Out of the Rubble II – The Carthaginian Empire

[MSTK]

THIS STORY WAS CANCELLED
Go to the latest here/

Out of the Rubble II – The Carthaginian Empire
Civ: Carthage
Difficulty: Regent
Settings: Huge map on Continents with 60% water; All defaults (AI/Barb Aggression, rival numbers, victory conditions, etc.); 1000-turn setting

Some of you may have been reading my other story series, “Out of the Rubble – The Byzantine Empire”. Unfortunately, as much as I tried to complete it, it went down due to computer problems. So while I get that fixed (don’t expect it up soon), I’m doing this new story.

- Recap
The old story is at http://forums.civfanatics.com/showthread.php?t=93198 (It’s a good read, I’ve heard, so try it out)
I highly recommend that you read it first, so in case that this new story sucks you’ll still have some respect for me

- Details
My civ-stories are inspired by Symphony D, daftpanzer, and Sandman2003. I would like to thank them all for their great stories, though SD’s seem to be down
Remember that these stories are graphic-intensive, meaning that there are a lot of images. If you have a modem, be wary…
As always, I am writing this to improve my gameplay. This will be my second game in Regent Level (my last story being my first game on Regent). I have not played Civ for months, so I may seem rusty in my opening moves.

- Misc. Notes
1) The first couple chapters are slow.
2) I’ve gone name-crazy, naming almost every land formation I find
3) Every chapter is written from a different perspective.
4) Most names do not sound Carthaginian. They are named after people I've RPed with and admire online, along with some names from books I’ve read and some names from the last story.
5) All of my images are deleted after one year of inactivity. If you are ever bored, please be kind and go through every page, in case I forgot, to view every picture. This is not necessary, but I'd appreciate it. After all, you wouldn’t want people to come a year later and see the story with no pictures, eh?
6) Thanks to ImageShack for Free Image Hosting

Current World Map
(None)

 

[MSTK]

CHAPTER ONE: The Beginnings
Quoted from The Seeds of the Carthage Empire; Published by Doughton Muffin.

Nobody is quite sure why the nomads who eventually called themselves the Great Carthaginians threw off their customs of hunter-gatherers and looked towards the great promise of civilization. But historians today do know when – around 4000 BC, as did all other Great Civilizations of this world. Little by little, those living around and in the River of Silver gathered at the coast near the fringes of a great field that would be named after their great motive: Kartha-hadtha, “The New City”.

Figure 1: A drawing found in Carthagian Ruins depicting the nomads at Kartha-hadtha under guidance of Hannibal I.

The city of Carthage, formed where they gathered, nestled itself near the Patches Wood, a small forest at the delta of the Silver River. It was lead by the great leader Hannibal, and his generation was blessed to prosper forever so long as the Empire of Carthage survived.

Figure 2: City plans, demographics, and an artist’s rendition of Carthage 4000 BC.

“The wandering have been received; the great had been gathered.”
- Hannibal I​

Through all of this came the unified knowledge of the Alphabet, a way to communicate ideas to far-reaching places, and Masonry, the art of stone working. Any normal man would have aspired for no more greatness in a life, having set off the chain of events that would catapult a new world power into existence. But Hannibal was no normal man. Proud, he was, and he quickly set himself up as the Despot, supreme ruler, of the small empire. Six chief advisors he recruited immediately, each specializing in their own field: Domestic, Trade, Military, Foreign, Culture, and Science.
A nation’s power relies on its treasury, and Hannibal needed to know how to spend all of his income. With the agreement of his Domestic Advisor and his Science Advisor, he increased his science budget as high as possible until gain became deficit and started research…but on what?
Hannibal pondered this thought for months until he came up with the conclusion. In his mind he dreamed of an elite force of mercenaries stronger than any in the known world. Bronze Working was targeted.

Figure 3: Sketches of the Numidian Mercenary recovered from Hannibal’s office. On display at the Historical Museum of Carthage.

The Military Advisor suggested a militaristic campaign to dominate all life. While this idea never truly registered, it instilled a militaristic spirit within Carthage that would never fade. A Warrior Battalion was designed and citizens bravely volunteered to participate in its creation. They wanted to contribute to their country.

So begins the great empire of Carthage and its military traditions.


