Any interest in a turn based strategy style forum game?

A long time ago, there was a small community over on the Apolyton forums that ran a series of role-playing games not unlike what we do here. The difference, though, is that in those games the players took the position not of heroes but of the leaders of countries. Personal intrigue and royal court drama still played a reasonably large part in the game (I recall having a general of one of my forces stage a coup!) but players also conduct diplomacy amongst each other and various NPC nations and tribes, organize their military forces and order those forces to attack or defend against the armies of other nations and spend the national treasury on various civil projects or on additional military forces. The goal is to take the best elements of turn-based strategy games like Civilization or the Total War series and combine them with the free-form style of play of table-top roleplaying games, so that players aren't limited by the foresight of the programmers. For instance, when attacked by a player with a wildly superior military force, I was able to order my armies to act more as guerrilla forces until my allies arrived to bail me out.

In a typical turn, a player might try to form a diplomatic alliance among neighbors against a common enemy, order an army to begin an offensive into that enemy's lands and describe the sort of tactics that the army will use, spend a portion of the national treasury to train additional troops and another portion on civil projects like the expansion of a mine and the construction of a road, found a new city to control a resource, trade route, or other strategic location, switch out generals between armies to try find the right mix of different military skills and loyalty, try to quell a rebellious province by a combination of a change in policy and a military crackdown, and try to broker a trade deal with another major power to bring more strategic resources like iron, copper, or horses. Each player represents a major power, and players may form alliances or make war against one another at will; there are no restrictions encouraging or discouraging cooperation or aggression between players.

On Apolyton, the settings of these games ranged from historical and present-day scenarios to fantasy and science fiction settings, from warring planets in a solar system to warring tribes of gnomes in a suburban backyard. The most successful games, though, were usually historical in setting (or maybe I remember it that way because I liked those more!) so that's what I'd like to start here. I've worked up a game set a few years after Alexander the Great's death. Historically the following century is very exciting; Alexander's generals vie for control of his empire and end up splintering it into a few large kingdoms that last until they're finally overrun by the Romans. As the Diadochi (Greek for "successors", Alexander's heirs and generals) battle for control of the Eastern Mediterranean and the Near East, an upstart Rome wars against and finally destroys Carthage in the Punic Wars after Pyrrhus of Epirus rampages through Italy, coining the term "Pyrrhic Victory" on the way. Though I'm trying to set up the scenario historically (with minor changes for game balance), players are absolutely not bound by history; an alliance between the Roman and Carthaginian republics against the Greek kingdoms in the East, for example, would be perfectly acceptable. I'll try to be true to history as I set this up, but after the game starts, everyone (including myself, as the moderator) is welcome to venture into alternate history.

Does this sound good to anyone? I've got one friend who used to play over on Apolyton who's already spoken for Carthage, and one more who I'll save a slot for. I'd like to get six players in total, representing Carthage, Rome, the Ptolomy family in Egypt, the Selucid family in Mesopotamia and Persia, the Antigonid family in Asia Minor and Syria, and the kingdom of Lysimachus in Thrace. For the moment, I don't want to expand the game any larger than six players, though I might eventually, especially if large factions emerge who would benefit from player control.

I'll post a map shortly; I've got most of the map worked out and I'll be working up data on each of the nations shortly. (Incidentally, how do you post a picture in a thread the way What Exit? does in the Middle Earth game?) Is anyone interested? The Wikipedia article on the period is here, if anyone wants to read a little about it. I hope I'll be able to start this by Monday, barring any major hiccups.

This sounds like a lot of fun. I'd be in for the Selucid family.

To post an image put [ img ] image URL [ /url ] without the spaces.

OK. I don't want to officially parcel out factions until everyone's in and everyone can see the map and the like, but you can have first pick.

Thanks for the tip! Does it matter what format it's posted in?

I don't think so, so long as it's recognized as an image format. I've posted gifs, jpegs, bitmaps and .PNG.

Take me as an alternate if you have openings.

As to posting images: You need to upload the picture to some photo service. I use Photobucket (It's free and easy)

Then you copy the link to the image and put it between these tags: [ img ] [ /img ] without the spaces.

Please note the closing tag is /img and not /url

would anyone be interested in joining the MellowPhant Clan (example: PixieBob[MF] and playing "World of Tanks"? It's free and really cool. I'm playing it right now and so is my buddy here. We can get by with that since he runs the place. You don't need a really powerful computer or a particularly fast line to play.

Oooh. Classics-gasm.

I'm definitely interested. The Ptolomies would be my first choice. Carthage as a back-up.

