stEspNES - Conflict of Interest

[Insane_Panda]

Espirito, sorry I didnt mean a culverin on a camels back, I meant something like a small swivel gun.. I remember i saw something like that but i cant remember where...

http://britishbattles.homestead.com/files/transparent_persian_camel_rider.gif

 

[Espírito]

OK, In my 'post' I did actually mean whopping big cannons, I was just trying to show a sensible idea which wouldn't work. I'll write the update for everyone today and add Xen and erez if they've posted their orders by tonight. Update 6-7pm British Time.

 

[das]

Yes, when electing the starter of a new dynasty, any person 21 or over may vote. Peasents or not.

Okay, I guess this could work with a low population. Oh, and are the slaves allowed to vote? Also, is the citizenship denied to certain people?

 

[Amenhotep7]

Why you so interested in my govt? Nah, it's fine.

Slaves are not allowed to vote. Come now, they're slaves. Their masters'd just use em for an extra vote. Citizenship is denied to nobody. Slaves are even citizens, but it's a "special kind" of citizenship.

The slaves are not payed, but they ARE protected from inhumane treatment. Beatings are fine if they have commited horrible enough offenses, but otherwise, other forms of punishment must be administered, lest the master be jailed and his slaves freed.

It's kinda weird. But slavery isn't widespread through my kingdom. Not yet, anyways. The teachings of Lakaedek Polytheism typically are against slavery. But, of course, you have a few who bend and twist the words to their own gain.

 

[Espírito]

He's interested because he wants to disrupt it so he can conquer you OK, shame that Xen and erez haven't got orders in, I'll post the update soon and change the posts at the front.

 

[erez87]

orders:
make 10 more men into the army.
Fine ways to mount some fast animal.
Find ways to make bows.

 

[Espírito]

Discovery of Bronze - 100 A.G.

The warriors of the Tribe of Hrarklon began to move south over the grasslands, ecountering no resistance, they set out with great enthusiasm and made impressive progress, towards the end of their journey however they became less inspired and failed to reach the coast, they did however meet a small tribe whose customs were little different from their own but they hadn't met the teachings of Jerg and were still animists. Meanwhile, advances in agriculture were made with the accidental breeding of a wild and a tame breed of sheep, this led to larger sheep more resistant to disease and has meant the population has grown large, an attaempt to make advances in mining failed due to the lack of education among the people. Shrines now punctuate the landscape, unfortunately, a dispute arose between one of the more zealous priests and a second, the former advocating human sacrifices, the latter using sheep, this led to all the people moving away from the area where themore zealous priest practiced, who, without any people to preach to went to the Priesthood and asked for them to decide what nature of sacrfice would satisfy Jerg.

The Lakaedeki army expanded in this time to accomodate 150 warriors, and these set out on two expeditions, the first, southwest involved 30 of their original warriors and 50 of the new recruits, they encoutered a small tribe obviously from the same ancestors as themselves and managed to communicate since thelanguages were not too different, having told the strangers of their city, they wished to join the newly expanding tribe and pledged their allegiance, this gained the Lakaedeki amry an extra 30 warriors and 10 slingers. With a little persuasion by the chief of the village, their shaman found similarities between the Lakaedeki Gods and the spirits they themselves worshipped and while not everyone converted to Lakaedeki Poltheism, the foundation was there. The warriors continued along the coast a way before encountering a tribe seemingly as advanced as they were, so they sent a runner back with the news and awaited orders. Meanwhile, the remaining 70 warriors were sent up the river to expand, upon contact with a small tribe, a young hothead from the recruits, fired up with passion for war became berserk and attacked the village unprovoked, seeing this, the rest of the force had no choice but to attack as well and in the fight the village was destroyed, the population scattered into the wilderness, the young warrior was found later with his head split open, but no-one could bring themsleves to grieve for his loss. In total, 10 warriors of the Lakaedeki were lost, and all 20 of the tribes warriors were killed, the abandoned village was burned and the party made no further progress up the river.