(Click to see larger version)
Figure 4: Mappings of the known world of the Carthage peoples, along with historical events. It leads up to the meeting of the Carthaginian rivals: the Celts.

Five campaign seasons and two hundred years later, the Warrior Battalion was ready. At once, another was scheduled to be created to accommodate the surge of volunteers. Its first mission sent it southeast to meet out those who stubbornly resisted the call of Hannibal. It got what was coming to it as the Warrior Battalion ruthlessly surged into its peaceful garrison and through torture and bribery extracted the secrets of Pottery, the ability to store food for long periods of time, from the stubborn fools. The peaceful barbarian village was razed as the Warrior Battalion heads north to the source of the Silver River in search of more blood.

Back at Carthage a new dilemma was faced by the advisory council. While they all wanted a new Warrior Battalion to defend the city in case of Barbarian retaliation, something was more important to them. Forevermore, Hannibal wanted power and land. It was the driving power for all of his actions and the actions of all of his descendants and progeny. The only choice he could make was to divert all progress on the new warrior battalion towards a Granary, made possible by the recent “advance” in Pottery. With a Granary came a Settler, and would bring new settlements and land thereon. The plan seemed perfect, and it was set off to at once.

Back at the frontier, the Warrior Battalion had found the source of the great Silver River. It was a large spire, and they named it “Mt. Silver”. Another great peak was visible, and they headed towards it. They dubbed it, “Mt. Bronze” after the metalwork they were researching. Finally, a third crag was located, shining in the west as the sun set a golden hue. It was named Mt. Gold after this phenomenon.
The three mountains they dubbed the “Three Peaks”. Each had a river flowing from their springs, and so the Three Rivers of Kartha-hadtha were discovered and named.

Finally, on the summit of Mt. Gold, the border flags of a new civilization were spied. Messengers raced back and forth between Carthage and the Battalion on what to do. Finally, Hannibal decided to contact them. He was cautious, and was not sure if these new Barbarians were strong enough to overwhelm him.

Contact was made.

Figure 5: Illustrating the trade of knowledge between Carthage and the Celts.

It enraged Hannibal to lower himself to exchanging knowledge instead of just taking it. But he did so, in any case. Ceremonial Burial was the art of burying things…ceremoniously. His people would build Temples in honor of himself. It was one step backwards and five steps forwards, in his mind.

In the following years, the Granary was finished. The Warrior Battalion trudged on, and work on the Settler began.

But who knew what the other civilizations across the world were doing?

If you want to find out, buy the Seeds of Civilization Series, which has been are #1 grosser and will continue to be if you keep on giving us money.

 

[MSTK]

CHAPTER TWO: Celtic Strife
Excerpts from The First Battalion, written by Coullon Elsar.
(NOTE: This was very short, and shorter than most chapters that use this perspective in my previous stories)

(image placeholder)

“Argh!” Hannibal yelled, throwing the book across the room. It thumped on the wall with a resounding echo that rang throughout the palace. A tense silence filled the council as his traditional six advisors watched, treading carefully near the Emperor’s rage.
Emperor Hannibal breathed deeply, trying to calm himself down. After ten minutes, he sat down warily on his chair. The silence remained unbroken.
“How did this happen?” he asked, his eyebrow cocked. “Explain why we are ‘The Puny Carthaginians’.”
For a while nobody answered. Then, bravely, the foreign advisor spoke up.
“Your Highness, we’re still in the top five, and…”
“Top five?! Don’t say that! We should be first!”
Once again, a silence hung over the group until the domestic advisor answered. “Well, according to our archives our production has been diverted into a granary. Instead of plowing foolishly into the dark, he bide our time to create an ever greater nation.”
“Tortoise and the hare,” the trade advisor added.
Out of burning red eyes Hannibal pondered the thought for a while. Then, suddenly, he burst into laughter. “Well done, my council. So, what was is the good news that you promised?”
“Ah, yes, your majesty,” the Science Advisor got up. He signaled for two people standing near the room come up, heaving a large, round, wrapped parcel. One carried on his back a long and skinny item with a pointed end.
“Supreme Lord,” he started, “our Sages have learned the secret of Bronze Working.” The two men opened the bag to show a glistening shield with the eight-pointed emblem of Carthage emblazoned on it. In demonstration a bronze-tipped spear was thrown across the room. It hit the wall and was not visibly blunted.
“Well done,” Hannibal applauded. “And, how are our Celtic friends doing?”
“Brennus?” the Foreign Advisor asked. “Oh, yes. Even though Livy ranks them as more powerful than us, our scouts confirm that we could easily eradicate them.”
“So why don’t we?”
“Well, we do not presently have the troops needed, but…”
“So get them!”
The advisor cringed. “Right away, Lord.”
“What else is on the agenda?”
The military advisor answered, “The Warrior Battalion has spotted another barbarian village looming in the Celtic Forests, north of their capitol, Entremont.”
“What do they have for us?”
“We don’t know yet, but we think it may be another advance in technology as in the one we acquired from the Patzinal near our borders.”
“Raid them.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Anything else?”
No answer.
“Meeting adjourned. Oh, and by the way, today is the 1000th Anniversary of Founding of Carthage.”

