Feudalism
OOCLong have you toiled under the yoke of the Empire. With the coronation of the new, young emperor the external lords were given a degree of autonomy and with it, a chance. A chance for a life where you are not bowing down to some distant palace you have never even seen, to pay taxes you never see the result of. But, you must wait for the opportune moment. Break away too soon, and you will suffer the wrath of an obese, powerful empire. Take too long, and you may be dragged down with the empire when it falls.
The basis of this game is
shameslessly stolen lovingly imitated from Aigre Excalibur’s Chivalric Army Simulator, adding inspiration from Mount & Blade and my own experience. I appreciate the wall of text might be a bit daunting, but each turn should be quite quick and simple.
I’m hoping to get at least couple of turns a week, as each turn shouldn’t be that complicated to produce, the only limit will be the amount of free time I can find around work.
The Empire is destroyed…
…and either…
All players are defeated but one
or
Less than half the players remain and are united into a Kingdom. A zombie/dragon/annunuki apocalypse is triggered. The apocalypse is repelled or wipes out the remaining players.
Key Concepts1 Game turn is 1 month, representing 1/12 a year. The yearly census occurs at the beginning of September, bringing with it updated population and yearly tax income.
Units and NPCs are recruited from a demographic group representing each social class. Each class generally breeds its own type, or lower.
Highborn Peers
This represents the landed gentry and inherited nobility. Courtiers become peers when assigned a title.
Courtiers
This represents the deminobility with the education and upbringing befitting a noble, but include all the spare children who won't necessarily inherit lands and sources of stable income. The wealthiest of merchants are equal in status to the Courtiers. Courtiers can be given titles arbitrarily, at any time.
Freemen
Freemen are those with sufficient wealth to be considered free. It includes professionals in the service of the nobility, successful merchants, and "modest" landholders to the tune of at least 120 acres. They are able to provide apprenticeships and a middle class upbringing to their own children at least.
Villeins
Villeins are peasants who hold land in fief to a noble. The amount of land held was usually considerable, and a villein was far better off than the labourers who worked his lands. The villeins provide taxes in material and labour to their liege Lord. Having a stake in the land, they are also expected to fight in the levy when called upon.
Serfs
Serfs are peasants who hold no land, no riches and few rights. They were little more than slaves and were much more concerned with where the next meal came from rather than which lord they supposedly owed their allegiance. Similarly, the nobles viewed the serfs to be an unpleasant necessity at best or mere property at worst.
Every demographic grows by 10% each year.
Highborn Peers: 25% of Highborn Children become Highborn Peers. 75% become Courtiers.
Courtiers: 25% of Courtier Children remain Courtiers. 75% become Freemen.
Freemen: 25% of Freemen children become Freemen. 75% become Villeins.
Villeins: 25% of Villein children remain Villeins. 75% become Serfs.
Each region has space for nine primary holdings. A primary holding can be either a castle or a town and one of these will be named the regional capital and be the seat of power for the regional head. Each primary holding can have up to four villages (secondary holdings) associated with it, one in each compass direction.
Castles are the military bases of the medieval world, built to endure year-long sieges and to train and house the populace in times of war. They are also the main residence for untitled Courtiers and Highborn Peers.
Towns are your economic and manufacturing centers and the home of your freemen. Here skilled labour converts raw materials to finished goods, to be bought and sold on the market, which can be taxed directly for money. Towns can also be fortified, but due to the significant number of mouths to feed they will suffer in a protracted siege.
Villages are your agricultural and resource gathering centers. This is the main residence of Villeins, who work the land in various forms to produce the resources needed to supply the rest of the region. Tax here will be in the form of resources instead of money, the value of which may fluctuate.
Outposts can be built instead of leaving a milestone position completely empty. A lord may choose to build these watchtowers to provide a modicum of defense for his realm. These outposts may later be upgraded to one of the other holding types, or be skipped entirely if they lord sees no need for the watchtower. The watchtower will become a central rally point for the new holding, unless it is a castle, where it will be incorporated into the keep.
Movement occurs along the lines between primary holdings. There are two milestones between, marking the potential locations of villages or outposts. Thus, there are three separate move actions to get from one primary holding to an adjacent one.