Back in the city of Lakaedeki, the sons of poweful families were educated by the priesthood, this gave rise to several intelligent people in high positions in the government, the need for sanitation was seen, and a large project to bring water from the river into the town to wash the waste into the sea was begun, unfortunately, with the army being far away the workforce was unenthusiastic and the project wasn't completed although the royal palace now had running water. At the same time, small deposits of copper and tin were found, the wisemen managed to forge the copper into shape, the tin wasn't as strong as the copper when forged, but experiments mixing the metals suceeded in making a strong metal useful in warfare, after a dozen attempts using different mixtures it was found a 90% copper, 10% tin ratio was about right, but there were few trained to work in bronze as of yet.

The Mohadeen people had similar fortune in forming bronze, unfortunately, a few impurities in the bronze made it weaker than the Lakaedeki bronze although still stronger than other contemporary materials. Metalsmiths were highly sought after in this period, but few can work the bronze, the few that can were ordered to spend all their time on forging weapons and coinage that they had no time to train apprentices. Now, although the entire army is armed with bronze weapons, the bronze-workers are old and their knowledge is kept alive by only a few students. As a currency, the bronze coins improve the barter economy, but are used mostly by the rich, being hard to come by and having little practical use, nevertheless the economy begins to grow and the coins become used more and more. A large Mosque was set up to spread the teachings of the religion, with the army keeping the workforce in check and with the knowledge this was for the glorification of God, this mosque was quickly built and teaching began, this gave the people more knowledge as to the teachings of God, but little practical knowledge to be used in everyday life. Two expeditions to convert the nearby tribes met different results, a small tribe to the south was quickly converted, although this was more through being impressed by the bronze than through religious fervor, a second expedition along the river met with failure as the larger tribe met the imams with weapons of stone. The two groups are currently at an impasse.

The Taludrian peoples are warlike, and as such the focus was on increasing the army and preparing for war, 50 Ramip Warriors were trained, armed only with stone axes, they are nevertheless very fierce. A large store of food was needed and so the hunters began hunting not just to eat but also to store food, noticing how the food quickly became bad, the druids consulted and by digging a hole at the foot of an oak, filling it with snow and ice from the tundras and putting the food in, it seemed to keep for a while longer, workers were drafted to dig these large pits and keep them filled with snow and ice, but being underground and in the cool north, the snow remained for a long while. With less need for so many hunters, 100 of the hunters were trained to fight against people armed with similar weapons and to fight as a group, further expanding the army, out of these, the 10 best became Taludrian Scouts, trained warriors but also with the skills of trackers and the ability to move stealthily - silent and hidden. Theses scouts were sent to explore the area looking in particular for an animal to ride and one similar to the wolves of the Draip Tundra but less fierce, some horses were found and brought back to the city of Taludip Tark, but these animals were too weak to be ridden and the druids were unsure what to do with them. 4 volunteers set out on an expedition south to explore and convert, almost immediately they met a small tribe who quickly agreed to join the Taludrians, there were no warriors among them, and so the four hunters set out south again. They encountered no-one on their long trek until near the end of this period where they found two tribes obviously quite advanced, looking around they found that these tribes, the Ildarians and Riyanons were very similar in appearance to themselves and were constantly clashing at the border. The hunters were greeted with immense suspiscion and were not believed when they said they came from far north, each tribe thinking the other had sent them as spys. The druids began to promote monogamous relationships within the Taludrians and this meant that a stronge father-son bond could develop (you know who the father is) and also stronger bonds between couples, this led to a happier population and the city grew to encompass a larger population.

On the southern continent, the Valuan tribe also expanded their army to include a further 50 warriors and 50 slingers. 50 warriors marched north into the Armodos Foothills and made contact with a small tribe, they split into two groups and claimed the land to either side of the tribe and quietly observed them, they seemed to be distantly related to the Valuans but their language was different and they didn't worship in the true faith. A further 10 warriors explored eastwards and having crossed the Esperanza River and another river, they met a tribe of fishermen living by the lake, the warriors were too few in number to do anything other than quietly observe and saw that these fisherfolk knew more about catching fish than they themselves did, a message was at once dispatched to Madlonde telling of this. The remaining warriors and slingers maintained the peace and although this caused a slight resentment on the part of those pronounced guilty, the majority of the populace welcomed them as protectors.