Quote:

---

Originally posted by PixieBob

would anyone be interested in joining the MellowPhant Clan (example: PixieBob[MF] and playing "World of Tanks"? It's free and really cool. I'm playing it right now and so is my buddy here. We can get by with that since he runs the place. You don't need a really powerful computer or a particularly fast line to play.

---

Please start another thread on this. I suspect you'll have some interest, but it is buried in here.

I will now fuss around and work out img code. I hope I'll be able to edit this and make it all look neat.

EDIT: Hmm. It's compressed and small, even on Photobucket. Still working.

EDIT: It appears that Photobucket doesn't display files greater than 1024 pixels in width, and this file is about triple that, so it's been compressed. Still working.

[img]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y30...iTeaserMap.png[/img]

Still working. Flickr is no better. Using the below link takes you to my Google documents page, where you can download it or open it. Opening it with your browser (at least, it works with Firefox) simply pops it up in another tab, this time at full size. Still fussing with it.

https://docs.google.com/leaf?id=0B9g...thkey=CKHn3qoM

http://img268.imageshack.us/i/diadochiteasermap.png/

http://img577.imageshack.us/img577/4...iteasermap.png

Aha! Imageshack will accept pictures without resizing and over 1 mb. Here's hoping this doesn't break the forum ;)

EDIT: Yay! Some poorly-coded fora will post giant pictures directly on the page and stretch every post, forcing everyone to scroll right and left to read every post, which gets old fast. This is pretty good.

EDIT: OK, the imageshack link is pretty good, and in the end, has only compressed the image slightly (I don't know exactly why.) It looks good in-forum, and the google documents link is still the only way to get it really full-size. Is anyone on dial-up? I realize it's a large image, so if there's a need for a compressed one, I'll get that too.

I'm terrible at Diplomacy type games so I will pass, but if you need a hand setting up things on the board, let me know.

Thanks!

I am so down for this. Carthage checking in.

OK. The friend I was hold a slot for will be taking Rome. Should be a good time.

OK, here's the map at the start of the game, 310 BCE.

https://docs.google.com/leaf?id=0B9g...thkey=CLzS64wJ

http://img845.imageshack.us/img845/7...ermap310bc.png

Nation stats and rules to follow. At this point I think that I have all the bugs worked out and that the rules are understandable. Please let me know if anything needs to be clarified. I have a couple personal things going on this weekend; I'll check in if I can. We'll start the game on Tuesday if possible.

What Exit?, do you want to play? There's certainly room. Both Lysimachus's kingdom and Antigonus's kingdom are unclaimed.

Seleucus's whirlwind conquest of Babylon and Persia in 311 was second in speed only to Alexander's toppling of the Persian Empire twenty years earlier. The fact that Seleucus conquered the Eastern provinces of the former Persian Empire from his former compatriot Antigonus puts a somewhat less heroic spin on the affair, however, and Seleucus has not gone quite as far as Alexander either; Bactria is out of his grasp (though still Greek, and independent) and Chandragupta Maurya, the young Indian prince and military prodigy has already conquered the Greek provinces on the west bank of the Indus River. Babylon and Persia have only been under Greek control for about twenty years, and Seleucus' military reflects this; he has a few phalanxes under his command, but more common are native infantry and auxiliaries, most notably a few units still equipped and trained in the Persian style. Seluecus has limited access to Greek-trained cavalry but can recruit from the nomadic tribes, which results in cavaly that are lighter and more mobile than their Greek counterparts, if a little wilder and less reliable in battle. Seleucus' archers are neither better nor worse than average, but he does have a small corps of elephants-- though they're not native to his kingdom, Chandragupta is sometimes open to trading trained war elephants.

Ptolemy has deftly held Egypt against those who would have taken it from him since Alexander's death, most notably defeating Perdiccas, who claimed the whole of Alexander's empire after the great general's death, on the very banks of the Nile. Since then, however, Ptolemy expanded only briefly into Syria before being quickly forced out by Antigonus and lost control of Cyprus to Antigonus entirely. Ptolemy still holds Jerusalem (a particularly rebellious province), though, which might serve as a springboard into the Levant and the valuable former Phoenician trading cities Tyre, Sidon, and Byblos. Though Egypt is a wealthy province, with rich mines and productive farmland, Ptolemy is held back by the shortage of Greeks from which to recruit the phalanx that has become critical in the Hellenistic world. Ptolemy is forced to rely on Egyptian light infantry and auxiliaries who are numerous and inexpensive but not a match for Greeks in phalanx formation; at least, not in a head-on battle. Ptolemy can, however, draw on the Egyptians' rich tradition of archery, which surpasses that of Greece or Macedonia in both range and power of shot, and he can, at least, recruit heavy cavalry of comparable quality to the rest of the Greek kings. Egypt has a long tradition of chariot warfare, though Alexander's phalanxes demonstrated the futility of chariots against massed pikes, and chariots are considered obsolete by most military thinkers. Ptolemy's chariots are a remnant of the former Egyptian military, though they might still have value against lightly-armored troops who don't yet know how to defeat them. Ptolemy's saving grace may be his war elephants; though his North African elephants are smaller than those from India, many of his opponents cannot recruit elephants at all.

