Bring The Fire

[Tani Coyote]

48 hour order reminder for @LordArgon @tobiisagoodboy @GenMarshall

 

[Tani Coyote]

(Apologies for the delay, that grad school + teaching assistant stuff gets hectic sometimes)

AP Expansion. 1 AP yields 1 polity. 50% chance of religious conversion. 50% chance of heathen.

The United Goch Clans. 10 to Para, 10 to Bavaria, 10 to Czechia, 3 to Mauritania.

EP Expansion. Every 1 EP spent = 20% chance of annexing 1 polity and 25% chance of converting. Always state or heathen.

The United Goch Clans – 30 EP into 30 Mauritania polities. 5 taken!

SUHR – 47 EP into 47 polities. 10 polities taken!

MP Expansion. Every province has an MP value of all its neutral polities / 2; polities targeted by AP and EP are removed from the neutral polity count for calculating MP. 20% chance of conversion. 10% chance of rival faith. 30% chance of heathen. No MP losses from attacking neutral land. Outnumbering the enemy MP 3 to 1 is an instant victory (exception for holy city polities); rate of conversion is doubled for overrun territories. You can only capture an amount of land equal or less than your MP.

The Empire of the Holy Flame – 300 into Slovakia. OVERRUN!

236 MP under Kenar invade Lvov. OVERRUN!

KPCR – All MP under all three demigods storm Manchuria and North Korea. 1716 VS. 660. 956 taken!

The United Goch Clans – 120 to Bavaria. 76 taken.

120 to Czechia. 74 taken!

60 to Baden. 26 taken!

70 to Senegal. 46 taken!

5 islands in Amazon Delta. 3 occupied!

New Caledonia. Success!

Isle of Pines. Repelled!

Belep Island. Repelled!

SUHR – 360 MP attempt to take Set’s Holy City. 360 vs. 240. 1 polity seized. +30 EP.

182 MP push towards Huxian’s Holy City. Vs. 245. 182 polities captured!

Valfian – 700 MP seize the Holy City of Reynard! 700 vs. 626. 2 polities seized. +80 EP.

New England – Veers leads 1414 MP against 928 polities of Labrador and Iowa-Minnesota. OVERRUN!

Religious Conversion. For every 1 EP, 25% chance of converting a heathen and 10% chance of converting heretics.

Valfian – 508 EP converts 508 heathen polities. 130 success!

Demigod Rolls

Demigods invoke a relevant stat when performing an action which will increase/decrease odds of success based on where they stand compared to the global average. If no bonus or penalty was applied, it’s just not listed. This does not apply to character vs. character actions which have their own rules.

More than one character can pursue the same action, so they can combine their rolls in the event of failure.

Characters that are not listed can be assumed to be engaging in counterintelligence or the military.

The Empire of the Holy Flame

Vaskus converts people to Anansi worship. 2. The phoenix is beloved. His religious inclination, not so much. (+100 Huehuecoyotl followers)

Sarah diploannexes South Sudan. 16 (19). Sarah’s mission is a success once again! +500 polities, +10% to conversion in territory acquired by AP, EP or character action.

The United Goch Clans

All to Huxian’s tower.

SUHR

All to Huxian’s tower.

Valfian

All to Huxian’s tower.

New England

Kerrigan and Faye Inquisit. 16 (20) and 18 (20). +610 Reynard polities, Unam Sanctam bumped to 30%.

Up Next: The Temple of Huxian

 

[Tani Coyote]

The Temple of Huxian

Spoiler :

The UGC, Valfian, and the SUHR send all of their demigods to the temple. Valfian still stings from the defeat at the Temple of Huehuecoyotl, where a SUHR-UGC teamup denied Valfian Huehuecoyotl’s grand prize. With Huxian being Valfian’s patron deity, the pressure is on Team Valfian to bring home the gold this time around, whatever that gold may be…

**

As the demigods enter, it is a temple more bizarre than Huehuecoyotl’s geek convention. Countless row upon row of office workers work at various tasks, whether via computer technology or magic. For all their monotonous diligence, they have a variety of clothing choices. In truth, the plainest person in the building is probably the one walking towards the nine of them. An anthropomorphic fox with nine tails… feminine, but not excessively so. Dressed in a suit and tie rather than any sort of dress, modern or traditional.