In an attempt to prevent the stone dwellings leaking, stonemasons were gathered to pool their ideas, they decided to attempt to cut the stones squarer so as they fit better together, and while this was a success, there were still small gaps between the blocks. The roofs too, made from grasses woven together still leaked slightly. A lack of education and learning meant that little progress was accomplished, but at least with these squared off blocks the houses leaked less. In the springtime, as the snow and ice melt high in the mountains, the river floods annually and while this means that the land is more fertile - where there is soil - it is another problem for the people of the city. Construction of a large temple went ahead with more success and this was the first building completed with these cuboid stones, plans for proposed temples in the wilderness were abandoned as the priests didn't want to live away from 'civilization' but small shrines were set up along the more well-traveled routes to allow travellers to worship. Moderate sized cats were found hunting in the foothills and after a few clashes with warriors, a few were captured, they seemed very aggressive and resisted all attempts to train them, but it was noted that they bred with the smaller mice-hunters kept by the Valuan people.

The Toku army grew a little during this time, and their wisemen were able to develop a spear-thrower. A spear thrower is a stick that helps propel a spear with greater force. Spear throwers are one to three feet long with a handle at one end and a hook at the other that engages the butt end of the spear. The thrower is held behind the shoulder of the user, hook up, and the spear is placed along it so that the spear points forward and slightly upward. During the throw, the user keeps hold of the thrower which has a thong tied to its end to go around their wrist . The spear travels faster than if hand thrown because the extension of the throwing arm provides more leverage; the spear thrower’s end moves faster than the hand holding it. The spear thrower essentially increases the length of the arm of the person that is throwing the spear and therefore creates more power. This enables them to significantly increase the distance a spear is thrown and engage the enemy earlier. Black and white striped animals were found grazing to the north in the warmer regions of the continent and although some were caught early efforts to train them were unsuccessful, probably due to a lack of education among the people and a lack of guidance by the Sadi.

Without guidance from their rulers, life continued for the Kyrenicans although it was seen that the Republic became corrupt towards the end of this period.

OOC

3 NPC's have been discovered on the northern continent, there are more out there if you look. I go to update the front now. Circular cities are major towns (i.e. capitals atm) and square ones are little villages. The lighter colour on the map is where you expanded this turn. If you dont have 100% your religion its because the new people from new ribes didnt all convert, they'll convert over time.

 

[Espírito]

There we go...

 

[Global Nexus]

The word "Esperanza" is Spanish for "hope", and Nacimiento is Spanish for "birth". Just a note if you were interested...

Story:

Emperor Enrique Valdez sat on his "throne" [a crude construct of stone, in reality] listening to the messanger who had reported back from the opposite side of the Esperanza and [newly-discovered] Nacimiento Rivers. It was a very important detail that these people excelled at fishing, as this could mean that a revolutionary new form of food production could be attained! Relying not just on hunted food and mountain crops would almost assure that most people wouldn't go hungry.

Upon being asked what they would do with these people, he responded, "Their skills could prove useful, so let us remain peacable for now, regardless of their beliefs. Let us see if they will teach us their fishing skills! Whether they will or won't, let us see what our missionaries can do after that."

A general murmur of agreement amongst his head advisors echoed through the building. The next issue brought forward involved the northern tribes who were heretics and seemed to have some old, ancient, barely-existant relation to Valua. The expansion around these tribal lands had allowed good observation of these people, however. "Our religion states that war is a last resort in all circumstances, though it is more lax on whether the other side's religion is heretical. Let's see what missionaries can do to them for now -- if they reject it, then we can be certain what we will do."

Orders:

1) See what interbreeding between the captured medium-sized cats and the mice-hunter cats can cause. Depending on the results, dump the whole project [IE, if the half- and fourth-breeds are still wild and uncontrollable or -- worse -- infertile and worthless] or step it up a notch [if the half- and fourth-breeds are decent hunters or better mice-hunters of something]. IF it turns out to be a fruitless project, seek something more controllable to tame, like dogs.

