Update 6, 1000bce- The Path Diverges
Caledonia expands its economy, but slowly. It is one of the more mountainous countries of the world, and yet not a single true road links any part of the rocky countryside. Not helping Caledonia's infrastructure woes are the "Council of Elders" spreading nasty rumors about the newest reforms...some going as far as calling Chulainn a servant of the god of Evil.Chulainn responds to these remarks rather oddly, trying to recruit the old men into the Army, trying to stroke thier egos so to speak. This fails largely, mainly because the elders are more like used-car salesmen and priests put together, rather than generals.
The CoE have now gained a larger following in parts of the Northern corner of Scotland, put little has swayed the happy Caledonians in the bigger towns. Thier political sway is strong, and they know how to use the terrain...but so does the Caledonian army.
Iceland remains a hotly contested island (tee hee, pun). Norway has backed away from its promise of war, and has allowed Caledonia to expand, but many people cite the new change of leadership in Norway as the main cause. Caledonia has done all it can to exploit the land, but mainly looks to the sea and founds a nice little fishing town. More trade will be needed to truly take advantage of the island.
England is plagued by the very thing keeping it protected. Mercykillers, which now compromise a good portion of the army, also take the law into thier hands, handing out harsh punishments even for minor crimes. It appears the King is losing control of his army, as Mercykillers where also seen riding across the countryside and terrorizing those who did not appear loyal....some say it was an exercise in boredom. Either way, its not a good winning policy from the King to have loose control of his army and a population about to revolt against him...
Eire prospers initially, under 1 ruler. It is smaller than both Caledonia and England, but is more stable at the moment than either and is a welcome port for trade from other nations such as Astile, Galicia, and the Denmark. When approached with the news of this, all the leader of Eire could say was "Yippee, another economy level!"
(+1 economy level)
Speaking of Ireland, in Taiwan great upheavel occurs. Taiwan, self-isolated from the world for much of the millenium, at first appears to be doing rather grand. Rice is cultivated to wide acclaim, and is used in such wonderful inventions such as sweet and sour chicken, not to mention lavish gardens and magnificent temples. Those temples are built to the "all-knowing" sacred Polar Bears. Sure, most Taiwanese say,"Polar bear? WTH is a polar bear?" but they pray to it anyway. But little did the flourishing island know, how much of thier country depended on 1 man.
Tonsang dies rather suddenly, of a massive heart attack. The effects are immediate and widespread. Many people mourn in the streets, for it appears there will never be another Teacher again. In the mourning and overall depressive state, one monk from Taipei declares himself new Teacher. Shao-li takes command, ordering the end of the mourning and the beginning of a grand statue to Tonsang...and to the new teacher, Shao-li. This angers the commander of the Taiwanese army, Taowang. He orders his army to march on Taipei to destroy the blasphemous new teacher. But to his suprise, parts of his army defect and before he can reach Taipei, he encounters a large force and is forced to retreat. He attacks again though, pushing Shao-li's forces to the brink. It is now that perhaps the greatest mistake of the war is made. In a move of desperation, rather than evacuating Taipei and gathering his troops for a counter-attack, Shao-li does something not done in hundreds of years....he sends a message to Fuzhou. They respond quickly, sending a contingent of troops a little larger than Taowang's troops. Much to the dismay of Shao-li, they choose to control Taipei rather than help Shao-li defend it. Clashes between Fuzhou and Shao-li's faction occur, which pleases Taowang as he watches the fireworks from afar. Heres a short overview of the conflict:
Taowang Faction- Led by the commander of the army, General Taowang. He has gained much of the Tonsang loyalist (a rather large sect) and parts of the peasant population. His army is actually equal, with his side having more organization but somewhat less fervor. He controls the most land out of any of the factions.
Shao-li Faction- Controlled by the new Teacher, Shao-li. He declared himself such shortly after the sudden death of beloved teacher Tonsang. His vision and goals has garnered him much of the peasant population and the upper class, who wish to keep the teacher rule over any military junta Taowang might install. Shao-li's army consists mainly of fanatics (weaker spearmen who fight fanatically) and warrior monks.
Fuzhou Faction- A military contingent, with orders from Fuzhou not to "capture" Taiwan, but vassalize it. Recieving a message from Shao-li, the Fuzhou took the oppurtunity to take Taipei rather bloodlessy, which they do. The two armies now clash on the outskirts of Taipei. Local support for Fuzhou is very low, but they have the best available army.