“Chair Huxian.” The workers stop for a moment, chanting with one voice as they give a light bow in the direction of the vulpine woman, before returning to their work.

The word “Chair” over the more aristocratic “Lady” surprises some of the demigods, but they can’t ponder it before she speaks.

“Right.” Huxian adjusts her tie, “No need for formalities, you all know who I am, and I know who you all are. We also know why we are all here for.” She pauses, sizing up the rival teams… already noting that Valfian has stood to one side so that it cannot be surrounded by the Tehuan Alliance’s representatives, “You have your various geopolitical rivalries, I have resources that could give you an edge. And those resources I shall give… after a few tests to determine who is most worthy, of course.”

The absentminded Valikid almost speaks up, but King Tormak is fortunately able to keep him from doing so. Huxian may have eschewed the nobility titles, but she’s no Huehuecoyotl. She demands the same respect any superior would. Huxian’s golden eyes shift towards the pair briefly, but show no reaction otherwise. She simply maintains an authoritative position, talking to the demigods as if they were mere subordinates, even though technically only three of them are.

“The tests are simple. As you know, I favor the ambitious. Those seeking to change the world through their wit, will and work. A worker cooperative, a capitalist enterprise, a church, a state, they all rely on the same principles to truly be anything in this world. Your talents will be evaluated in rapid succession. Score high enough on each examination, and your scores will accumulate; otherwise, the score will be discarded from the total. Now, ambition is ultimately a team effort to really amount to anything, so I will allow multiple individuals’ scores to be pooled…”

At first, Team Valfian is filled with despair at the likelihood Team Tehua will pool their scores and win by sheer probability.

“…within the same nation.” Huxian continues, dashing hopes of an easy Tehuan victory.

Huxian leads the nine to an elevator. Before they know it, she has vanished. The elevator rises. They are left alone in a room resembling a university classroom. Nine seats. As each one takes a seat, a suitable writing implement materializes in front of each, complete with a suitable medium to write answers on.

Huxian’s voice echoes through the room, “As with any test, you are forbidden from collaborating. Begin.”

Back To School

Each test requires a score of 12 or higher to pass.

Test I: Work

Test I is straightforward, a simple examination of each person’s technical knowledge. Do they grasp mathematics? History? Science? And so on.

Aeron (+4). 16 (20).

Gogrum (+1). 7 (8).

Ariel. 10.

Mazdak. 10.

Spectre. 10.

Red Amesha (+1). 14 (15).

Tormak (+5). 16 (20).

Valikid (+1). 16 (17).

Asmadi (+3). 20.

It appears the intellect of Valfian is unmatched, all that wealth has clearly gone to some impressive education.

Running score:

Aeron 20, Red Amesha 15, Tormak 20, Valikid 17, Asmadi 20.

Test II: Wit

Book smarts are one thing, but what about street smarts? Each demigod find themselves in a variety of simulated situations, and must use their intuition and experience to come out ahead.

Aeron (+3). 1 (4).

Gogrum (+1). 8 (9).

Ariel (+2). 17 (19).

Mazdak. 1.

Spectre. 10.

Red Amesha. 20.

Tormak (+1). 2 (3).

Valikid (+1). 19 (20).

Asmadi (+6) 17 (20).

Valfian’s lead holds. Short of absurdly bad luck, it appears they will win this one.

Running total:

UGC: 39 (Aeron 20, Ariel 19)

SUHR: 35 (Red Amesha)

Valfian: 97 (Tormak 20, Valikid 37, Asmadi 40).