--------------------------------------------------

On the northern borders of Celtica lie the Celtic Forests, fed by River Celtica and inhabited by various peaceful barbarian villages under Sarmation rule. The Military advisor had named them “Goody Huts” for the treasures they were said to possess.
Leading the First Battalion was Feohtan Desiderare, a man esteemed for his military tactics. The small group numbered about 1500, populated by never-ending patriotic fanatics.
“All right, men,” he called out to his group. “For many of you, this is your first raid of a major barbarian establishment. You must have no mercy.
“Mercy corrupts the greatest warlord and drives empires to their knees. Slaughter all of them, peaceful or not. Their secrets are in their minds, and unless they see some death, they’ll keep it there.
“So, who’s ready to hunt some Barbarian?”
The warmongering bunch cried out a cheer.
“Move on, men!”

The ground rumbled as the village children started playing early in the morning. It was a nice day in the Celtic Forest, not a cloud in sight. Soon the adults looked up to see a group of ravaging Carthaginians stampeding towards the village.
It was the last thing they saw.

“Charge!”
The war cry of the Carthaginian Warriors resounded across the village. It was heard near the center at a council meeting of the Sarmatian rulers. It was populated by many women, in fact, as the Sarmatians were known for their unorthodox ways.
“What do we do, Elder?” Wifwerre asked. She, too, feared death.
“We will not surrender any of our secrets,” the Elder replied, “to these monstrous Carthaginians.”
“Then what else do we do? Will we die at their axes?”
“No,” the Elder answered. “We will fight.”

(image placeholder)


“Retaliation?!” Feohtan cried as he saw what was happening. “There’s something I didn’t expect from these babies. Give ‘em what for, men!”
In a cry of joy the Carthagians slaughtered what warriors the Sarmatians dished out for them. They attacked to the north, axes falling and spears flying. The Celtic Forest was strewn with blood those years as the Warrior Battalion forged its way north in a river of slaughter. They left one Sarmatian battalion behind, to ravage Celtic lands.

 

[rbis4rbb]

Great story

Maybe you should have let the barb attack entremont.

 

[Amenhotep7]

Lovin' it!

What program do you use to make these screens?

 

[The Omega]

Wow, aren't you a bloodthirsty guy?

 

[Specialist290]

Hope you have better luck than last time

 

[Vanadorn]

It begins anew. Best of luck and keep us entertained.

V

 

[MSTK]

Wow, thanks I'm was very concerned that this new story might suck, but I guess it's at least decent.

What program do you use to make these screens?

I wish I could afford Photoshop, but I use the GIMP, which has all its features and is free 100%.

 

[Specialist290]

Hmm...

Now that I look at the post titles, it seems as though the Elsars are back. Trans-Dimensional Portal warp, perhaps?

 

[IroquoisPlisken]

Heh, yeah, I noticed the Elsar part too. Maybe Coullon is just a historian and writes about all of the ancient civilizations?

SPOILERS (how do you do those spoiler tags, again?)

And although we already know what will happen to the Celts (thanks to your spoilers), I'm looking forward to hearing about the war.

 

[Specialist290]

(how do you do those spoiler tags, again?)

[ spoiler ] Insert statement here [ / spoiler ] w/o the spaces.

