Preview BirdNES 2: The Forge of Empires

[Birdjaguar]

Looks fantastic, Bird. Complicated, but if anyone can pull it off it's you. I particularly like what seems to be the philosophy behind the rules: "My goal is to get you to think like a leader and not like a game player." Did that come out of your discussion with Symphy a while back? However, I am somewhat sceptical that such a philosophy can be applied to 100 year turns. The butterfly effect becomes insuperable on such a scale, and renders planning virtually impossible except in the very broadest of ways. Judging from the rules, I don't think you want to us to write BT orders, but maybe I am mistaken.

EDIT: I was also under the impression that we were starting a bit later than the early Copper Age. Did that change?

I started things in the early copper age so that I can judge the speed to increase tech. When we start, nations may be more advanced than shown here. This is a preview so you all can ask questions and give me time to fix problems before we actually begin. Cradle maps may change too as I finalize placements.

As for the first turn orders, no they will not be BT orders. My plan is for you to write orders for 3-6 rulers that span a total of 100 years. Each will be structured similar to post 4 but without any changes in stats over the 100 years. I will then break the turn into meaningful segments and write updates for each. This is really a test for me and how to do meaningful updates.

 

[North King]

I hope I am in the Animas. It looks so Asian.

You know, the fun thing about this map is that I can radically alter coastlines before people even reach them. (Just kidding, Bird)

 

[human-slaughter]

I posted my culture in the NES Culture thread. Does that sign me up?

 

[Birdjaguar]

I posted my culture in the NES Culture thread. Does that sign me up?

I will add you in. Thanks and welcome.

 

[bombshoo]

I'll be joining for sure, but I gotta make up stuff when I have more time.

 

[JosefStalinator]

Edited. Please ignore.

 

[Perfectionist]

There is a template to be found here.

 

[Birdjaguar]

JosefStalinator/Herenenorde
Current economic base: Farming, Fishing, and War
Current location: Preferably coastal, River would be lovely, forested.

I am a bit confused. Do I need more?

Players have been filling out this template so I have a bit more to go on in grouping folks. I try to use them to group folks better, but it is pretty tough.

Name of Culture:
Place of origin:
Gods & Goddesses and related beings:
Any significant past accomplishments:
Current economic base:
Current location:
Lineage:
Spoken language:
Written language:
Medium for writing:
Class structure:
Ruling class:
Key values:
OTL mix:

 

[Thlayli]

A quick question: How exactly will technology advances be handled across the cradles? Will they be connected to some standardized system, or will each cradle advance differently based on available natural resources, national priorities and such?

It would certainly be interesting to see certain nations get "unfair" advances and rise to dominate entire regions, before the pendulum tilts rapidly in the other direction, based on technological breakthroughs that occur in some areas but not in others.

Also, I'm wondering on the timeframe for the Copper and Bronze Ages...before the Middle/Late Bronze Age, large states are difficult to cohere, at least using OTL as a comparison. Will players have to seek out new metal, or will the technology diffuse naturally? This ties into my earlier question.

 

[Birdjaguar]

A quick question: How exactly will technology advances be handled across the cradles? Will they be connected to some standardized system, or will each cradle advance differently based on available natural resources, national priorities and such?

It would certainly be interesting to see certain nations get "unfair" advances and rise to dominate entire regions, before the pendulum tilts rapidly in the other direction, based on technological breakthroughs that occur in some areas but not in others.

Also, I'm wondering on the timeframe for the Copper and Bronze Ages...before the Middle/Late Bronze Age, large states are difficult to cohere, at least using OTL as a comparison. Will players have to seek out new metal, or will the technology diffuse naturally? This ties into my earlier question.

I am about to head out to the airport, so your answer will have to wait, but I will respond. It is a greatr question.