It has finally happened. The strike everyone was waiting for. The two greatest powers of the world meet together in the same battlefield, to determine the course of world history forever. In the left corner, we have THE empire of its time, fitted with the strongest fleet and army. Its infrastructure is sound and they have few enemies in the region. BYYYZAAAAANNNTTIIIUUMM!! In the right corner, the menace of the Middle-East, destroyer of both Armenia and Phoenicia. Its swarming hordes are the highest in number of any other army on Earth, and they boast the most efficient mix of speed and attack power. Clap for the HIITTTTTIIIITTTTEEEESSSS. Areeee you reaaaaddyy toooo ruuummblllee?!!
The first blow comes form Hittitia. Fresh off thier conquest of Armenia, Hittite generals order a massive invasion of Byzantine-held Anatolia. A grand attack is commanded by the great Mursilis, designed to take Ankara with a spearhead of chariots and spearmen behind them. A Byzantine fortress now, Ankara is not about to be taken over by anyone easily. Hittite chariots ram into a wall of pikes, men, and walls. Yes, they are going so fast, some actually hit the walls. Clashes begin outside the walls, between the Byzantine force of about 500 spearmen and 300 archers, and around 700 chariot warriors and 300 spearmen. Byzantine archers atop the walls pick off unwary chariot riders dozens at a time, trying to even out the 2-1 disparage in soldier amount. After some time, the Mursilis finally gathers his troops up to issue an assault on the walls. The spearmen outside the walls have been largely defeated, but not without casualties. Hittite soldiers use anything possible to gain access to the walls, some going up the ladders not yet pulled up, and 1 even cutting down a nearby tree. The result is a madrush by the Hittites, who climb up the ladder fearlessly and bloodthirsty. Inside Ankara, peasant militias form, the farmers and merchants arming themselves with old swords and spears. But they are desperately needed as the first 50 or so Hittite warriors climb up the ladder, leaving a clear path for more to come. Fighting breaks out along the wall, some of the archers grabbing anything around them including burnt out torches (it is day afterall) and small daggers concealed in thier clothing for close-combat situation. They fight valiantly, a fight they know they are likely to lose, and it allows time for a battalion of almost 1500 peasant militia to form on the ground below. Sensing his victory on the walls, General Mursilis orders the army to leave the walls and enter the city. The Hittite force is now around 400 men, who are all the same now, having ditched thier chariots after the wall climb. Soon Mursilis senses something else...an eerie silence. No chaos, no screaming, nothing. He is not pleased, maybe as his army marches there could be a surprise....WHAM! Catapults sound off, throwing tons of nasty painful stuff into the air, including broken swords and weapons, and even a bit of scalding water for good measure. Hittite men die painfully slow deaths, from the rain of weapons. Then comes the main attack, a huge human wave that crashes onto the Hittites right flank. With an army now consisting of 200 scared Hittite men, something never before seen, Mursilis orders an evacuation of Ankara, and the city is spared.
Alas, around Anatolia, Hittite armies mobilize for further attacks in the north and south, where some gains have already been made. Byzantine patrol forces come together aswell, and word has come to Constantinople, where the Emperor is sending the Imperial Army to attack.
(Byzantium: -400 spearmen, -200 archers, +1000 conscripts)(Hittites: -600 chariot warriors, -200 spearmen)
Another nation has also heard word of the Hittite attack, Sparta. Pisastratus takes the oppurtunity, with Byzantium's hands tied in Anatolia, to go for the jugular. The Rashkan army, clinging to the hope of a Byzantine relief force, is quickly dealt several defeats. Sparta's tactics are just far to advanced for the Rashkans to combat, and they fall back and fall back. Not helping the matter is a band of 300 Spartiates, extra fierce warriors. At the sight of these, the King of Rashka promptly....flees. Still, not all is candy and sunshine for Sparta, as its low cultural influence and highly disregarded Oligarchy (rumors spread) means some still hold onto a free Rashka and rebel from Spartan rule.
(Spartan Federation: -150 spearmen, -100 archers, -50 Spartiates)(Rashka: DESTROYED)
Rivalries begin in the Mediterranean, over trade. Athens, Etrusca, Taranto, and Tahret are the main protagonists. All of these nations mobilize thier fleets, and some have even pulled off minor raids along another countries coast. With the right spark, it could erupt into a full-scale Mediterranean war.
Athens annexes Cyprus, after centuries of partnership and trade. Most are unaware of the change even, as it seemed Athens essentially told them what to do already.