2) The lack of education in the kingdom has certainly made the perfection of house-construction difficult, and though it has improved now, things can improve still more if the people were given a decent education. As such, begin mandatory teaching programs to the young of the higher classes. The mid- and lower-classes can have access to it as well if they pledge a certain length of time as a "free worker" -- a worker who is given no compensation -- to advisors of the monarch, the monarch's daughter, or the monarch himself. It isn't an obsene or unfair length of time required -- one month of work equals three months worth of education -- so there shouldn't be many problems [except maybe from the people who whine about any and everything].

3) Dealing with the people in the north will be very tricky, indeed! Expand around them using 40 Warriors so that Valuan influence will affect their borders heavily! Also, send missionaries into their territory in small numbers. If the locals retaliate [killing them, or trying to kill them and failing], then play this up to the people and display these people as heretical and uncivilized barbarian murderers who reject the Valuan [see: "right"] ways of life.

4) Send the best diplomats [or at least hagglers] to the lake fishers to the southeast in a completely friendly attempt to see if they'll teach the tiny fishing-class of Valuan society their techniques. After they agree and finish teaching [or IMMEDIATELY after if they decline], send numerous missionaries to convert them [the only thing that would change this is if they turn out to have a form of Starisanism as their religion, which is HIGHLY unlikely]. As said previously, if they kill/attempt to kill the missionaries, play them up as heretical, uncivilized barbararion murders who...blahblahblah, look above.

5) The Esperanza's yearly flooding can be used to Valuan advantage! All Valuans are to live away from the "flood-line" of the river [IE, the areas that flood the most often every year] so that there is little loss of life when it occurs. After the flooding receeds, the farmers can then farm everything they can out of the soil. Permanent dwellings in the most likely be flooded areas is not in the interest of anyone but the suicidal.

6) 20 Warriors are to expand northward, but away from the northern-people, not around them.

7) All remaining troops are to continue their "police duty" and the prosecution of thieves [who are given "forced work" for one to ten months, depending on what's stolen], murderers [who are to be put to death], and the worst of the worst, the rapist [Starisanism -- and standard Valuan culture -- states that women and girls are to be respected and honored, and as such anyone who rapes a girl or woman is given the worst punishment imaginable in Valua -- a slow, painful death]. The police troops are to be inspected every two months by the emperor himself to make sure they are not becoming corrupt and executing people for crimes they have not committed. Any soldier found doing such will be given the punishment for the crime they wrongly accused someone of doing! It is only fair to the people.

8) Stone is all well and good, but aren't there stronger materials out there? Make an effort to mine for any stronger material -- be it a better kind of stone, copper, or gosh knows what else. This is, of course, just a minor goal for now, as there is much else that is more important at the moment...

 

[Amenhotep7]

Yay! Things are actually going well for me! :tears of joy:

I'll post my orders later. I need to look over the situation better. And come up with some ideas for my UU. Especially since now I have bronze.

 

[Amenhotep7]

Story. This really delves into Lakaedek culture. Enjoy.

King Aegesualus arranged for a journey up the river Laekos. He wished to go to a shrine built on the mountain, Mount Aegos. Nobody knows how the shrine got there. It seems far more ancient than anything before it. Perhaps thousands of years old.

It contained an altar. He brought with him a great bull, to sacrifice to the gods. He had the High Priestess perform the purification ceremony, which would allow him to step forth without the Gods frowning upon his untidy, very mortal and earthly appearance.

The ceremony involved the chanting of the sacred words, and being blessed with anointed water. While this was happening, the priests and priestesses moved in and began to set up the proper tools and incenses.

When the Purification Ceremony was completed, he brought the bull in. It was sedated with much alcohol. The bull was raised up onto the altar, and he began the sacrificing.

The Shrine, or Temple as some said it was, had statues of kings lined up on each side, each statue in the same position, sitting, with the name inscribed at the foot. These were the great kings of the past, before the Great Darkness.