 

[JosefStalinator]

Name of Culture: Vissarai
Place of origin: Vissaron
Gods & Goddesses and related beings: Vissar is the chief diety of the so named Vissarion pantheon. A powerful paternal god, ruling alongside the chief godess Rilel. Other major gods include Sielm and Whasher, gods of war and agriculture respectively. Strong belief in the universal presence of the gods within all objects and creatures, with the strongest presence (and thus obligation of duty) in man.
Any significant past accomplishments: Skilled weaponsmiths (metallurgy?), architects (mostly of wondrous religious shrines/buildings), and combatters of hubris.
Current economic base: Agriculture, war (slavery?), and a bit of fishing.
Current location: Coastal (though the capital need not be), preferably near either wooded areas or mountains, river would be wonderful too. I'm partial to Manonash, the northen reaches would be especially lovely.
Lineage: Traditionally partiarchal, however warrior-priest caste retains powerful influence based on merit/skill in battle. Hereditary elites control ultimate political/religious authority through connection to Vissar.
Spoken language: Vissar
Written language: Proto-alphabet, probably still mostly pictographic.
Medium for writing: Clay, whatever we can write on .
Class structure: Warrior-priest caste retains powerful influence based on merit/skill in battle. Hereditary elites control ultimate political/religious authority through connection to Vissar. The rest are the masses, though it is possible to raise through skill in battle (or by demonstrating religious favor) to raise to the warrior-priest caste.
Ruling class: Elites, hereditary, claim divine connection. The Telamondesos (hey, I like the title ) rules by claim of descent from Vissar himself.
Key values: Order, honor, duty, and individual favor of the gods.
OTL mix: Celtic, Germanic, with a hint of Shintoistic Japanese.

How's that look bird? Totally changed from before, so delete any other info you might have saved.

 

[LightFang]

Ugh, the first post is too wide to fit on my monitor, so I can't read it. More comments to come as I work my way through it, scrolling left and right frantically.

 

[Luckymoose]

Ugh, the first post is too wide to fit on my monitor, so I can't read it. More comments to come as I work my way through it, scrolling left and right frantically.

You must live in the age of cheap monitors the size of your hand. I'm on a small laptop and it fits. Perhaps upping your resolution would help.

 

[JosefStalinator]

You must live in the age of cheap monitors the size of your hand. I'm on a small laptop and it fits. Perhaps upping your resolution would help.

No, it barely goes over for me too. It'd be nice if Bird were to trim it a bit .

 

[LightFang]

You must live in the age of cheap monitors the size of your hand. I'm on a small laptop and it fits. Perhaps upping your resolution would help.

You're funny. My resolution max is 1024x768. Not everybody has nice state-of-the-art technology like you do. Some of us use outdated stuff.

I really like the black box system and I hope that I'm not too vague for Birdjaguar. The last NES was crazy complicated and I just hope I'm not too vague with my rules.

 

[Fuschia]

Name of Culture: Bringiri
Place of origin: Wooded foothills
Gods & Goddesses and related beings: Every material object has a Bringiri within the world "above" our own world, whose actions and interactions with other Bringiri directly determine the fate of its physical form. These Bringiri often organize into complex hierarchies under more abstract Bringiri based upon important locations or around particularly venerated Bringiri. These hierarchies are controlled feudally by the Bringiri set at the top. Worship of these Bringiri is the focal point of Girism, as they believe that beseeching them for aid will allow them to gain a Giri, or blessing. Families, households, and other organizations commonly form their own Bringiri as well. Another central point of their religion is that they, themselves, are Bringiri that have left behind their physical forms and escaped to this world, allowing them to contact the world above directly with their prayers.
Current economic base: Farming, wood-cutting, basic handicrafts.
Current location: Wooded foothills
Lineage: Complicated; all possessions pass from the deceased to his/her "nearest" relative, with grand-parents scoring highest, followed by mother/father, brother/sister, then children, aunts/uncles, cousins, nephews/nieces, and other family members in a rather complicated order...
Spoken language: Determined entirely by combinations of Bringiri names. Their are no verbs, pronouns, or conjunctions, and adjectives are inherent to each noun, i.e. "the red box" is one word. The language is entangled with religion, as each word is the name of a specific Bringiri; as such, these words are necessary for any prayers, and a city is always named after its guardian Bringiri, as are forest's, families', etc.
Written language: Written forms of the same type, with each word being represented by a single, very complicated, letter, generally with all related Bringiri names being related in one way or another. Writing is generally restricted to the preists of Girism, and the name of an important Bringiri is a powerful talisman when written down.
Medium for writing: Generally etched in stone or clay, with each tablet filled with an entire letter.
Class structure: Priests -> Artisans -> Laborers -> Merchants ->
Ruling class: Generally, a united priesthood and artisan class rule each community, with a confederacy and hierarchy with a basis much the same as Girism (and about as complicated).
Key values: Duty to oneself, one's family, one's standing, and the Bringiri, in that order. Artistic ability is that most valued.
OTL mix: Japanese/Chinese, with some stuff I just came up with