Antigonus "Monopthalmus" ("One-Eye") has taken the lion's share of Alexander's empire; everything from the Indus River in the east to the Greek cities of Asia Minor. But Seleucus' conquest of the Eastern third of Antigonus' empire is a clear threat, and Ptolemy's incursion into Syria, though repulsed, is unnerving, to say the least. The capture of Cyprus is the only bright note in an otherwise dim scene. But all is not lost; Antigonus has a large Greek population to draw from, and an extremely valuable set of territories, including the Phoencian trading cities on the coast. Overconfidence on the part of his enemies might lead to their ruin, especially with Antigonus' son Demetrius, already a capable general, leading his armies. Antigonus' phalanxes form the core of his army, though his peltasts deserve special mention as an elite force capable of ambushes and exploiting the gaps in their enemies' ranks that the phalanxes open up. Non-Greek light infantry, auxiliaries, and archers fill out the ranks of his army, though they are no more capable than the light troops of other nations. Antigonus' heavy cavalry are well-trained shock troops, often supported by light cavalry from the plains tribes of Anatolia.

Though Lysimachus holds one of the smaller portions of Alexander's empire, it is by no means a weak one; Lysimachus holds Thrace and a portion of Macedonia, which gives him the ability to recruit an army very similar to that of Alexander. Macedonian Phalanxes and the best heavy cavalry since Alexander's Hetairoi make Lysimachus a major threat, as do Lsyimachus' hypaspists, elite hoplites who do not fight in a phalanx, but rather in a loose formation so that they can exploit broken enemy formations. Lysimachus' light infantry and auxiliaries are comparable to other nations' light troops, but Lysimachus' Tarantine cavalry are the only Greek troops who fight from the saddle with bows and arrows, making them almost as mobile and much better disciplined than the missile cavalry of the nomads to the north.

Rome is an empire ascendant; with the recent subjugation of Naples, more than one hundred miles to the south, Rome has proved itself as a notable regional power. Far from the defeated populace that one might expect of a city burned to the ground by Gauls from the north almost within living memory, Rome is cocky and powerful, successfully holding on to its Etruscan territories after the Gallic invasion. The Gauls in the Po River Valley aren't attacking, at least not right now, but they will have be dealt with if Rome is to expand north, and strong Greek city-states like Tarentum, Syracuse, and Epirus pose a real threat to the south. Carthage has, until now, been happy to trade with Rome, but their Corsican and Sardinian possessions would provide a perfect staging point for an invasion of Rome, a fact not lost on Rome's Senate. Partly in response to this, Consul Appius Claudius has order a road built from Naples to Rome so that Rome's legions can easily defend any part of the empire. Rome's trademark legions, elite troops who fight in a lighter, more mobile formation than Greek phalanxes, will have to fight well to protect Roman interests in the region. Rome's light infantry, archers, and light auxiliaries, drawn from the lowest classes, are a little better equipped than other nations'; though Rome's cavalry is well armored it has a poor reputation. Still, Roman armies have a reputation for tenacity and innovation. They'll need it to succeed.

Carthage is in a unique position: the Phoenician cities in the Eastern Mediterranean that founded Carthage have been assimilated into the larger Greek world, and seem unlikely to assert their independence anytime soon. On the one hand, that makes Carthage by far the largest and most powerful Phoenician culture remaining in the world, giving Carthage additional clout. On the other hand, Carthage has lost its lucrative dye trade, now that the Greeks can produce their own Tyrian Purple for royal garments. Carthage will need to develop other lines of income to retain their position as the merchants to the Mediterranean. Iberia seems a likely candidate; great mineral wealth appears to be present in the interior. Punic armies have a reputation for consisting mostly of mercanaries; while it's true that ethnic Phoenicians make up a small fraction of their militaries, most of their soldiers are recruited from within Punic-dominated areas. Their Iberian light infantry are lightly armored but very skilled swordsmen, and their slingers from the Balaeric islands have a reputation as deadly light skirmishers. Iberian cavalry forces aren't quite as heavily armored as the heavy cavalry of the Greek world, but they're capable fighters nonetheless, and Numidian light cavalry, possibly the only true mercanaries in Punic armies, are among the best in the world, especially when fighting in their native deserts. Phoenician heavy infantry, the only ethnic Phoenicians in the army apart from officers, are equipped and fight as Greek phalanxes, though without quite the same reputation. Finally, no Punic army is really complete without their trademark elephant corps, the ultimate in shock troops.