Astile invades Gothia, raiding its coffers and taking all the money it can. This proves successful initially, giving Astile enough of a boost to perhaps finish the job quicker than some thought...
(Astile: -200 swordsmen, -100 spearmen, -200 archers, +1 economy level)(Gothia: -200 spearmen, -100 archers)
Salzburg pulls off a very successful operation against the Germanians. They have found that the organization and fire in the Germanian tribes is very low, taking advantage of thier poverty stricken state, Salzburg actually absorbs a good portion of the area.
(+1 eco point TO SPEND THIS TURN ONLY)
The Winterfellian leaders have many ambitious plans, but only 1 of them truly comes to fruition (dont forget, you cant increase economy and other things that take economy, in the same turn). Expansion into Lappland is slow, as vicious Lapp berserkers shred several settler parties, prompting a more militaristic approach by Winterfell one would think...
(Winterfell: -50 spearmen, -30 archers)
Tensions rise in Baltica, as Tuetonia annexes much of the lesser Teuton tribes and inches closer to Denmark. The Danes are promising war if Teutonia expands further east, taking a card from the Teuton deck of tricks.
Promise of help from Tingis is recieved by Cordoba, who bodly orders a mass invasion thinking help was on the way. It wasnt, and Cordoba found itself alone. Still, despite bad setbacks, the amount of land lost is impressive, considering how Tartessos was shredding thier army. A compromise might be in the works between Cordoba and Tartessos...
(Cordoba: -200 spearmen, -200 archers)(Tartessos: -200 Fanatics, -100 spearmen, -100 archers)
Africa is rather uneventful. Carthage continues to expand, but cannot penetrate very far inland against the Tanzians. Somalis are easier to fight, and they might even be ready to catipulate to Axum and Carthage. Kush invades Aden, who loses its African hold. Zululand expands well, even doing some un-zulu things like making temples and whatnot. Some say the worst is yet to strike Zululand though.
In the Middle-east, Persia annexes Babylon, amid great revolts. Bactria suffers a horrible plague, which nearly destroys the nation. Mongols nearby sense blood in the water...
And finally we come back to the Far East. The Yan are expanding peacefully, not wanting to step on anyones toes. Manchu barbs attack the northern border, taking a small fort before it can be finished. The Yan military is large though, and most believe it is a minor irritance. Perhaps the biggest thing the Yan did was something they actually didnt do, enter the War for the Mandate of Heaven.
Which is our next topic. Noticing the futileness of the war for an actual Shang victory, Shang generals order a retreat of Shu, leaving Laoti unscathed, but burning much of the farmland of Shu in the area, much like Shu did to them. This is stemmed somewhat by the cultivating of rice in western Shu and the great profits from the new tea trade with Fuzhou and Yan. Shu & Fuzhou soldiers continue to make small gains against the entrenched Shang, but most agree the army is about to break and the land occupied.
(Shu: -1 economy, +1 economy, -250 spearmen, -50 archers, -40 chariots)(Shang: -200 spearmen, -all archers)(Fuzhou: -100 spearmen, -100 archers)
Mori, having enjoyed success for so long concentrating on the military, has learned the hard way that there is more to ruling the world than military. Upgrading the Army to the Iron age was successful, but it is now clear that the Mori are in a depression economy-wise. Thousands starve, and the army suffers a small amount of desertions. Inability to solve the problem might lead to open revolts, and some clans are trying to take advantage of Mori's dire economic situation.
(Mori: -50 Ninjas, -100 spearmen)
Diplomacy
From: Etrusca
To: Astile
We consider Gothia good trading partners, please state your reason for invading them!
From: Al-Andulus
To: Tingis
We need help urgently, otherwise we will be forced to accept Tartessian peace terms...
From: Axum
To: Carthage
Pray to our gods, abandon your archaic practices! And then we can trade.
From: Mozambiquens
To: Carthage
We own Madagascar, light-skinned mongrels.
From: Borie Rus
To: Byzantium
Allow us to take the rest of Crimea, and we will be friends.
Notes
Everyone has Iron, wee. Stats done later today, and I might make a nice little histograph thingy aswell. Btw, when I update stats, Ill update the whole front page.
) was engraved on the stone, weathered and beaten from centuries of neglect. The Spartiate was an educated man, unlike the Helots of his country, and knew the old writings. This was Corinthian lettering, not Spartan or Byzantine. Closer examination revealed:
