest of the Usharro, he established a convenant with the great Earth Gods and gave birth to this strange tribe.

Not long after they landed, several waded into the receding shallows and were changed. The old Ushar Knutu prevented their lynching, holding their fates in the hands of the Priests of Usharro. In exchange for being allowed to live and being purified of the taint that comes with their new line of work, they are sentenced to work the water and swamps of the growing tribe. When Knutu's son, who was pushed into the river by a jealous sister, was saved by a young Soiled, the High Priest also begun the traditions of assigning criminals into the Soiled Caste, as well as fully purifying worthy members of said Caste into the Norm or even higher.

Spoiler The Caste System :

Water is death for the Usharro. The Usharron live in a psuedo-caste society. The "Soiled" are the water workers, who maintain the rudimentary irrigation systems of their villages and other necessary and damning tasks. Criminals are sometimes sentenced to join the "Soiled". They live apart from the main village and must be purified before allowed to join in festivities. When they die, their bodies are heaved into the river. The only way for a member of the "Soiled" to leave this caste is to save a member of another caste from the grasps of the evil water spirits.

Between the "Soiled" and the higher castes are groups of more mobile subgroups. They could be considered more clusters of clans and kinship relations with leaning towards various occupations with no real cultural compulsion, but the strictness of these castes greatly depends on the mood of the times. The most honored of the "Norm" are the "Forgotten", miners who forsook the world willingly to live the rest of their lives in the copper mines, brining wealth to the rest of the community. As a "non-caste" caste, the few children of the Forgotten are pre-ordained to be priests or warriors. Generally, most of the "Norm" are part time farmers, miners, builders and crafters, with small castes of master crafters migrating between the villages.

Then, sharing power, are the "Warriors" and the "Priests". The Priests rule during times of relative peace, to cleanse the Soiled, to act as ambassadors to other peoples, and to serve as the servants to the Gods. Priests arise in three main ways; children of the Forgotten, Children of a Priest who can pass a test of spirit, and those saved from the evil Waters of the River and wishes to help save others from the same fate. They preserve the culture and learning of the Usharron, manage ceremonies, and maintain support for the Warriors, as well as serve as judges for any breaches of Ushar's Compact. Traditionally, the greatest "subcaste" of the Priestly caste is the clan of Ushar himself. The High Priest of the Ushar Clan is the Speaker of the Usharro.

Then, there are the "Warriors". Although they rule during times of war, they still train (and hunt, and guard, etc) during times of peace. The Warriors choose among the children of the Norms future warriors, and their parents are given gifts for accepting their choice. Their numbers are few, but their training is constant and their proficiency with weapons is renowned. Their greatest battles are against intrusions from the river itself, fighting with items blessed by the Priests knowing that defeat will mean dom for the entire village. During times of great wars, the Warriors will ask for Norm volunteers to support them : although generally just to carry food and their weapons, outstanding Norms can be allowed to fight or even promoted into this august caste. The strongest and most beloved warriors are proclaimed the Spear, Shield, and Sword of Usharro. Every three years, alternating (so every year) the Eldest among them retires to the ranks and a new one is chosen. Tradition forbids allowing an former Elder to be chosen again for the same position, although it is possible to hold each of the positions in turn. (9 years total, over 12 years of command)

EDIT: Sorry NK, but this is too fun to pass up. Maybe send a merchant or two into the Copper Valley to check us out?

 

[Angst]

Welcome to the NES! I'm happy for your entries.

Terrance888, you seemed to question the cultures: whatever culture you choose (Sabut, Goraksat, Akar) is up to you and they have no special description as of now, allowing for great customization. I wish for the players to flesh out their details. Also, if you're a Sabut, you can be a city state; tribes are worse off than city states and the tribe mechanic was supposed to allow for customization, as with what Lambda Ignaceae did.