How does this work? What's the basic mechanic?

You're playing as the leader of your faction. This is a turn based game, not unlike Civlization or the Total War series of games. You set out your orders, and then I, as the moderator, determine how successful you are. To keep this from dragging, all players set out their orders, then I determine how successful everyone's orders are. In essence, since all turns start at the same time, it's always your turn, and when everyone's done, I'll end the turn, figure out what happened, and then let you all know how it turned out, at which point the next turn starts. For the time being, we'll figure that five years pass between turns.

Wait-- am I playing a character or a nation?

You, the player, are the head-of-state of your respective faction. For the Greek kingdoms squabbling over the remains of Alexander's kingdom, this is fairly simple: as an absolute monarch, you have total control over the placement of generals, the spending of government money, the diplomacy of your nation, and basically every other choice that a king could make. It is possible that your generals or other family members can disobey your orders: this is treason, and should be dealt with as such. In Rome, there is no single head of state; the Senate, consisting of the leading citizens of Rome, elects two Consuls every year to rule the state. You directly control the leading members of the Fabii, the Claudii, and the Aemilii families: currently Appius Claudius, Quintus Fabius, and M. Aemilius Papus. Through careful control of the Senate, you should be able to hold the Consulates yourselves or give them to your family members. Be careful-- other powerful families may try to gain control themselves! In your orders, include who you'd like to transfer power to-- I've listed some family members who will be more or less under your thumb, and you can try to bring other characters from other families into your circle of influence. Carthage is somewhere between the two; the Tribunal will elect a king, who will hold absolute power until the Tribunal arbitrarily decides to replace him. Currently, you represent King Hamilcar Magnus; your goal is to control your own succession, be it within your own family, which has been in decline for the last century, or into another rising family (possibly the Barcids). Storytelling and creativity is rewarded here; it is a role-playing game, after all.

So what do I do as the leader of this country?

Your powers as the head of state fall into two basic categories: funded and unfunded actions. Unfunded actions include appointing generals, directing your family members to oversee armies, navies, or civil projects, diplomacy and trade deals, declaring war and ordering your armies and navies around, and anything else you can do without spending money. These actions are free and so don't require anything other than your say-so. You can take as many as you like per turn. Funded actions include raising armies, civil projects, initiating trade deals that involve cash, bribes, founding cities, and basically anything else that you would like to spend money on. Under each nation's stats, there's three relevent numbers: Total Income, Treasury, and Available Cash. Total Income represents your yearly income from taxes, trade, coinage minted, and other regular sources, less any regular expenses like unit upkeep and trade deals. Treasury represents either past money not spent or one-time-only bonuses, often from looting cities. Available Cash represents the total of the two, and is the maximum you can spend without borrowing money. If you want to borrow money, you'll need to find someone to loan it to you through diplomacy. All cash in this game is in the same unit: the talent, a measure of precious metal. One talent is what a single rich merchant might make in a year; investments of multiple talents are the province of governments only. Prices for military units are laid out below; otherwise, founding a new city might cost anywhere between 25 and 75 talents, the Appian Way recently completed in Rome was probably a 100 to 150 talent investment over several turns. You can always spend more or less, and the success of your projects will reflect your spending.

How do these resources work?

There are two kinds of resources: strategic and trade resources. Both types of resources can be traded to other nations for any deal you can work out diplomatically. Some military units require particular resources to train; for instance, have horses available is important to training cavalry units. Strategic resources are used to train new military units more cheaply. If you have the requisite strategic resources available, military units are trained at normal prices. If not, they cost half again as much. (Military training explained below.) Each resource that you control allows you to train three military units that require that resource each turn. For instance, the Antigonids start out controlling two areas in Anatolia that produce horses, so they may train as many as six units of cavalry each turn.
Trade resources improve your nations' economy. Each instance of a resource that you control improves your economy, though the principle of diminishing returns applies: the first instance of a resource that you control increases your tax base by 10%. The idea here is that the possession of valuable trade goods increases the wealth of your citizens, and this increases your tax revenue. (This is not reflected in the stat "Tax Base", so that you can figure out what a resource is really worth to you easily. Don't worry, it is reflect in the Total Income stat.) The second instance of a resource increases your tax base by an additional 5%. The third instance increases it by 3%, and so on. Therefore, it's to your advantage to try to have many different resources available, rather than very large quantities of a single resource.
You can trade these resources with any other nation that you have either a land border with or a direct sea lane to. Simply make a diplomatic agreement, include a note about it in your turn's orders so that I don't forget when I calculate everything at the end of the turn, and I'll figure out the rest. Some resources are simply not available in some locations, so a player can make a lot of money by, for instance, purchasing more Chinese silks than that player can use, then reselling those silks to other nations who do not have access to them

How does diplomacy work?