Hopefully, this is filled out fairly correctly. Just tell me if anything's wrong, I'll fix it.

 

[bombshoo]

Name of Culture: Gaznel
Place of origin: Gaznel
Gods & Goddesses and related beings: A single God called Yerhl. Often just referred to as "Great Creator". Their main prophet is a semi-mythical man called Josaul, who is actually not from Gaznel but an outcast from a neighboring region. He is regarded almost as highly as Yerhl himself.
Any significant past accomplishments: Extensive writings on Yerhl, Josaul and the orgins of Inowe. Also a very advanced and fair (for it's time) legal system.
Current economic base: trade with large expatriate communities in many other locations. (If I can do that) also orchid farming (apples, oranges, grapes as opposed to grain, rice or wheat)
Current location: Mediterranean climate. Dry but probably not far from the coast. Atleast by a river or lake from which to conduct trade.
Lineage: Everyone is seen as a Son or Daughter of Yerhl (even if they havn't accepted it yet). Thus everyone is kind to each other and seen as family and equal. The Prophet is seen as a sort of patriarch with the Judges as other guardians.
Spoken language: Gaznelean similar to Ancient Semetic languages.
Written language: Gaznelean. Same
Medium for writing: Usually clay, but crude papyrus-like paper is available but very expensive.
Class structure: Everyone is fairly equal though unofficial elite status exist amongst some of the rich and relatives of The Prophet and Judges.The only distinct class is slaves who work on the orchids, but are usually regarded as family members of their owners. It is not unusual for them to stay with their owners even after they are too old to work. (For the few that live that long.)
Ruling class: The Prophet is chosen from birth by the previous Prophet. There are also usually a few dozen Judges who also act as mayors, governors and priest. They are usually chosen simply from being trusted and well liked members of the community. Most expatriate communities have atleast one Judge in them (If I am allowed to do that).
Key values: Piety, Working for the good of the community, appriciation for Inowe and it's resources. (Think ancient age enviromentalism)
OTL mix: Mostly Jewish culture (ancient and modern), some Native American and Tibetan Buddhist influence particuarly on values.

 

[Birdjaguar]

Ugh, the first post is too wide to fit on my monitor, so I can't read it. More comments to come as I work my way through it, scrolling left and right frantically.

See if the new picture works better for you.

 

[Birdjaguar]

A quick question: How exactly will technology advances be handled across the cradles? Will they be connected to some standardized system, or will each cradle advance differently based on available natural resources, national priorities and such?

It would certainly be interesting to see certain nations get "unfair" advances and rise to dominate entire regions, before the pendulum tilts rapidly in the other direction, based on technological breakthroughs that occur in some areas but not in others.

Also, I'm wondering on the timeframe for the Copper and Bronze Ages...before the Middle/Late Bronze Age, large states are difficult to cohere, at least using OTL as a comparison. Will players have to seek out new metal, or will the technology diffuse naturally? This ties into my earlier question.

For players the cradles are not connected at all as far as trade or tech until they actually become connected through player exploration. Each can progress at their own pace based on the nations in each cradle.

If we don't start in the middle bronze age we will get there pretty quickly then things will take on a more measured pace to iron. What players discover or learn will difuse naturally to neighbors and then further. War is a great diffuser of tech. If it is something very cool, it will probably spread faster. Monopolies in resources or plants are possible.

 

[Lord_Iggy]

Yexal signing in!