Money
“The sinews of war is infinite money” – Marcus Tullius Cicero
Failing that, as much as possible is an acceptable substitute. Nobles mainly work in gold coins, however, silver and copper also exist. There is 10 silver to 1 gold, and 100 copper to 1 silver.
Food
Nothing happens without it. The majority of the workforce labours to produce enough for everyone. Thus, that’s where most of your taxes will come from.
A typical acre of land produces 1 bushel of food per year, and one farmer can work twelve acres by hand, bringing in 12 bushels total, assuming the weather is favourable. Each man can survive on one bushel a year (although he’d prefer more) and a bushel sells for 3-4 silver on the market. Normally, the populace will source their own food, but during a siege, all supplies are rationed and they will be relying on your dedicated (and hopefully well-stocked) grain silos to survive.
Other
Any industrial improvements to a village will yield other resources instead of food or money. This can then be used for manufacturing or construction, stored in a warehouse for later use or sold on the market for a profit. Spare metal or ranged equipment can also be stockpiled. Examples include Logs, Stone and Metal.
The results of combat depend on three things. The skill of the soldiers, the skill of the commanders and the equipment available. Whilst you are welcome to plan the battle as much as you like, there will be no decision making by the players during the battle. This will both speed up game turns and let those with limited tactical knowledge rely on experienced NPC commanders.
There are three main forms of combat, Skirmishes, Pitched Battles and Sieges. They each vary greatly in context and scope.
Skirmishes
Skirmishes are small-scale events, between scouts, patrols or raiding parties, and serve to make life as uncomfortable as possible for the enemy these occur whenever two hostile units are present at the same holding, even if both commanders choose to avoid combat. The results of these depend vastly on the command skill of any captains within the army and the individual skill levels of the soldiers involved. Typically, the attackers will be selected from the most mobile elements of the army. The defenders could be anyone, from an opposing raiding party moving to intercept, to the sentries at the edge of camp, or even the siege engineers, caught unawares.
Pitched Battles
If one of the opposing commanders feels they have an advantage, they can offer the opponent pitched battle. If the other refuses, an opposed command test is made, to see if the defender can avoid combat with the attacker. If they succeed no battle takes place, but Skirmishes will continue as normal.
If the defender fails to avoid it, or both sides want it, pitched battle will occur. Both sides will deploy all assets available to them, unlike skirmishes were only a minority of soldiers may be involved. Typically, an army will endeavour to shoot all ammunition at its opponent before advancing to melee, but a particularly one-sided archery duel may cause one commander to advance early. Other tactics are welcomed.
Morale is key here. A soldier’s confidence in his commander, his own skill and in the situation around him is in constant conflict with his desire to stay alive. A unit fleeing with a 10% casualty rate is not uncommon.
Sieges
Multi-turn affairs, sieges involve an attacking force encircling a holding and starving the defenders into submission. Most of this comes down to supplies, or the lack thereof. The besiegers require food in order to keep the pressure on, and the defenders only have as much as was stored before the siege. At any point, either side may choose to abandon the waiting game and attack.
Assaulting a fortified settlement is a brutal task, weathering volleys of archery fire, only to attack through a bottleneck into a killing zone of cross fire. Unless you outnumber the defenders by ten to one, or have some serious siege equipment, assaulting is ill advised.
If the defenders sally out against the attackers then a pitched battle will occur. Even if neither side assaults or sallies, casualties will be suffered on both sides from skirmishing, and as the defenders start to run out of food, morale will plummet and surrender will become likely.
MinutiaeYou can build as many things per month as you have the resources for. Labour is provided by the serfs, and organization and planning is required by Masons when specified.
When “Material” is referred to as a cost, this means either blocks or logs.
Basic administrative center for the peasantry.
Cost: 100 Gold and 100 Material to establish the first village at a holding. Cost of each subsequent village increases in cost by 100 gold/material increments. The second costs 200, the third, 300, etc. It takes three months to establish a new village, Mason required.
Starting Population: Founding a village requires 100 Villeins to populate it.
Farmland: Each village represents a manorage of about 4000 acres.
Revenues: By default you receive 25% of all produce in tax.
Terrain: The terrain built on may affect resource output.