Simply post in the thread what you want to say and who you want to say it to. It's helpful to do this "in character", so that it's clear what everyone's agreeing to. For instance, a player might post:

King Ptolemy I of Egypt to the King of Axum:
Greetings! Trade between our nations has already begun to enrich us both, and I suggest that we increase it. I'd like to offer you seven talents to increase your shipments of incense by one caravan each year. Is that acceptable?

And I, taking the place of the King of Axum, might respond:

King Eon of Axum:
Certainly! That sounds perfectly acceptable. I'll order my ministers to initiate the shipments immediately.

You can negotiate absolutely anything-- trade deals, military alliances, extraction of tribute, military service in lieu of cash, or anything else you can think of.

How do armies and navies work?

Armies and navies are listed in your statistics, and also appear on the game map. Upkeep from your armies is automatically deducted. Simply order your armies to attack or defend something in your regular orders, and they'll do so. If you want to recruit more troops, simply include it in your orders. If you want to train additional units, the costs of doing so is below. Units that require strategic resources to train are noted, and training with insufficient strategic resources costs 50% more. Per-turn upkeep is half the base recruitment cost (so it does not cost extra upkeep even if you do not have the strategic resources to train units at base price).

The Seleucids may train light infantry (2), phalanxes (copper) (6), Persian infantry (iron) (6), auxiliary skirmishers (2), light cavalry (horses) (4), missile cavalry (horses) (4), and archers (2).

The Ptolemies may train light infantry (2), phalanxes (copper) (8), auxiliary skirmishers (2), archers (2), heavy cavalry (horses) (8), chariots (horses) (6), and elephants (12).

The Antigonids may train light infantry (2), phalanxes (copper) (6), peltasts (iron) (6), heavy cavalry (horses) (8), archers (2), auxiliary skirmishers (2), and light cavalry (4).

Lysimachus may train light infantry (2), phalanxes (copper) (4), hypaspists (iron) (6), Tarantine Cavalry (horses) (4), archers (2), heavy cavalry (horses) (8), and auxiliary skirmishers (2).

Rome may train light infantry (2), legions (iron) (6), heavy cavalry (horses) (8), light auxiliaries (2), and archers (2).

Carthage may train Iberian light infantry (2), Balaeric slingers (2), Iberian Cavalry (horses) (6), Heavy Phoenician Infantry (copper) (6), Numidian light cavalry (horses) (4), and elephants (12)

All nations may construct light triremes (2) and heavy triremes (4).

The Selucid Empire-- Played by Peeta Mellark
King Seleucus I "Nicator", age 48
Heir Apparent: Eldest Son, Antiochus, age 12
Other Family: Wife, Apama (age 34), younger son Achaeus (age 8), daughters Apama and Laodice (10 and 5)
Tax Base: 140
Total Income: 209
Total Expenses: 140
Net Income: 69
Treasury: 15
Total Available Cash: 84
Strategic Resources: 2 Iron (Local)
Trade Resources: 2 Spices (Local), 2 Silks (India), 2 Grain (Local), 3 Silver (Local)
Standing Trade Deals: 2 Silks from India for 15 talents

Armies: First Army, Near Archosia: 5 Light Infantry, 3 Phalanx, 2 Persian Infantry, 3Auxiliary Skirmishers, 3 Light Cavalry, 4 Archers, 3 Missile Cavalry (Total Upkeep 33)
Second Army, Near Aspardana: 4 Light Infantry, 3 Persian Infantry, 2 Auxiliary Skirmishers, 4 Light Cavalry, 3 Archers, 1 Missile Cavalry (Total Upkeep 26)
Third Army, Antigonid Border: 3 Light Infantry, 5 Phalanx, 2 Persian Infantry, 2 Auxiliary Skirmishers, 4 Light Cavalry, 3 Archers, 2 Missile Cavalry, 1 Elephants (Total Upkeep 43)

Navies: First Navy, in Apologus: 8 Light Triremes

The Seleucids may train light infantry (2), phalanxes (copper) (6), Persian infantry (iron) (6), auxiliary skirmishers (2), light cavalry (horses) (4), missile cavalry (horses) (4), and archers (2).