Test III: Will

Aeron (+2). 18 (20).

Gogrum (-1). 8 (7).

Ariel. 10.

Mazdak (+6). 13 (19).

Spectre (-1). 19 (18).

Red Amesha (-1). 9 (8).

Tormak (+6). 13 (19).

Valikid (-1). 17 (16).

Asmadi. 15.

Running total:

UGC: 59 (Aeron 40, Ariel 19)

SUHR: 72 (Red Amesha 35, Mazdak 19, Spectre 18)

Valfian: 147 (Tormak 39, Valikid 53, Asmadi 55)

With the examinations complete, Huxian stands before the group once more, looking over the totals. Having utterly annihilated their competition, Team Valfian are quite smug that their goddess will-

“Hmm, okay results for round one.” Huxian speaks, eliciting surprise from everyone, who thought for sure that was it. “Let us narrow the field of applicants.”

A snap of her fingers, and Gogrum, Spectre and Tormak all disappear. There is awkward amusement at the fact Gogrum and Spectre, fairly lackluster in intelligence, shared their fate with the cerebral Tormak.

Despite the initial horror, Huxian reassures her contestants she merely sent them back home, as they have no further use in the “interview process.” She gave them a pity consolation prize at least. (+5 INT and +5 WIS to the eliminated)

As Valfian won the first round, its remaining participants receive +3 to INT and WIS, SUHR gains +2, and UGC gains +1.

Huxian announces the second phase of testing will begin, and herself vanishes.

Test IV: Health

A leader’s organization is an extension of themselves. They must be of sound mind and body to inspire those beneath them and lead them to great things. Before the demigods know it, a horde of physicians storm the room and subject the demigods to almost invasive physical examinations.

Aeron. 19.

Ariel. 7.

Mazdak. 20.

Red Amesha. 6.

Valikid (+2). 16 (18).

Asmadi. 9.

Running total:

UGC: 78 (Aeron 59, Ariel 19)

SUHR: 74 (Red Amesha 35, Mazdak 39)

Valfian: 126 (Valikid 71, Asmadi 55)

Despite the loss of Tormak, Valfian retains a comfortable lead.

Test V: Wealth

Talk is cheap. It falls to the applicants to prove that they have already applied their knowledge.

Aeron. 8.

Ariel. 17.

Mazdak (+2). 15 (17).

Red Amesha (+2). 6 (8).

Valikid (+2). 4 (6)

Asmadi (+2). 16 (18).

Running total:

UGC: 95 (Aeron 59, Ariel 36)

SUHR: 91 (Red Amesha 35, Mazdak 56)

Valfian: 144 (Valikid 71, Asmadi 73)

Some might suspect some strategic voting is in play with how the most talented of each state’s demigods are now in first place among their teams…

Test VI: Stealth

Success is a group effort. The members of the group need not be aware they are in it. Every demigod is given a simulated task where they must steal vital information for their faction.

Aeron (+2). 15 (17).

Ariel (+2). 20.

Mazdak. 18.

Red Amesha. 13.

Valikid (-1). 13 (12).

Asmadi (+1). 20.

UGC: 95 (Aeron 76, Ariel 56)

SUHR: 91 (Red Amesha 48, Mazdak 74)

Valfian: 144 (Valikid 83, Asmadi 93)

For the first time, everyone is able to pass the test! …Huxian returns, looking over the scores, however, and the effect is the same as last time, with the worst of each team eliminated.

The losers receive +5 DEX and +5 HP as consolation.

Asmadi gets +10 to the same stats, Mazdak +7, and Aeron +5.

Asmadi, Mazdak, and Aeron each keep their scores of 93, 74 and 76, respectively. They will now advance to the seventh and final test: the Jack of All Trades.

Test VII: Jack of All Trades

This test is a true gauntlet, examining each demigod’s overall prowess. A leader need not be perfect, but should certainly be flexible with their talents. Those that are well-rounded will prosper in this round as they are sent through test after test similar to the previous ones, all in rapid succession.

The grand prize will go to whoever has the highest score after this round. Asmadi is favored to be the winner.

Mazdak (+7). 3 (10)

Aeron (+8). 20.

Asmadi (+4). 4 (8).

Final score: Aeron 96, Asmadi 93 and Mazdak 74.

Against all odds, Aeron is able to pull ahead of Asmadi, narrowly denying his rival sorcerer victory.

Aeron gains +9 to all stats. Asmadi gains +8 to all stats. Mazdak gains +7 to all stats.

UGC gains +10 EP. Valfian gains +9 EP. SUHR gains +7 EP.

As a bonus, Huxian allows each finalist to roll penalty-free for another prize, using their best skill.

Aeron (+5). 7 (12). Huxian likes the young mage’s magical display. She shares some arcane knowledge with him to improve his future performance (+10 WIS).

Mazdak (+6). 1 (7). Mazdak is a master orator but his sophistry earns him no favors here.

Asmadi (+4). 16 (20). Asmadi’s embarrassing defeat seems to have manifested in ludicrously powerful magic. (+30 WIS, Sorcerer yields +1 more).

Endowed with new abilities, all the participants are sent home. The Tehuan Alliance has scored another victory, but Valfian’s demigods have increased their share of the world’s demigod capabilities. Only time will tell if there is any lasting effect on the balance of power.

 

[Tani Coyote]

Boons

Anansi: EHF. +55 EP. +15 MP.
Huehuecoyotl: SUHR. +55 EP. +55 MP. +31 in Stats.
Huxian. Valfian. +55 EP.
Reynard. New England. +55 EP. +27 MP.


Turn XIV

Map


The Temple of Huxian has returned to its metaphysical plane, and the world waits to see the effects of its contests.

In Africa, the SUHR and Valfian are racing to capture the Holy Cities of Set and Reynard, respectively, while Tehuan Alliance forces are also advancing on the Holy Cities of Coyote, Huxian and Huehuecoyotl across the world. Only the Holy City of Anansi remains unapproached, perhaps out of concern for the Empire of the Holy Flame’s incredible conversion powers.

Analysts have noted the immense surge in spiritual power coming from the SUHR, which now clearly dominates in terms of Faith. While the harnessing of that power is still clearly hampered, it is predicted that if they can get rid of their energy handicap, there will be no nation able to hold a candle to their ability to empower demigods and convert others to their cause.

New England’s monstrous military growth continues unabated. It accounts for nearly 1/3 of the world’s military strength.

Ascension!

Huxian ascends 1 level! 1 AP buys 2 Wisdom.
Huehuecoyotl ascends from 3 to 5! New powers: 1 AP buys 2 Charisma. +1% more to EP growth.
Reynard ascends 1 level! +10% to new provinces’ conversion chances.

GM Notes:

Orders are due the night of Tuesday the 5th.

As part of my fiduciary duty to the player base, I have made a slight adjustment to the rules, limiting the total EP, AP, MP, and Faith a nation can possess to its number of polities. So if you have 3000 polities, you can have a max of 3000 EP, 3000 AP, 3000 MP, and 3000 Faith; characters’ total stats are likewise limited to these ceilings. Tall empire approaches are not precluded by these limits, as one can still have modifiers that achieve the same effects as having more of these (e.g. Command bonuses to increase military power).

Notice: in the event no orders are receive for New England by this turn’s end, the nation will be NPCed. NPCed nations do not receive boons and cannot be in possession of Hexarch Artifacts.

 

[GenMarshall]

I hardly check up on CFC, It would be nice if I was informed of a game update via discord.

 

[Tani Coyote]

48-hour order extension and a courtesy reminder to @LordArgon and @tobiisagoodboy !

I hardly check up on CFC, It would be nice if I was informed of a game update via discord.

I'll try to get in the habit of sending out a DM!