Welcome to BombNES IV: As the Crow Flies. In this NES players will take control of a family on the island of Krahesteg, a fictional location off the coast of North America. The objective of this NES is to give its players a chance to guide a fictional political entity from its foundations as a European colony to wherever history may take it.
Game Play:
Players are tasked with creating their own family. At the start of the NES ("Turn Zero"), only three pre-decided player created families will be present. These players (which helped with much of the development of the NES) will represent the colony’s founding families and as a result, their actions will dictate most of the early history of the NES. As time goes on and the colony expands, slots for new players to join as immigrant families will become available. If you wish to join the NES you can apply to immigrate at the end of each of turn, however as this NES is an experiment in maximum player control of their environment, whether or not you will be accepted is not entirely the moderator’s decision. When creating an immigrant family, it is strongly suggested that you take into account the current political climate of Krahesteg.
Though this NES begins in the year 1610, with the foundation of the colony, the game itself will be split into several “periods” which are in turn made up of several turns. Each period will represent a turning point in the history of Krahesteg and along with it, significant changes to the politics, demographics and landscape of the game. The advantages of this method are the ability of the NES to skip long stretches of relative inactivity, as well as to “even the playing field” so to speak, so incoming players can join the game in new niches as they become available. While players that did well in previous periods will start with innate advantages, representing the success of their family, new players will also have advantages in that they generally will have more flexibility and are not burdened by previous decisions. Nonetheless, if you are expecting to be on equal footing with the established families upon joining, you are sorely mistaken. Like most real immigrant families, you will have to start from the ground up and build a successful life for yourself.
This NES will by and large be built on what the players make of it. As time goes on the rules for the NES will adjust themselves to best fit the current situation of Krahesteg. It is likely that as Krahesteg develops, institutions such as governments, political parties and businesses will naturally evolve. Though it is up to the players how these institutions act, as moderator I will be responsible for managing their organization and powers largely through player orders done via private messaging.
Explanation of Stats:
In this NES, there are three major sets of statistics (stats) of player concern. These are the stats for player families, individual family members and for Krahesteg as a whole. In addition to these three, other less important stats may also exist at certain times in the game. The vast majority of these less important stats will be simply for players to use as a reference.
Family Stats:
The stats for a family are probably of the most concern for an individual player. The first four (name, nationality, religion, patriarch/job) are largely up to the player at the start of the NES, while the remaining are based on player actions throughout the game. Wealth will initially be decided based on the job of the patriarch, though it will change depending on how the player chooses to act. Assets and properties are only those in Krahesteg and are again, based on the player’s actions. There is no defined jobs, but it is suggested a player pick something appropriate for the setting and time period. The moderator has the authority to veto any job or family that do not fit with the setting. Example family stats are below:
Family:
Family Name/Player:
Nationality:
Religion:
Wealth:
Patriarch/Job:
Other Important Family Members:
Important Assets:
Properties:
Family Member Stats:
Every family may have a maximum of ten members at any one point. The founding members of a family are completely up to the player (within reason). Players may pick up to three of the starting traits for any of their founding members, though other traits will fade and develop as time goes on. Since starting traits determine what other traits will later develop, it is recommended that players think very carefully about what they assign to their family members. While using all three traits is perfectly acceptable, it is not necessarily the best course of action as it may very well impede the development of certain traits that cannot be directly selected by the player. Player actions will affect family member traits, but do not dictate them. The only job which a player directly decides on in their first is turn is that of their patriarch upon immigration. It should be remembered that your family members are normal human beings and thus can choose to leave the colony, get sick and even die through no fault of your own. This being the case, it is recommended you don't become too heavily invested in any character beyond their use. Example stats for family members are below:
Character:
Name:
Age:
Job:
Health:
Traits:
Starting Traits are below:
Krahesteg Stats:
Though in all probability the most important, the stats for Krahesteg as a whole are the ones on which the player has the least amount of direct control. Since Krahesteg is a community of families, its stats are based on the collective decisions and averages of all of the players. Though the initial stats represent the specific situation under which the colony was founded, they will not necessarily stay the same throughout the game. Nonetheless, certain stats are likely to be relevant for most, if not the entirety of the NES. The only player which has any sort of direct control over these stats are whoever is the acting governor/leader. It is strongly recommended that whoever holds this position send two sets of orders. One for the actions of the Krahesteg’s government, and one for their personal family actions. It is recommended whoever takes the position as leader of the colony (at the moment the governor) make their decisions with the input of other players. It is up to the players how they wish to formalize group decision making, however as moderator I will take this into consideration when processing orders. The stats for the Krahesteg at the beginning of the game are below:
Krahesteg
Colony of: Brunswick-Lüneburg
Capital:
Monarch: Duke Ernest II
Governor:
Treasury:
Food Supply:
Military:
Population:
Growth:
Infrastructure:
Moral:
Important Assets and Properties:
In addition to wealth, which is the amount of money a family has directly on hand, family possessions are also measured in assets (small belongings) and properties (land and buildings).