Ptolemaic Kingdom-- Played by Orual
King Ptolemy I "Soter", age 57
Heir Apparent: Ptolemy Keraunos, age 4
Other Family: Wife, Eurydice (age 25), daughters Ptolomais and Lysandra (7 and 2) and Ptolemy Keraunos
Wife, Berenice (age 30), son Ptolemy Philadelphius (age 1), daughter Arsinoe (age 5)
Tax Base: 150
Total Income: 249
Total Expenses: 180
Net Income: 69
Treasury: 10
Total Available Cash: 79
Strategic Resources: 1 Copper (Local)
Trade Resources: 2 Spices (Local), 1 Precious Stones (Local), 2 Incense (From Axum), 2 Ivory (From Axum and Meroe), 4 Grain (Local), 1 Gold (Local)
Standing Trade Deals: 2 Incense and 1 Ivory from Axum for 20 Talents
1 Ivory from Meroe for 5 Talents

Armies: First Army, Near Jerusalem: 8 Light Infantry, 3 Phalanx, 5 Auxiliary Skirmishers, 5 Archers, 4 Heavy Cavalry, 4 Chariots, 2 Elephants (Total Upkeep 70)
Second Army, Near Alexandria: 5 Light Infantry, 3 Phalanx, 4 Auxiliary Skirmishers, 7 Archers, 2 Heavy Cavalry, 4 Chariots, 2 Elephants (Total Upkeep 60)

Navies: First Navy, Alexandria: 8 Light Triremes, 4 Heavy Triremes
Second Navy, Myos Hormus: 4 Light Triremes

The Ptolemies may train light infantry (2), phalanxes (copper) (8), auxiliary skirmishers (2), archers (2), heavy cavalry (horses) (8), chariots (horses) (6), and elephants (12).


Antigonid Kingdom
King Antigonus I "Monopthalmus", age 72
Heir Apparent: Demetrius Poliorcetes, age 17
Other Family: Wife Stratonicec (age 43), son Philip (age 16)
Tax Base: 160
Total Income: 230
Total Expenses: 180
Net Income: 50
Treasury: 30
Total Available Cash: 80
Strategic Resources: 2 Horses (Local), 1 Copper (Local)
Trade Resources: 4 Dye (Local, 2 Traded to Cassander), 1 Grain (Local), 1 Silver (From Cassander)
Standing Trade Deals:

Armies: First Army, Near Ephesos: 2 Light Infantry, 6 Phalanx, 3 Peltasts, 4 Heavy Cavalry, 3 Archers, 3 Auxiliary Skirmishers, 2 Light Cavalry (Total Upkeep 61)
Second Army, Near Palmyra: 3 Light Infantry, 7 Phalanx, 5 Peltasts, 3 Heavy Cavalry, 3 Archers, 3 Auxiliary Skirmishers, 4 Light Cavalry (Total Upkeep 65)

Navies: First Navy, Tyre: 6 Light Triremes, 3 Heavy Triremes
Second Navy, Ephesos: 6 Light Triremes, 3 Heavy Triremes

The Antigonids may train light infantry (2), phalanxes (copper) (6), peltasts (iron) (6), heavy cavalry (horses) (8), archers (2), auxiliary skirmishers (2), and light cavalry (4).


Kingdom of Lysimachus
King Lysimachus of Thrace, age 51
Heir Apparent: Philo, General, age 45
Other Family: None
Tax Base: 110
Total Income: 122
Total Expenses: 99
Net Income: 23
Treasury: 45
Total Available Cash: 68
Strategic Resources: 1 Iron, 1 Copper, 1 Horse
Trade Resources: 1 Grain (From Olbia), 1 Silver (Local)
Standing Trade Deals: 1 Grain from Olbia for 10 Talents

Armies: First Army, Cassander's Border: 4 Light Infantry, 5 Phalanx, 3 Hypaspists, 3 Tarantine Cavalry, 1 Archers, 2 Heavy Cavalry (Total Upkeep 41)
Second Army, Orestias: 6 Phalanx, 4 Hypaspists, 3 Tarantine Cavlary, 4 Archers, 2 Heavy Cavalry, 4 Auxiliary Skirmishers (Total Upkeep 46)

Navies: First Navy, Thasos: 6 Light Triremes, 3 Heavy Triremes

Lysimachus may train light infantry (2), phalanxes (copper) (4), hypaspists (iron) (6), Tarantine Cavalry (horses) (4), archers (2), heavy cavalry (horses) (8), and auxiliary skirmishers (2).


Republic of Rome-- Played by (Name to be determined)
Consuls: Appius Claudius (age 30) and M. Aemilius Papus (46)
Claudii Family: Sons Gaius Claudius and Tiberius Claudius (7 and 5)
Aemilii Family: Nephew M. Aemilius Paullus (23)
Fabii Family: Quintus Fabius (52), son Fabius Gurges (21)
Tax Base: 80
Total Income: 96
Total Expenses: 74
Net Income: 22
Treasury: 60
Total Available Cash: 82
Strategic Resources: None
Trade Resources: 1 Grain (Local), 1 Wine (From Etruscans)
Standing Trade Deals: 1 Wine from Etruscans as tribute.

Armies: First Army, Rome: 3 Light Infantry, 5 Legion, 4 Heavy Cavalry, 5 Light Auxiliaries, 3 Archers, 2 Heavy Cavalry (Total Upkeep 42)
Second Army, Naples: 3 Light Infantry, 4 Legion, 2 Heavy Cavalry, 4 Light Auxiliaries, 2 Archers (Total Upkeep 29)

Navies: First Navy, Rome: 3 Light Triremes

Rome may train light infantry (2), legions (iron) (6), heavy cavalry (horses) (8), light auxiliaries (2), and archers (2).


Republic of Carthage-- Played by deepsoulfunk
King Hamilcar Magnus, age 42
Family: Brother Hanno Magnus, age 36
Barcid Family: Bomilcar (age 57), half-brother Maharbal (age 37)
Tax Base: 165
Total Income: 198
Total Expenses: 159
Net Income: 39
Treasury: 20
Total Available Cash: 59
Strategic Resources: 1 Iron (local), 1 Copper (local)
Trade Resources: 1 Wine (Local), 1 Silver (Local)
Standing Trade Deals: None

Armies: First Army, in Gadir: 5 Iberian Light Infantry, 4 Balaeric Slingers, 2 Iberian Cavalry, 3 Heavy Phoenician Infantry, 1 Elephant, 2 Numidian Cavalry (Total Upkeep 22)
Second Army, Near Utica: 4 Iberiean Light Infantry, 3 Balaeric Slingers, 1 Heavy Phoenician Infantry, 2 Numidian Light Cavalry (Total Upkeep 22)
Third Army, Sicily: 2 Iberian Light Infantry, 2 Balaeric Slingers, 4 Iberian Cavalry, 4 Heavy Phoenician Infantry, 3 Elephants, 3 Numidian Light Cavalry (Total Upkeep 52)

Navies: First Navy, in Carthage: 10 Light Triremes, 4 Heavy Triremes
Second Navy, in Caralis: 10 Light Triremes, 3 Heavy Triremes

Carthage may train Iberian light infantry (2), Balaeric slingers (2), Iberian Cavalry (horses) (6), Heavy Phoenician Infantry (copper) (6), Numidian light cavalry (horses) (4), and elephants (12)


Other Armies: Epirus: 5 Light Infantry, 3 Light Cavalry, 3 Heavy Cavalry, 8 Phalanx
Syracuse: 3 Light Infantry, 2 Heavy Cavalry, 3 Light Auxiliaries, 6 Phalanx
Lisbon: 4 Light Infantry, 2 Heavy Cavalry, 5 Light Auxiliaries
Sagunto: 5 Light Infantry, 4 Light Cavalry, 2 Heavy Cavalry, 5 Light Auxiliary
Etruscans: 4 Light Infantry, 3 Light Cavalry, 6 Light Auxiliaries, 3 Phalanx
Balkans: 6 Light Infantry, 3 Medium Infantry, 2 Light Cavalry, 5 Light Auxiliaries, 2 Phalanx
Odessos: 3 Light Infantry, 5 Light Cavalry, 2 Heavy Cavalry, 2 Light Auxiliaries, 4 Phalanx
Olbia: 4 Light Infantry, 7 Light Cavalry, 4 Light Auxiliaries, 4 Phalanx
Eupatoria: 2 Light Infantry, 2 Light Cavalry, 3 Light Auxiliaries, 4 Phalanx
Pontus: 3 Light Infantry, 2 Light Cavalry, 2 Heavy Cavalry, 3 Light Auxiliaries, 4 Phalanx
Meroe: 7 Light Infantry, 4 Light Cavalry, 3 Elephants, 5 Light Auxiliaries,
Axum: 6 Light Infantry, 5 Light Cavalry, 3 Elephants, 4 Light Auxiliaries
Sabeans: 5 Light Infantry, 5 Light Cavalry, 6 Light Auxiliaries
Dilmun: 7 Light Infantry, 5 Light Cavalry, 6 Light Auxiliaries
Dahae: 7 Light Cavalry, 4 Light Auxiliaries, 4 Missile Cavalry
Massagatae: 6 Light Cavalry, 4 Light Auxiliaries, 4 Missile Cavalry
Bactria: 3 Light Infantry, 4 Light Cavalry, 2 Heavy Cavalry, 2 Light Auxiliaries, 4 Phalanx, 2 Missile Cavalry
Barbicon: 4 Light Infantry, 3 Medium Infantry, 2 Light Cavalry, 3 Elephants, 2 Light Auxiliaries
Muziris: 3 Light Infantry, 2 Medium Infantry, 3 Light Cavalry, 2 Elephants, 3 Light Auxiliaries
Thambaparni: 4 Light Infantry, 3 Light Infantry, 2 Light Infantry