The Great Darkness was a period in this planet’s history in which all civilization vanished. Nobody knows why, but there are no records from that time period. All that can be found are a few documents, and some pottery pieces.

King Aegesaulus remembered one document. It was barely readable, but through careful reconstruction of the alphabet, they found enough similarities between the language on the document and their own language to translate most of it.

“The great wall moves ever closer to our current hideaway… the city has been…by…Many dead. [Our] food [is] running short… son has gone looking for food at… He has not returned for… days. It…colder as wall moves closer… Will need to… but [we] are hemmed in by raiders. Bent on taking me. They (the raiders) feel…king must be sacrificed to stop…[That] king is me… We cannot get out.”​

He snapped out of it, and began the ceremony. He began the prayer; “O Great and Noble Kings of the Ancient Past, Father of our Father’s Fathers, and their Fathers before them, and the great God Arekos, I come before thee to bring forth a worthy gift, to placate you and to show you our dedication to Our Past, Our Present, and Our Future.”

With that, he cut the bull, and performed the ceremony. Taking out various organs, inserting amulets and spices here and there. Then it was put into a coffin. He let it float down the river, after the High Priestess gave her final blessings. If all the ceremonies were performed correctly, then no great evil shall fall upon the Lakaedek Kingdom for three years, before he would need to go back again.

King Aegesaulus meditated for a while, then he went back down river. He would rally some of the men, tell them to wait for new bronze weapons, and then go back to the palace, to rally the workforce to complete the sanitation system. He came up with some ideas for sanitation, but that is another story.

 

[Global Nexus]

You know, I think I know why Xen hasn't posted -- he lives in Florida. And Florida got hit hard by Hurricane Charley...

 

[das]

OOC: The thing that sucks (depending on your point of view, ofcourse) about our religion is that fishing is not appreciated to say the least, and the same goes for bird hunting. Read below.

Us? Destroy somebody's governing system? *quickly writes it down into his "to do" list* Man, this thread is biased against Taludrians...

My advice - only the capitals should have white counters. Normal cities should be all-black.

IC:

"And though the ice and snow were banished to the faraway lands, and great civilizations of the Nekith rose, one of the gods, Eridrung, God of Winter, still resented the humans. And so he decided to rebel against Andrung, but the other gods disagreed, and told everything to Andrung. But he did not act, as destruction was beyond him. And so Eridrung decided to rise to the same level as Andrung, and so he gathered his strength from the Whiteness that still covered the skies. But he was beyond creation now. He became the Cold Destructor. But he still feared the remaining gods, and so he decided to destroy the Nekith not by himself, but by allying with the animals and the trees. And many allies he got indeed, for he promised sentience to the animals and mobility to the trees. But of the trees, the wise oaks, the Caith, resisted this lure, and of the animals, the noble White Tigers did the same. And though the oaks had not followers, the White Tigers' example was soon followed by many beasts that today are not what they were then. And so, those formed the force that resisted Eridrung. The oaks informed the gods and Andrung, and Andrung removed the gifts of Eridrung given to trees and animals. And so the trees were stopped in their tracks, and the animal armies fell apart as beast fought beast. And Andrung promised his own gifts to the oaks and the tigers, but they refused, even though both were now few. But the lesser beasts feared that they would be extinct, and so Andrung changed some of them into fish, and some into birds, so that they may settle the seas and skies and live in peace. And since those days, the oaks, the white tigers, the birds and the fish are allies of mankind."
- Stories of the Druid Circle (Taludrian - Fesoth ip Andraip Ollach)

Book of the Chieftains of Taludria
Pesra Talyrith opp Taludria

Story the Second, of The Four Scouts

"And in 5040 After the Creation of our world, and its beasts, and its trees and its gods, and the men and women of the Nekith by Andrung the Insane Creator, from the city of Taludip Tark the four scouts rode. They were mighty and cunning Taludrian hunters and names their were Wai Murip, Torai Enep Kami, Zeri Caip and Drai Enep Erith.