Spoiler :

Like so

 

[MSTK]

YOu can also say:
[ spoiler=Star Wars ] blah blah [ / spoiler]

which turns into:

Spoiler Star Wars :

Darth Vadar is Luke's father

 

[MSTK]

CHAPTER THREE: Peacetime
Recovered from the journal entries of Carthaginian Rulers

2630 BC:

Ah, finally, the dream of Carthage – world domination, of course – is one step closer to being fulfilled. Our empire’s size is doubled as of today! Our people are as joyous as ever. The city lies at the foot of the Three Mountains of Kartha-hadtha and has an abundance of animals known as “game”. A road will be built to the game at once so that my ancestors and I will be able to enjoy slaughtering innocent animals in our free time.
It is also one step closer to the abundant wheat fields near Mt. Gold. Also, we can now build military at two ports instead of one.
However, the first project of Utica will be a Granary. Land is power.

2390 BC:

We have successfully extracted the secrets of Mysticism…of which I’m not sure exactly what it is…from the Ligurian tribe. Our troop morale has been raised, seeing as their last mission was not too successful.

2310 BC:

Leptis Magna is founded. What a kick*ss name. I should thank my city planning people. It can now use the grain, but unfortunately for my soon to be late domestic advisor the wheat does not increase production, only growth. She’ll grow herself some death.
Hah.
Grow herself some death.
I crack myself up.

Anyway, a Worker unit was created to work the wheat.

Also, our Mystics have learned the secrets of Warrior Code. Now we can build “Archers”. Who needs people throwing sticks at each other when you have Numidian Mercenaries? And not a single one has been built yet. For shame.

2150 BC:
Progress on a “curragh” has been started in Carthage. A guy named Christophe Elsar suggested it. We’ll sail around the world and take more lands

Augh! Ambush! Messengers say that it does not look too good for the Settler. Upon trying to pop a goody hut for some more knowledge, enemy tribes retaliated! And we have 0 military units defending our cities! Immediately work has been diverged from Curragh into Archer. Christophe left the room in tears

1990 BC:

Ta da! We are #2 – “The Great Carthaginians” on Machiavelli’s compilation of the most advanced nations of the world. It looks like all of the funding into militaristic advances (and raiding goody huts) paid off.
However, we are still behind the Glorious Americans. As soon as we find them, we’ll kill them, of course.

 

[MSTK]

1725 BC:

The Wheel! How amazing! We have mastered round shaped rocks!
I’m not sure why it’s so amazing, but hey, if the Mystics call me “Great One”, I’m fine with that. We can build chariots, now. Wonderful things, but they’re terribly allergic to forests and mountains. Wimps. According to my Mystics, if we learn Horseback Riding they’ll shed those stupid shopping carts.

1625 BC:

Ha ha! This time, it was those Archers that did the job. My ancestors once jeered at the archers, but they are actually quite powerful. I have a stack of two Archer Battalions poised to attack the Celts.

War is coming. I can feel it.
One more century.
One hundred years.


Then the Celts will feel our wrath.

1600 BC:

A fourth city, and a Numidian Mercenary is formed in Utica! This is such a great year!
Also, the archer stack has taken a savage barbarian camp, looting their villages for gold!

1575 BC:
Just fifty years more until the war my father had planned for Celtic demise before he died.

Hello, Korea. Next in line for domination?
No deals will be made with these petty Koreans. They have nothing to offer, and our scientists are infinitely more advanced…
Or rather, the scientists of those that we have raided

1525 BC:

War has begun.

(Note: Had to split it up because it would not let me post that many images in one post)

 

[Princeps]

Great story Clap!..clap!..clap!...!

But not so good as the byzantine story...

 

[IroquoisPlisken]

[ spoiler ] Insert statement here [ / spoiler ] w/o the spaces.

Spoiler :

Like so

Ah, thanks. I was using < and > instead of [ and ]...

And MSTK, I just noticed you were using that metal background (like in the City View). I was thinking about downloading, but never did. How do you like it?

 

[The Omega]

Yes! War has begun!!!!!!

 

[MSTK]

Ah, thanks. I was using < and > instead of [ and ]...

And MSTK, I just noticed you were using that metal background (like in the City View). I was thinking about downloading, but never did. How do you like it?

Well, the city view alone didn't convince me to download it, but everything else (ei setup, pop-ups, terrain details, advisor screens) that haven't been shown on the story convinced me. I really love it.

 

[Princeps]

You had hannibal I when started this story... when your game ends you probalby have the
Hannibal MMMMMMMMMMMM....... Wow thats one big famly