Farming Upgrades
Mills
Cost: 50 Material, 1 month
Effect: 20% Increase in Farm Yields for 400 Acres
Irrigation
Cost: 1 Gold per Acre, 1 month
Effect: 100% Increase in Farm Yields for each Irrigated Acre
Land Expansion
Cost: 50 Gold for the first 400 Acre block. 200 Gold for the next 400 Acres, 800 Gold for the third, etc. 1 month
Effect: Increases Farmland in 400 Acre chunks, costs increase geometrically.
Industry Upgrades
Lumber Camps
Cost: 50 Material, 1 month
Labour: 20 Villeins
Effect: Produces 40 logs per month, of which 10 are given to the lord in tax. If more is required, they may be bought at a rate of 1.5 silver per log.
Quarry
Cost: 50 Material, 1 month
Labour: 20 Villeins
Effect: Produces 100 stone blocks per month, of which 25 are given to the lord in tax. If more is required, they may be bought at a rate of 1 silver per block.
Mines
Cost: 50 Material, 1 month
Labour: 40 Villeins
Effect: Produces 20 units of raw metal per month, of which 5 are given to the lord in tax. If more is required, they may be bought at a rate of 1 gold per unit.
Your Basic Urban Centers
Cost: 1000 gold, 500 Material and 200 existing Freemen to found a Town, 6 months to establish a new town, Mason required.
Urban Economy: Each town starts with a marketplace and basic workshops for craftsmen.
Revenues: Each Freeman generates a basic tax of 5 silver per year
Commerce Upgrades
Marketplace Expansion
Cost: 100 gold & 50 Material, cost increases geometrically by a factor of 4 per level, 1 month per level
Requires 200 additional existing freemen per level.
Effect: Increases tax yields by 5 silver per Freeman per level.
Money Lenders
Cost: 200 gold each, 2 months
Effect: Increases tax yields of 1000 freemen by 100%. 1d10 freemen are demoted to villein each year.
Industry Upgrades
Ironsmith
Cost: 50 Stone & 50 Material, 2 months
Effect: Allows the Purchase of up to 10 units worth of metal equipment per month, at a rate of one gold per metal. For every unit of metal equipment produced, this building consumes one unit of raw metal. (Cloth and leather are not limited, but sourced from rural areas.)
Bowyer
Cost: 100 Material, 2 months
Effect: Allows the Purchase of up to 10 gold worth of ranged equipment such as bows and crossbows per month. For every unit of ranged equipment produced, this building consumes 0.1 logs.
Stables
Cost: 100 Material, 2 months
Effect: Allows the purchase of up to 10 gold worth of horses per month. For every unit of horses produced, this building consumes 0.1 bushels of food. Also allows for the storage of up to 20 mounts, however each mount thus stored consumes 0.1 bushel of food per month.
Mason's Guild
Cost: 100 Material per level, flat rate, 2 months per level
Upkeep: 10 Gold per level per year
Effect: Maintains 1 Mason who can oversee the construction of stone fortifications, bridges, roads and the palaces of the nobility. Each level increases the number of masons the guild can support.
Warehouse
Cost: 50 Material, 1 month
Effect: Allows the storage of up to 1,000 units of any non-food, non-horse resources.
Education
Monastery
Cost: 100 Gold & 100 Material per level, 3 months, Mason required
Effect: 25% of Freemen Children who would drop to Villeins become Monks or Nuns instead, who sire no legitimate children, but continue to produce skilled labour (or military manpower) for the economy. Can house 200 clergy per level.
College
Requires an Urban Population of 10,000 Freemen, 3 months, Mason required
Cost: 5,000 Gold & 5,000 Material
Upkeep: 100 Gold
Effect: Each College serves a Population of 10,000 Freemen. Of every 100 Freemen Children who would remain as Freemen, 1d4 become a Courtier. This comes up to 15 per year per 10,000
Freemen.
Castles provide a place of refuge for surrounding settlements during war. They also serve as the training grounds for the professional and levied military. Walls can be built to provide a secure area for construction within. It is perfectly acceptable to build things without the protection of a wall, but they will be unusable and may suffer damage during a siege.
Most fortifications have a height value, a number of hitpoints per breach and a maximum number of breaches before collapse. The higher a fortification, the larger the ladders and siege towers must be built to storm it, and the tougher the wall is. Dedicated siege equipment can cause damage to fortifications, breaching the defense and allowing your soldiers to enter. If a fortification receives enough breaches it will become unstable and collapse completely.
