Dawn of the Punic Sea [DoC]

[DC123456789]

I really like your story-telling style.

 

[Tomorrow's Dawn]

I really like your story-telling style.

You really ought to read my other story, The Celestial Bureaucracy then.
Truth be told, I'm really just half-assing it and improvising here

 

[GHalfrunt]

Subbed. This may seem like a strange thing to comment on, but I like the way the line breaks in your writing are sometimes placed weirdly mid-sentence -- it gives the impression that you're doing an English prose translation of an epic poem. I may need to try to do my next story as an epic poem...

 

[Tomorrow's Dawn]

Subbed. This may seem like a strange thing to comment on, but I like the way the line breaks in your writing are sometimes placed weirdly mid-sentence -- it gives the impression that you're doing an English prose translation of an epic poem. I may need to try to do my next story as an epic poem...

My laptop screen is really wide. About 16 inches to be exact.
Whenever I see a forum post, it'll usually look really wide and stretch out the text.
oftentimes passing the horizontal width of an image, forcing me to scroll to the right.
So I cut off my sentences according to the length of an image to mitigate that.
As well, because this forum doesn't allow banner images in our signatures,
aesthetically, just a long single line post doesn't carry as much weight
as it normally would on say, a zetaboards forum.
But that's just me speaking from the perspective of an artist and designer.



In the West, the Arabs incited the Celt-Iberians and the Berbers to fight against the
Phoenicians, surrounding the Phoenician Empire on their weaker side.
This coalition of anti-Phoenician peoples would split off, but remain allied with their Arab progenitors.
This new enemy would be known as the Moors. Anticipating an attack on Qart-Hadasht, the skeleton crew tactic was once again employed there,
although the navy lurked closely with a strike marine force in the event of emergency.





Small Baalist Kingdoms began to emerge in the West,
combining aspects of Germanic, Celtic and Roman culture to form
the foundations of various new peoples looking to rise up from their barbarian condition.
Among them, the Franks were by far the most powerful,
their army surpassing that of the Phoenicians and the Arabs combined.
While their young Immortal leader, Charlemagne, had a love of learning and
spent some time in his youth studying at the University of Sankore in Kition,
the Franks he led were extremely warlike and ready at any moment to mobilize.







When I saw this in the game, I was flabbergasted.
Something really strange happened to France and Spain in this game though.
As you can tell by their weird capitals. But yeah, the only other time
I was intimidated this much, was during a French game, where the Romans
were still alive and had Cannons at 1020 AD (pre-Bombard DoC).

 

[strijder20]

Oh, I considered the idea of HR, but you've got to admit, the dynamic name for HR Phoenicia is a bit misleading

 

[DC123456789]

You really ought to read my other story, The Celestial Bureaucracy then.
Truth be told, I'm really just half-assing it and improvising here

Oh, I read it, but I got kind of bored after the first few chapters. Maybe it's because it's not an RFC (or RFC modmod) game.

 

[Tomorrow's Dawn]

Oh, I read it, but I got kind of bored after the first few chapters. Maybe it's because it's not an RFC (or RFC modmod) game.

If Yoshiegg, hoplitejoe or any of the old S&Ters were still here, they'd probably call that blasphemy.



From the north, another of Caesar's proteges comes crashing down against the Phoenician border.
Ragnar of the Vikings intends to pillage and plunder the rich Greco-Roman interior,
and like a vulture, joins the fray with the Arabs and the Moors.
Phoenicia is now hemmed in on all sides by vicious enemies, with no chance or route of escape.



A glimmer of hope appears in the form of an increased focus on education.
As powerful and immortal as he was, Hannibal knew he could not administer all of the empire at once.
He needed learned, bright young men with fresh ideas to help manage his empire.
Thus, was the beginning of a new, Phoenician Renaissance.



Unable to get through to the Italian Peninsula, being blocked off by hostile
Spanish forces, Abu Bakr is forced to sign a peace with Hannibal.
This comes as a major blow to Caesar's anti-Phoenician coalition.



Introduced from around 1.9 onwards was the inclusion of Orthodox Christianity.
The mechanics surrounding this are as follows:
Either build the Apostolic Palace as a Catholic civ to found it OR
random founding by a civ east of Rome (Ethiopia, Greece and Byzantium are the likely founders) around 1000 AD.
In this case, even though it doesn't appear here, Ethiopia ended up founding Orthodoxy.
Also, note in this screenshot that the Germans have spawned.

 

[mayor]

Oh, I read it, but I got kind of bored after the first few chapters. Maybe it's because it's not an RFC (or RFC modmod) game.

That's blasphemy!


Oh yeah, I'm still reading your stories, so don't you forget about me

 

[Daedwartin]

the Catholics need your holy support (i.e. your the center of Christianity with the holy city yours.) but at the same time, expand Islam as well. 40 free gold is hardly something to scoff at.

 

[Tomorrow's Dawn]

I'm back after a round of midterms.



Phoenician stability is recovering after the shock
of the loss of Egypt, and the tiring war with
the Caesarian coalition. Hannibal's plans to
restore the economy are already underway,
but foreign policy and the state of foreign affairs
are in a sorry state for the maritime empire.



From the northeast, Phoenician border traders encountered
fearsome bear cavalry from the lands of the Rus.
They too, were plagued by the hordes of Hungarian horsemen.
The two peoples resolved to trade with and bolster one
another in the face of this common enemy.



The Moorish confederacy exits the war against the Phoenicians,
having gained nothing during the conflict for all their trouble.