At first, they found the lands of Walitrians, to the south from whom the Walip Woodlands begun. The Walitrians were much impressed and joined Taludria, and their village Caip Tark - the City of Oaks - became the second city in lands of the Taludrians.

And for ten years they travelled through steppes and plains, lands cold and warm, and fed only on what they could catch, but they could catch many foolish bty.

So they endured, they found new lands, and came across Ildarians and Riyanons, who came from the distant north as well. But they were decadent, their lands flooded in war, and they renounced Andrung and his children the gods. They lived in oak cities, the heathens they were, and produced strong beer, and loathed each other more then Eridrung mankind.

And so the hunters, disgusted by them, travelled back north, to tell this tale."

Orders:
- Have the heroic scouts/explorers, if they are still alive, travel west this time. The same as before.
- Work on better food storage.
- Try to cultivate the more endurable crops.
- Keep the horses with us for now. Maybe try to breed the strongest of them, to get even stronger horses?
- Switch to Clan System (with druid influence). All the people are divided into clans, and the heads of the clans can vote for a new Opri (the ruler). The heads of the clans also form a council which, along with the druids, will advise the Opri. As for the ruler, just change the title for now. Heads of the clans judge the members of their clans in the problems within the clan, while the Opri judges the problems between different clans and their members. Each clan must provide a certain amount of men for the army (20 men per clan for now).
- Charge the druids with education of the brightest children in all the clans. Don't push them if they refuse.
- Meanwhile, we will seek out the most agressive children in the large families, and (unless their parents refuse, but don't forget to reason with them that this would be the most glorious and the best life they could give to their children) train them in the Ways of Rami.
- Our warriors are to expand our territory in all directions. If any other tribes are encountered, ask them to join Taludria as a clan or as several clans, equal to all the other clans.

 

[Tyrion]

Orders: Send priests out to 'educate' the local villagers in land improvement and the ways of the world and evil heretics. After my villagers are smarter use them too improve mining and farming. Use men to expand 'around local tribes' send priests to preach to the tribes and try to convert them. Offer enscentives if they join my empire.

 

[Tyrion]

Passage from the prophecy of Trea : And so the bearers of the words of truth will spread across the world and bring untothe heathens education and thought such things as the heathens have not known untill that moment. And as such many will turn to the true faith and those that do not will be dealt with by the locals. In other areas the people will become educated in the ways of the world and the shape of the land will bend to their will. The shape of offerings will change but its validity will not.

Emperor Tzee had been confronted with probaly the most difficult decision of his reign.

"My lord the needs for human sacrifice are far above that of animal sacrifice one man accounts for hundreds of sheep. It is ridiculous to suggest that we could even please the gods by killing shp for them," The high priest stated, though e was high priest he had little support and that is why the problem had arisen in the first place.

"My lord the gods dont have time to worry about what we give them in the form of sacrifice they are to busy dealing with heretics and forces which strive to our destruction. If we continue to sacrifice peasents dissent will grow until a rebellion is started. We must move towards the sacrifice of animals to keep our kingdom intact," A lower priest responded, he was a likely candidate for the new high priest when the time came.

"My good priests both of you have good points towards your argument. On one side we cant kill animals because our economy will suffer. On the other side if we kill our own people dissent will come to a boiling pont and their will be a revolution. So i have come to a decision. Those tobe sacrificed will still be people however we will stop randomly picking candidates every year instead war prisoners and people who have commited atrocius crimes will be given this punishment as the final form of justice."

And so a descesion was made and the priests went out to make it so. Crime went down almost instantly so the sacrificing was still a one of yearly event.

- Instigate sacrificing scheme as mentioned in this story.

 

[Espírito]

OOC: I tried not putting white outline around the smaller vilages but with the dark blue/reds it was hard to see.

OK, I'll keep Xen alive for a while then in case that is right about Charlie.

I'll post the next update tomorrow night if I get all the orders in, if not I'll post Thursday night latest. Like the bg you're all providing.

 

[erez87]

arrg I can't keep this up... Sorry I must leave :\ I might rejoin in some time I just can't hold in anymore NES's and this is the least itneresting :-\

 

[Amenhotep7]

Orders:

-Equip all my warriors (except the slingers) with bronze weapons, and bronze-plated shields

-Create UU: Lakaedek Hoplite - Pulled from families at random, they are trained from age 10 to age 20 to be the perfect warrior. They live in barracks for those 10 years, and every day is a lesson in warfare tactics and strategy, and fighting. However, they do learn other skills to the side. Having grown up in such an environment, they are the perfect warriors, patriotic, obedient, and powerful, armed with a long spear (similar to that of a Phalangite), a short spear tied to the back for regular fighting, and a sword for melee combat. They have a helmet with a crest, a cuirass of either bronze or leather, a shield of 2 inches of oak plated with bronze, and a red cape. The fact that boys can be pulled at random from families is legitimate religiously, so there is little to no resentment. They excel most any kind of troops, infantry or cavalry.

-Grow UU x2

-Send diplomats to the other two tribes. Once again, show them that we are of the same blood and culture. Show the religious similarities. And if they are still not enticed, give them beautiful bronzeware gifts.

TO ENSURE that there will be no bloodthirst or anything provoking unnecessary war, the diplomats shall go with nothing more than a knife, just in case, and tell them that via decree of the Great King Aegesaulus, they are under NO CIRCUMSTANCES to attack them.

-If they (the barbs) still do not join, send my all the UUs and commence an assault. Basically, try to gain a high ground, and just use your Phalanx formation to mow them down. They probably won't get past the wall of spears. Keep the formation spread out so that it's more difficult for them to outflank us, yet keep it compact so that they can’t just bust right through. Ideally, the battle shall take place in a valley, making it impossible for them to outflank me. And if they pop up behind or to the side somehow, just drop the long spear, and pull out the sword ot short spear. Fortify my nearest borders with these rebellious tribes. (If you can tell me how many UUs I can get by increasing x2, I can give you how many ranks deep and how many men wide I want it.)

-Begin experiments in the domestication of horses.

-Send back 20 Warriors, 10 from the southwest, 10 from the north, outfitted with new bronze weapons, to act as motivators for the workforce working on the sanitation in Lakaedeki.

-Continue expanding southwest with 30 more warriors. Set up small outposts.

-Same as above, except north, and only after my conquest or peaceful annexation of the barbarian tribes.

Diplo to NPC Kingdom West of me:

Hail, my brethren! It is wonderful to see another civilized peoples! We would love to extend an olive branch, and perhaps set up a royal marriage between one of my sons, and one of your daughters, to unify our kingdoms! What say you, good leader of your peoples?

Note: Mount Aegos is that big elevation to the north of me. That's kinda the only mountain chain around. Just pick the highest mountain in the chain and call it Mount Aegos.

 

[Insane_Panda]

"Ibrahim was approached by the great angel, during his wanderings, and was taken to the highest mountain top of mount Vajra, where he was shown the path to true enlightenment, The 11 fold path. That of the insect, the fish, the lizard, the snake, the dog, the cat, the horse, the tiger, the monkey, the human, and then that of the Vajra, true enlightenment..."
- The Vajra Scriptures 12:40

" Old Man: Monkey, why have I not reached heaven, the abode of the great one?
Monkey: A man may begin his journey as an infant, and then end it as an old man, and he way continue in that cycle for a thousand years, never to reach the abode of heaven. Only when he finds it in himself to see the nature of the great one in all things, will he acheive true enlightenment and reach the eternal greatness at the top of the spirit mountain.. "
- The Vajra Scriptures 35:12​

The Great angel, Vajradhatu, at the tops of Mount Vajra​

The great mountain could be seen from the city of Mohammaden, through hundreds of miles of sky, in which Ibrahim had seen the 11 fold path, written in the great Vajra scriptures, one of the more ancient texts of the prophet himself. It described the cycle of the reincarnation and heaven. This mountain, was a central point of Ibrahim's faith. The original texts were guarded in the Great Mosque, under the protection of the cult of vajra, the oldest cult, dating back to Ibrahim himself.