Area to section calculations
Layers of castle wall are built in squares. To the number of sections needed is the circumference of that area. A 1x1 area requires 4 sections. A 4x4 area (16 spaces) requires 16 sections. A castle can have multiple layers, forcing the attackers to take each wall in turn, or one large wall that encircles the whole area.
Towns and villages may also be fortified, but that is a serious undertaking.
To calculate the size of a town, assume 1 space per 5 freemen, 20 Serfs per freeman and 1 space per 20 serfs.
To calculate the size of a village, assume 1 space per 10 Villeins, 5 Serfs per Villein and 1 space per 20 serfs.
Fortification construction is a multi-year affair, but even a simple wooden stockade can turn a quick raid into a multi-season slog.
Castle Facilities
Billets
Cost: 200 Material, 1 month
Effect: Provides Billets for 500 warriors
Refugee Housing
Cost: 100 Material, 1 month
Effect: Provides shelter for 1000 civilians
Drill Areas
Cost: 50 Gold, 1 month
Effect: 1 Drill Area trains 50 warriors or levies per month from villeins and freemen
Grain Magazine
Cost: 250 Material, 2 month
Effect: 1 Magazine Stores 1,000 Bushels. A 500 man garrison will hold out for 2 years on 1 Magazine
Castle Apartments
Cost: 1,000 Stone, 2 months
Effect: Provides housing for 100 untitled courtiers
Stockpile
Cost: 50 Material, 1 month
Effect: Provides storage for 1,000 units of any non-food, non-horse resources.
Horse Yard
Cost: 50 Material, 1 month
Effect: Provides storage for 200 mounts, however each mount thus stored consumes 0.1 bushel of food per month.
Empty Space
Cost: -
Effect: Unbuilt Open areas house 200 refugees.
Walls
Wooden Stockade
Cost: 100 Logs, 1 month
Effect: Provides an obstacle to outsiders. Can be rammed.
Hitpoints per Breach: 100
Breaches before Collapse: 50
Wooden "2 man" Wide wall
Cost: 500 Logs, 2 months
Effect: Height 2, provides battlements for 100 men
Hitpoints per Breach: 1000
Breaches before Collapse: 50
Stone “2 man” Wide Walls
Cost: 10,000 Stone, 3 months for a height of 2. 5000 stone and 1 month per additional height
Effect: Minimum Height 2, 100 Troops per section.
Hitpoints per breach: 10,000 + 5,000 per level.
Breaches before Collapse: 100
Stone 4man Broad Battlements
Cost: 30,000 Stone, 6 months for a height of 2. 15,000 Per additional height.
Effect: 200 Troops per section.
Hitpoints per breach: 40,000 + 20,000 per level
Breaches before Collapse: N/A
Keeps
Keeps are the central part of the castle. They are built robustly, and must almost always be taken by storm once the walls are breached.
Wooden Greathall
Cost: 2,000 Logs
Effect: A primitive residence for a noble Lord. Serves as his court and mustering grounds. 200 Bushels of storage. Main doorway two men wide. Includes a single wooden turret providing battlements for 20 men.
Hitpoints per Breach: 500
Breaches before Collapse: N/A
Basic Stone Keep
Cost: 50,000 Stone
Effect: A seat of Government for a Lord. Provides apartments for 20 unlanded courtiers.
1,000 Bushels of storage. Main doorway four men wide. Includes protected firing positions for 40 men, and top battlements for 100. Includes a single 1 man wide stairwell.
Unbreachable walls.
Great Fortress Keep
Cost: 200,000 Stone
Effect: Provides a seat of Government. Apartments for 50 unlanded courtiers. 5,000 Bushels of storage. Main doorway four men wide. Includes protected firing positions for 80 men and top battlements for 250.
Unbreachable walls.
Turrets
Turrets provide flanking fire on Enemies scaling the walls and fighting on top of them. A high enough ladder or Belfry can attack the turrets themselves.
Maximum Turrets per Section: 2
Wooden Tower
Cost: 3000 Logs, Height 3
Effect: Battlement for 20 men
Hitpoints to Collapse: 3,000
Small Turret
Cost: 15,000 Stone, Minimum height of 3. 5000 per additional height
Effect: 10 protected Archer positions and a 40 man battlement
Hitpoints to Collapse: 750,000+250,000 per level
Medium Turret
Cost: 75,000 Stone Minimum height of 3. 25,000 per additional height
Effect: 20 protected archer positions and a 60 man battlement. Instead of a manned battlement, it can hold a single artillery piece
Hitpoints to Breach: 225,000+75,000 per level
Breaches to Collapse: 50
Great Turret
Cost: 125,000 Stone, Minimum height of 4. 50,000 per additional height
Effect: 40 protected archer positions and a 100 man battlement. Instead of a manned battlement it can hold a single enlarged artillery piece
Hitpoints to Breach: 500,000 + 100,000 per level
Breaches to Collapse: N/A
Wooden Watchtower
Cost: 5,000 logs, 3 months
Effect: Height 3, provides observation for the surrounding lands and billets for a Garrison of 20
Stores 80 bushels of food. In a protracted siege, the watchtower can last 4 years.
Hitpoints per breach: 100
Breaches before collapse: 5
Stone Watchtower
Cost: 10,000 Stone, 6 months
Effect: Height 3, provides observation for the surrounding lands and Billets for a Garrison of 50
Stores 200 Bushels of food. The watchtower can withstand a siege for 4 years.
Hitpoints per breach: 20,000
Breaches before Collapse: 5
Great Stone Watchtower
Cost 25,000 Stone, 12 months
Effect: Height 4, designed in Amon Sul fashion. Provides Observation and Billets for 200.
Stores 1000 Bushels of food. Will survive a siege for 5 years.
Hitpoints per breach: 100,000
Breaches before Collapse: 50
Each of the nine sub regions will have its own terrain. Depending on this terrain, certain resources are easier or harder to acquire. Terrain will typically also provide other effects during strategic movement and combat as well.
There are five different terrain types and their benefits and drawbacks are detailed below.
Plains
+20% Farm yield
-20% Mine and Quarry yield
Bonus to cavalry
Movement cost 1
Hills
+20% Mine and Quarry yield
-20% Lumber yield
Bonus to archers and defenders
Movement cost 2
Forest
+20% Lumber yield
-20% Mine and Quarry yield
Malus to cavalry and archers
Movement cost 2
Mountain
+30% Mine and Quarry yield
-20% Farm yield
-40% Lumber yield
Bonus to archers and defenders
Malus to cavalry
Movement cost 3
Coast
-20% Lumber yield
Enables wharfs, docks and ship yards
Movement cost 1
Your courtiers may wish to wile away their time on petty intrigue and personal hobbies, but a clever lord knows not to waste such a potential useful asset. As such, an otherwise unemployed courtier can be assigned titles, which, once given, has a number of useful effects. It is perfectly possible to assign multiple courtiers the same title, but only one title per courtier.
Master Engineer
Salary: 25 Gold
Effect: Oversees the construction and operation of CrewServed Artillery Pieces on the battlefield itself or for the Armoury. 1 Engineer can oversee construction of 1 Artillery Piece per month, or direct the fire from an entire Artillery Battery.
Physician
Salary: 25 Gold
Effect: Treats the injured after a battle. Medicine is a bit dodgy at the best of times, but it’s still better than trying your luck. Five soldiers may be treated per day.
Steward
Salary: 25 Gold
Effect: When stationed in a Castle or Town, a steward will increase tax by 10% and improve order amongst the populace. These benefits also apply to any villages attached to the primary holding.
Dignitary
Salary: 25 Gold
Effect: Doubles as the Diplomats and spymasters of the realm. If you wish to maintain or create any official treaties a dignitary must be present at each lord’s court. A dignitary has one action per month and many things to be spending actions on. More details are given in the diplomacy section.
A Dignitary can also set up a spy ring in any holding or army they are present in. The dignitary must remain with the spy ring to keep it from dissolving, but maintaining it is a passive action. Multiple spy rings by the same or differing houses may be present in a holding or army. Spy rings can each perform one action per turn, explained in the espionage section.
Clergyman
Salary: 25 Gold
Effect: Each clergyman may interpret the will of God to encourage a holding or army to focus on one of the following each year:
Hard Work: Increases Tax Revenue by 10%
Family Values: Increases Growth Rates by 5%
Martyrdom: A military unit on campaign or an entire garrison will fight to the death.
Each holding can only be encouraged to focus on one thing each year, but an army may have multiple clergymen attached to it.
Knight
A purely military position, described below.
The military is recruited from the three social classes. Their base social class influences their core stats, but with enough money and time, a lowly villein could match a knight. Each soldier is defined by their social class, experience and equipment. Soldiers can be regulars or reserves. Regulars are a standing force, available at all times. Reserve forces spend the majority of their time on their civilian duties (contributing to taxes like any other civilian) but attend periodic training sessions. They will be available immediately to defend their homes, but take time to mobilize and are less experienced than their professional counterparts.
New recruits are obliged by the laws of fealty to buy their own equipment as described below, your obligation is to provide the either the necessary industries or a stockpile of equipment to sell them. You may provide better equipment to your soldiers if you wish, and it will be returned to you when that soldier either leaves your service or upgrades further.
Infantry and archers have two movement. Mounted units have three. Most siege equipment has only one.
Units can be raised from the population of your holdings, at a minimum of ten men. Every unit needs a captain to lead it, which can be any professional soldier of equal or higher social class. For simplicity, all soldiers in a unit must have identical equipment, but the officer may have different.
Villeins
Professional
Serving Footmen
Weapons: Melee
Armour: Shield, Gambeson
Skill Level: 2
Cost: 1 Metal
Salaries: 2 Gold per year per man
Serving Bowmen
Weapons: Light Melee, Light Ranged
Armour: Gambeson
Skill Level: 2
Cost: 1 Metal, 0.5 Bowyer
Salaries: 2 Gold per year per man
Siege Crew
They operate and construct siege machines under the supervision of a master engineer. They can also serve as miners and woodcutters for an army on campaign.
Weapons: Light Melee
Skill Level: 1
Cost: 0.5 Metal
Salary: 2 Gold per year per man
Irregular
Levy Footman
Weapons: Light Melee
Armour: Shield
Skill Level: 1
Cost: 0.5 Metal
Salaries: 0 when not levied, 1 Gold per year per man when levied
Levy Bowman
Weapons: Light Ranged
Armour: None
Skill: 1
Cost 0.5 Metal 0.5 Bowyer
Salaries: 0 when not levied, 1 Gold per year per man when levied
Freemen
Professional
Mounted Sergeant
Weapons: Heavy Melee
Armour: Shield, Hauberk
Mount: Hobby
Skill: 3
Cost: 5.25 Metal, 8 Horse
Salaries: 20 Gold per year
Sergeant Footmen
Weapons: Heavy Melee
Armour: Shield, Hauberk
Skill: 3
Cost: 5.25 Metal
Salaries: 10 Gold per year
Sergeant Bowmen
Weapons: Melee, Ranged
Armour: Shield, Haubergion
Skill Level: 3
Costs: 4.5 Metal, 1 Bowyer
Salaries: 10 Gold per year
Irregular
Militia Footman
Weapons: Melee
Armour: Shield, Haubergion
Skill Level: 2
Cost: 4 Metal
Salary: 0 when not levied, 5 Gold per year when levied
Militia Bowman
Weapons: Light Melee, Ranged
Armour: Gambeson
Skill Level: 2
Cost: 1 Metal, 1 Bowyer
Salary: 0 when not levied, 5 Gold per year when levied
Nobles
Knights
Weapons: Heavy Melee
Armour: Shield, Hauberk
Mount: Rouncey
Skill Level: 4
Costs: 5.25 Metal, 12.5 Horse
Salary: 40 Gold per Year
Artillery and Siege
Wheeled Ram
Crew: 10
Cost: 50 Logs, 25 Gold, 5 Metal
Allows ramming of wooden structures and gates
Siege Ladders
Cost: 10 Logs per level
Effect: A siege ladder of equivalent level is required to scale a wall or turret. Creates a 1man wide entrypoint onto the wall or turret.
Can be thrown down by defenders.
A wise lord will build a stockpile of arms and armour to equip his army when it is needed. This stockpile can then be loaned out or sold to new recruits to make them more effective more quickly.
Weapons
Melee
Light (0.5 Metal, 0.5 Gold), Standard (unprefixed) (1M, 1G) or Heavy (1.25M, 1.5G)
Ranged
Light (0.5M, 0.5G, 0.5 Bowyer), Standard (unprefixed) (0.5M, 1G, 1B)
Armour
Light
Gambeson (0.5G) or Haubergion (3M, 2.5G)
Medium
Hauberk (4M, 4.5G)
Other
Shield (0.2G)
Mounts
Non-combat Horse
Sumpter (4 Horse, 7.5G) – Pack Horse (move strategically as if mounted, but fight on foot)
Cavalry Horse
Hobby (8H, 15G) or Rouncey (12.5H, 20G) – Light
Courser (20H, 30G) – Medium
As an action, a dignitary can create a spy ring in a holding or army and as a passive action, they can maintain it. If the dignitary stops maintaining the spy ring for any reason, it will dissolve. The mere presence of a spy ring will make all actions against an entity allied to that spy ring more difficult and harder to keep concealed. By default, a spy ring will lay low, reducing its chances of discovery and improving its defense against other covert actions. The dignitary may also spend their action to have their spy ring perform one of the following:
Assassinate
A character (either player on NPC) is targeted with poison or a hidden dagger. A high chance of injury results, followed by death if they do not recover.
Break-Up Spy Ring
Having a rival spy ring present can be dangerous and make it a lot harder to do anything. A few greased palms, some threats and the occasional knife in the shadows will quickly discourage them from associating with their dignitary.
Counter Intelligence
A catch-all term for covert defense. Naming a particular threat, such as sabotage, gives the spy ring focus and a bonus to blocking actions related to it. No focus is required, and instead a small bonus is applied to blocking all types of covert action. Unless specified otherwise, your spy ring will not block an action that does not target you.
Maintain Loyalty
Whispering good words and silencing the unruly to make sure any sign of malcontent is dealt with.
Sabotage Building
The targeted building suffers damage, costing a portion of the initial resources to repair and limiting its use whilst damaged.
Sabotage Resources
Through brute force, arson or spoilage, a portion of a named resource is destroyed.
Sabotage Unit
Through liberal use of poison and food spoilage, a portion of the unit is wounded, risking death if they fail to recover.
Sow Dissent
The Freemen, Villeins and Serfs in the holding are encouraged to rebel against their feudal lord. This could take the form of strikes, property damage or even full-scale revolt.
Steal Resource
Any resource can be named as the target (including money), assuming it is available at the holding. Success means a small portion is successfully smuggled to a friendly storage facility.
Uncover Secrets
The spy ring bribes, coerces and eavesdrops for useful information, uncovering the presence of any other spy rings in the holding, along with its master and what actions they undertook that month.
There are three main types of treaty: Trade Agreements, Mlitary Pacts and Vassalage. These can take many forms, dependent on the lords in question.
Trade Agreements typically allow the exchange of goods and services between the populations of two states with some form of tax levied.
Military Pacts denote the promises made to each other, from simple non-aggression up to defensive or full military alliances.
Vassalage transforms the relationship between two independent lords to a partnership between overlord and vassal. The exact specifics vary, but it typically involves the overlord promising protection in exchange for military aid and tax. In order to achieve the kingdom victory condition, all players must be in some form of networked vassalage agreement.
It takes that turn’s action on the part of both dignitaries to create a treaty between two states, but it is then passively maintained so long as the dignitary remains within the court of the other lord. If this is ever not the case (such as the dignitary suffering an unfortunate accident) you will have one year (twelve turns) to get another dignitary to that lord’s court or the agreement will be dissolved.
By default all players will be neutral to one another, however moving military units into another’s territory is an act of war. This can of course be changed as part of a treaty.
Science marches on. As must you unless you want to be left in the dirt. Instead of having a predefined tech tree to read through, you are going in blind. Name a desired effect, and your people will attempt to produce it. Once a particular tech is known in the world, other players can attempt to reproduce it. Your scholars will slowly develop the specified technology without further input, but if you wish for it to go more quickly, provide money to fund their experiments.
Founder: (Your first name)
Spouse: (Your significant other’s name)
House Name: (Your familial surname)
Family Trait: Martial, Economy, Intrigue, Learning
Lay of the Land: Plains, Hills, Forest, Mountains or Coast
Empire Vicinity: Near, Middling or Far (Those near the empire will start with an improved economy but are easy for the empire to exact retribution against. Those far were left languishing and forgotten)
House Colours: (A major and a minor colour please)
Author
Topic: (IC) Feudalism - A Multiplayer Kingdom Simulator (12/10) - Turn 2 (Now with OOC) (Read 9528 times)