Alas, Cyrus would not live to see the end of the war,
as Persia was wracked internally by conflicts stemming
from the great inflation and squalid living conditions
arising from the war. When they found Cyrus, he was
found still atop his bed, murdered by an assassin.
The last of the known ancients had left Hannibal's side.
And now, he was alone with a vengeful Caesar and
the throng of young Immortals gravitating towards their conflict.
A tear is shed for the old Immortal friend, but Hannibal remains stoic.
Phoenicia would never falter so long as Hannibal remained at her helm.



As I mentioned before in my previous AAR,
Printing Press founds Protestantism if you are a Catholic civ.
This applies still, but there isn't so much of an OP incentive
to switch to Protestantism anymore.
Plus, each civ has their own weighted values for whether they
switch to Protestantism or not,
and the Catholic civs will all go to war with the Protestant civs afterward,
effectively simulating the Thirty Years' War.



Teching pretty fast here, despite all the turmoil.

 

[NinjaCow64]

Are there any non-OP benefits to switching to Protestantism?

 

[Tomorrow's Dawn]

Are there any non-OP benefits to switching to Protestantism?

Not really, I prefer staying Catholic because of the AP bonus.
As you would likely build the AP as a Catholic civ anyway.
Plus, if you turn Protestant, a boatload of AIs will suddenly DoW you for switching.

 

[NinjaCow64]

Not really, I prefer staying Catholic because of the AP bonus.
As you would likely build the AP as a Catholic civ anyway.
Plus, if you turn Protestant, a boatload of AIs will suddenly DoW you for switching.

So why would anyone want to switch to Protestant then?

 

[Tomorrow's Dawn]

So why would anyone want to switch to Protestant then?

Maybe some people steadfastly like to hold to their own interpretations of how to commune with God?
The one time lump sum gold is still there, I believe. Whether you are in a position to weather the war for the gold or not is up to the situation mostly.

 

[Tomorrow's Dawn]

Avar horsemen ride down and circle the walls of Utica as the Phoenicians brace themselves.
Being in the pay of Caesar, they eagerly enter the rich Illyrian countryside in search of plunder.
In other world events, the French declare war on the Germans,
ready to settle the score for supremacy over Charlemagne's legacy.



So I complete the AP.
I wasn't fast enough to snatch Orthodoxy,
which went to Ethiopia, unfortunately.
However, it is still worth it as every Catholic building
will provide +2 Hammers, making the AP quite attractive.
That and I want to keep Roma as the Catholic Holy City as well.
Can't let Spain or France steal it away and take away my Shrine income.



With the war focus shifting northwards,
Phoenician forces were gradually redeployed from the sea to the hinterlands,
where they were to guard against Viking, Avar and Bulgar incursions.
The Vikings in particular embraced the Reformation, in which they held to their
own personal interpretations on how to commune with Baal, as opposed to
listening to the word of the Baalist Grand Cross in Roma.
Baalist Spain under the rule of Isabella soon provided Hannibal the gift of horses,
surprisingly enough following this development.
The gift came with the message:

"To aid you in your fight against those who would falsely worship Baal."



Well it's 1000AD. Guess which tech I'm going to tech?

 

[Daedwartin]

democrac- BLAM! Gunpowder.

 

[Lord_Herobrine]

Nice way of putting it

I would tech lib and pop gunpowder from the free tech. Cuts down on the turns for both techs and you get special recognition

 

[strijder20]

I would tech lib and pop gunpowder from the free tech. Cuts down on the turns for both techs and you get special recognition

Why Gunpowder? Democracy is twice as expensive and if TD intends to switch to Republic, definitely worth it.
Either TD'll go Lib and take Demo, or delay Lib, I think.

 

[Lord_Herobrine]

Why Gunpowder? Democracy is twice as expensive and if TD intends to switch to Republic, definitely worth it.
Either TD'll go Lib and take Demo, or delay Lib, I think.

Well, I kind personally hate the Demo tech. Its not very usefull for any of my play-styles. It might be very good for yours, but I just play differently. The only value it holds for me is the tech trade value.

 

[Tomorrow's Dawn]

Hannibal did not know if he could love again.
The loss of Cleopatra was so many centuries ago,
yet it still took its toll on him.
But here he was, standing atop Capitol Hill in Roma,
holding the hands of his new bride.
She was Isabella of Spain, and her cooperation with Hannibal during the
War Against The Caesarian Coalition had not only improved the bonds
between the Phoenician and Spanish peoples, but with their hearts as well.

For better or for worse, Hannibal was not quite ready to let go yet,
but he smiled as things were starting to look up.



From Central Asia, came the most fearsome foe Hannibal had encountered yet.
The Seljuq Turks came riding in, indiscriminately sweeping through
old Persian, Arab and Phoenician lands alike.
Their attacks against Hannibal's holdings were ineffective though,
as Byzantion was well-garrisoned and again, Kition's strategic positioning
made it impossible for the Seljuqs, who lacked a navy, to properly assault.



Hannibal liked the nights the best. After a long day of governing, he relished the long chats he shared with his wife.
She often talked about her devotion to the Baalist Church and shared her plans for temples she would soon be funding.
Hannibal sometimes thought that she talked about Baalism too much, but he tucked away that thought into the back of his head.



In DoC, vassals can declare war without your permission and drag you into a war.
Be careful with this and be prepared.
Also, I get failgold from La Mezquita.



Thanks to Isabella's armies, an old foe of Hannibal is laid low and made to flee across the sea.
With Moorish forces stranded in Sicily and separated from the exiles in North Africa,
the once proud coalition is sent into a state of panic.