Other Navies: Massalia: 4 Light Triremes, 2 Heavy Triremes
Syracuse: 7 Light Infantry, 4 Heavy Triremes
Epirus: 6 Light Triremes, 3 Heavy Triremes
Eupatoria: 7 Light Triremes
Cretan Pirates: 8 Light Triremes
Rhodesian Pirates: 10 Light Triremes

I am Appleciders' mysterious friend who will be leading Rome.

If you're short a player, I'll join, otherwise, I think I'll pass. I seem to be involved in 4 games currently.

We have slots open, but we can also begin without and see if anyone wants in later. It's not critical.

Fair warning to the other players: I have never played this type of game before, so if I royally cock something up, that's why.

You'll be great. It's pretty darn free-form.

I'm writing up the descriptions of generals now, so this should be up and running tonight.

One more bunch of info before I post the game thread:

What do these generals do?

There is a list of prominent generals in your faction listed after your statistics. These are men who have distinguished themselves in military service. You may assign these generals to any of your armies or navies in order to assure good and loyal service from your military. Different generals have different statistics, which operate entirely behind the scenes and you shouldn't have to worry about the numbers. I'm tracking these generals for several traits, including large-scale strategic and small-scale tactical command skills, naval command skills, siege command ability, management skill for civil projects, and loyalty. You start off with three generals to assign; assign the ones that you like. Each turn, I'll create three more generals for you to pick from. You can request that I return generals who are high in any one trait, or experts in something else, like managing civil projects, or experts in any one field, without regard to the field, or any other single condition you can think of. You may assign more than one general to an army or navy; if they work well together, you'll see good results. If they quarrel, you'll see bad results. You may also assign your generals to work on any civil project that you're funding in your turn orders.

Game's up and running!

Ahoy,

It's good to see that the old 'Poly traditions nurtured a few new roots. BP alerted me to this--in a very punctual fashion--but I, as Mr Late Guy, am only now getting around to forming cohesive thoughts, actions, posts. So gratias to bp for letting me know, and also to ciders for kicking this fine beast into Form Of: Reality! (within the context of things that are imaginary, but are being imagined in a reality). So.
I must (willingly; gladly) adhere to precedence and preference for the old clan of Monopthalmus. I would take the sceptre of the Antigonids, if you would have it so.

Great! I'll write you in. Good to see you! I'll spin up some generals for you to pick from today.


This game has slowed down a little; I'm waiting for people to post orders (and for deepsoulfunk to check back in), and I suspect you're all waiting for something to respond to. What I'm looking for is something like this:

Orders for Lysimachus:

Appoint (names of generals) to (particular armies).

12 talents to train 4 new units of phalanxes. When complete, send them to join the First Army.

Increase the trade deal with Olbia to 15 talents for 2 shipments of grain.

Attack Byzantion with the Second Army. Rather than risk heavy losses, initiating a siege is perfectly acceptable. Use all available naval forces to blockade the city as well.

Attack Cassander's territory with the First Army. The goal here is the capital city Pella, in order to dethrone Cassander and claim the Macedonian throne for ourselves.

30 talents to be spent to begin construction on a new aquaduct system for Phillipopolis, to promote growth and security.

Next turn, look for generals with proven personal leadership and tactical ability.



If you have something secret to add (like attacking another player), feel free to PM me with details.

Cool. I think Demetrios Poliorketes in 310 is actually 25-27, not 17.

I think you're right; I subtracted wrong.

OK, I've gotten Antigonus' generals set up. I've got to take off for a few days; I'll still be able to respond to brief questions and diplomacy, though. If all the orders are in by the time I get back on Wednesday, I'll run the first update.