Important Assets:
Important Assets are primarily made up of the small possessions, stored food and drink, and the livestock that a family owns. Keep in mind that they do not represent all of the belongings a family has, but rather the things that would have some value in trade or the performance of one's duties. For example, if your family is listed as having one set of clothes, this does not mean the family has only one shirt, one pair of pants, etc to share amongst your whole family, but one extra set to use in an emergency or a trade. Similarly, just because a family is not listed as having a barrel of grain, it doesn't mean they are on the verge of starvation, it just means they don't have a barrel of surplus grain laying around at that time. However, the amount of listed assets that are more expensive or rare such as livestock, weapons and furniture, should be taken at face value. Common sense should dictate most of this, but if you really are curious about something just ask. Bulk items can be used down to the 1/8 level before they are considered fully used. Items that are sold back in Europe sell for 90% of their cost on the supplies sheet. The supplies that a colonist can buy for the journey over is listed in an excel file located here:
At times, you might find that your family has somehow acquired new assets that you have not directly purchased or produced. Generally, these are the items created by one of your family members in their free time, or acquired through minor trades with NPC colonists. It is possible to direct your family members to create new assets if they have the know-how and access to the required raw materials.
In addition to player assets, the colony itself will often times have a set of its own possession. These good mostly consist of stored food, military supplies and equipment for public use. How they are used and divided is up to the governor of the colony. They are listed under the stats for the general colony.
Properties:
Properties are the land that a family owns and what is located on it. As of right now, there two types of properties of direct concern to a player: homes and farms/workshops.
Homes generally do not produce anything. They house your family and that is about it. Larger homes are needed for larger families. Homes can become "damaged" through in-game events or just general wear and tear. Though damage at higher levels (above 75%) almost certainly indicates there is some physical destruction of the property, lower level damage can simply mean that the property is very unkempt. Since a damaged house can be very detrimental to family health and moral, it is strongly recommended you assign a family member to maintain and manage the property.
Farms/Workshops are properties that produce something. Their production output is located next to the property's name in the stats. The output of a farm/workshop can be either directly consumed (which in the case of perishables, automatically takes place if it is needed by the family to survive) or stored for future use. Properties are listed as having none, poor, decent or good productivity. Poor productivity means that your family isn't producing enough to maintain its health, decent means it is maintaining its health, and good means it is producing enough to improve upon its health. If you happen to produce a surplus it will be listed with a +number of surplus units produced. What to do with the surplus is up to the player. If nothing is listed it will be put into the family inventory and be listed with assets. Most foods are perishable and will only last a turn in storage. Like homes, these properties can become damaged as well. Damage will generally lead to a decline in productivity.
In addition to the types of properties players can own, the colony itself has properties that it manages as well. These include various government buildings, as well as military structures, storehouses, and other buildings that are open to public use. Public properties have a tendency to degrade at a much faster rate than private ones, if only because they are used much more frequently. Despite this, most of them are extremely important to keeping the community functioning and thus maintaining them should be a priority. Goods that publicly owned farms/factories produce are put directly into the public storehouses for use (colonial assets).