It was said, that the St. Ashoka, one of Ibrahim's first followers, and the founder of the cult of Vajra, climbed the mountain, thousands of feet in the air. He brought with him a great stallion* to guide him up along the treacherous mountain, although he found out that such a stallion could not travel as high as he would have liked. So, he had no other choice than to walk. He walked and climbed, for days on end, until he reached the peak of the spirit mountain himself. Exhausted, he collapsed on the freezing snow and layed there, waiting to meet the great angel Vajrahadtu. Hours he waited, and no one came, days he waited, and no one came, freezing and starving, yet he would not pass..

"Where are you, Oh great angel?!" he cried and cried, exhausted from his plight. He began to think to himself that there was no angel, and that his disciples of vajra were all lied to, and that all would perish with no faith, until, from the chasms of the earth, a great voice came..

"Do not, in your mind, doubt the existence of the great one, for he is everywhere, in the earth, in the sky, and in you. Even if you cannot see or hear him, he is there. He is waiting for you, oh great Ashoka, it is your time to join him..."

"But my work is not done! I must spread the faith of Ibrahim to all! This is to early..."

"Your work is done, Your great steed has been blessed with speech, and will tell them the great story of Ashoka, you will be made a saint, and people will look up to your name for thousands of years, now come, Ashoka, it is time you relaxed.."

and with that, a brilliant angel emerged out of the light, and carried ashoka into heaven, the abode of the great one himself, to enjoy the eternal splendors of our lord..

His followers never saw him again, but his horse returned, telling them what had happened through speech! After the horse had delivered its message, it collapsed, joining its master in the abode of Heaven..

An Imir desciphered the great event, and witnessed the great light from the mountain, He and the other Imirs declared Ashoka a saint, a prophet of the prophet. He would be blessed forever by the Mohadeen peoples..

~ ~ ~ ~​

Orders:

*Mt. Vajra is the highest mountain near me, to the east*

1) The Mohadeen peoples are in need of new sanitation, and more water for farmland, build irrigation ditches along the river to supplement the needs of the inland farmers. Build a small irigation canal to the city of Jadipuur

2) New UU: Riders of Vajradhatu (Vajra Cavalry): Light skirmishers, these horsemen are devout followers of the cult of Vajra, they excell and raiding and skirmishing. Armed with bronze Javelins and arrows, they excell at both long range and quick, short, charges. excellent against slow moving, large, heavily armored, groups of men. These horsemen are taught to ride before they learn to walk, and their patron saints are Ashoka and his steed. They are the elite of the army, extremely maneuverable and extremely fast and deadly..

Rider of Vajradhatu​

Note: The Tactics of these skirmishers are similar to that of the 'Parthian Shot' the cavalry rushes at an enemy formation and launches its hail of arrows and javelins. After shooting its arrow, the cavalry retreat and come forward in a circular motion, reloading every time they retreat. This puts them out of reach from heavy infantry and is disastrous against any slow moving, heavily armored, formation.

3) Improve husbandry and horse breeding effeciency throughout the kingdom, and increase the Riders amount by twice.

4) Send Imams, along with a contingent of these riders, to either convert peacefully, or destroy these tribesmen, Bring more jewels and bronze to show off.

5) Begin teaching bronze metallurgy all around the kingdom, blacksmiths are too teach to their apprentices.

6) Try to rework our bronze in order to find any sort of impurities, improve upon these impurities once you find out how to purify the bronze.

7) Establish a learning Mosque in the new city of Jadipuur. Imams will teach the word of Ibrahim and the sciences of reading and arithmatic.

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* Horses have been domesticated by the Mohadeen since the time of Ibrahim, they have used these animals for many, many purposes, and are good breeders.

 

[Amenhotep7]

@Insane_Panda

I know you're just trying to counter my UU. Well it won't work. Arrows don't pierce metal shields. And horses can't go through a phalanx formation, unless you wanna offer us horse shish-kabobs.

And I can always back up my flanks with my OWN horse archers.