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[NUKE9.13]

If this year goes badly for us on the artillery front, THEN we break out the antimagic projectiles. And if they work for, say a day at most, then not only should we be able to make them fairly cheap (Since they only need to turn on once and then stay active for, heck, just 12 hours would work great as well), they'll also be useless to the enemy. Especially if all our enemies die because of a lack of artillery.

I highly doubt creating that sort of self-casting staff would be that easy. Plus, as mentioned, how about we don't literally hand the enemy one of our most powerful weapons?
I mean, our artillery can already take out theirs in a single shot, and they have no spells that are cast at long range that we really care about. So what even is the point of firing anti-magic projectiles at them?

[Madman198237]

Their artillery is deadlier than ours.

It outranges our most accurate point of shooting, meaning that our ballistae had to get right up close and stupidly person to take them out.

If we can make a cheaper version of the staves, one we don't care about, using our experience, then we will be set.

It can't be THAT hard----after all, we know about antimagic, and we know about enchanting. So ENCHANT the staff to deny magic in an area around it (Makes making a workshop hard, doesn't it? The first sign that you succeeded will probably be your neighbor cursing at you for ruining X hours of work.

[NUKE9.13]

And how, exactly, are staves going to have a better range than our other projectiles?

Also, after our latest design their artillery might not outrange ours any more.

[Madman198237]

I said ACCURATE range for a reason. But if we can land these staves anywhere NEAR their artillery, we can shut them down.

[NUKE9.13]

You want AoE? Revise the Firestorm Shells to explode (with wind magic) on impact, spreading their contents out over a larger area.

[Devastator]

So ENCHANT the staff to deny magic in an area around it (Makes making a workshop hard, doesn't it? The first sign that you succeeded will probably be your neighbor cursing at you for ruining X hours of work.

That does make it a two-step process.  One to make the spell, and one to make the projectile.  And the projectile will be one range increment shorter than our max range, as we need functioning enchantments to make it work at max range.  We already have AoE shells, and even if accuracy isn't perfect, it's good enough for the shells to score kills.

Really, our ballistae didn't have to get right up close and personal to kill theirs.  It had to get to our own (at the time) max range, and it was able to do so successfully.

Plus, we can't use Lucky Strike and an antimagic shell, so those won't be more than ordinarily accurate.. hence inaccurate.

[Detoxicated]

I personally think we should go for enchantable metal that is quite durable in design, then revise it to also hold wind magic making it hastier, the reward should be spent on camouflage spell. If we do this we could create a whole big mirage spell from the camouflage enchantment.

Edit: Also I somehow feel that these traders will show up more often, and the more we sell them the more were in when they invade...

[Madman198237]

I understand, but since eS stated he was nerfing our explosives, we aren't going to get as many kills (Well, I hope we do anyway, but...). But that's neither here nor there.

What decisions still need to be made this turn before we progress?

[Devastator]

I understand, but since eS stated he was nerfing our explosives

Speaking of that, maybe I should read their thread and see what they got away with.  I can say with some pretty serious confidence that their cannon is going to be dodgy as all get-out.

[evictedSaint]

Combat for 930

The jungle sees Moskurg once again gain the advantage.

First and foremost was the executive decision to use our new fire artillery shells as impromptu-grenades [2d6 = [3, 4] = 3].  Moskurg calvary ride into Arstotzkan camps in the dead of night, flinging clay pots filled to the brim with Alannar.  Every calvaryman carries at least one; as they charge through enemy camps they fling them into tents and fortifications.  The splash is limited in range, and again limited by their throwing distance, but when every man has one it has a devastating effect.  Their camps burn in the night and smoke chokes the air after every raid.  Arstotzka finally gets a taste of their own medicine; the terror of facing another man flinging fire in your face.  Their own attacks are still successful, doing well against Moskurg soldiers shivering in the cold, but our new fire tactics are simply more effective.  Without needing a mage to cast the fire our troops are a frightening force to reckon with.  Both sides slaughter each other bloody, but Moskurg does more damage.

This year saw their ivory tower being torn down.  Our men cheer, thinking it's a sign that the Arstotzkans are retreating, but they instead build new smaller towers.  They dot the line dividing the jungle and their men rally around them, crowding the battlements with cannons and archers and padding the ground with wooden fortifications and stakes.  Deciding they'd make as good a target as any, our Theatre Commander orders an assault.  They watch us from above as our artillery rolls into range of their cannons, all mounted atop their towers.  As per last year they begin shelling them from as far away as possible, even scoring a few solid hits that cause our ballistas to burst into flames.  It appears our fire shells are delicate and will go up easily, and it fills our hearts with dread to see Moskurg soldiers burning to death again.

But they will pay soon enough.  Our ballistas stop at Extreme Range and begin their barrage.  Boulders, javelins, and clay pots filled with flames fall soon after, hitting them from a range they believed only they were privy to.  Cold air whooshes past our ballistas before firing, carrying their ammunition aloft until it ultimately crashes among their troops fortifications.  Their first tower crumbles under sustained fire and the chill in the air is noticeably lessened.  They immediately charge in response, but many of their cannons must wheel closer to be in range and those that don't need to aren't as plentiful as our ballistas.  The charge through the dying jungle is met with a slaughter, and al-Mutriqa leads a counter-charge that sends their men into a route.  Along the border the same scene plays out; their stationary towers are brought down from long range, their artillery can't match us, and they are ultimately repelled time and time again.

Arstotzka is pushed back and their battle lines are reassembled further north.

Our Theatre Commander is excited.  Arstotzka only has one section of jungle left and we push them out.  He is in love with our ballistas, although he does miss the warm weather and our lightning bolts.

Moskurg gains a section of jungle.


The mountains...the mountains are different.  Arstotzka sets up more of their little towers in the high peaks - already a cold, inhospitable place - and the temperature drops even lower.  To their men it must feel like the tangia back home, but to our troops it is a frozen hellscape.  We sustain multiple casualties as our men struggle to maintain warmth in our cold, stone castles, but with such poor soil there's hardly any wood for them to burn.  They resort to burning Alannar to stay warm as it will remain lit for a long, long time, but the noxious fumes make them sick and a few even die.  It's preferable to freezing to death, but Arstotzka has no pity.  Their cannons roll up and blast our castles apart with ease.  Our garrisons are ragged from the cold temperatures and guards favor their warm bunkhouses over their posts.  Even with our longer ranged artillery, their men easily steamroll through and horrifically execute what frost-bitten men surrender.  With Myark leading the charge, there's no contest and we are once again forced off the mountaintops and down into the sands far below.

Our Theatre Commander is ashamed.  He lost the mountains yet again, and offers to tender his resignation.  Their cold was simply too much and too unexpected, and without proper gear or training our men freeze to death more often than they are killed by Arstotzkans.  Those that survive suffer from frostbite and hypothermia.  He asks that you develop gear to help keep our men warm, or even better - use our mastery of the weather to keep the lands warm enough to survive.

Arstotzka gains ground in the Mountains.  If they hold it for a year they will gain the resource bonus.



In the western seas we are met with a surprise.  Arstotzka has rolled out a new ship, clearly designed to match ours in speed and out-range our artillery, but since our artillery now fires from even further away it simply matches usin both areas.  Luckily, they seem far and few inbetween, but Arstotzkan heavy construction makes them tough to kill and the fact we can't outrun them means we're forced to fight.  Their men have resorted to hacking off parts of the ship that catch on fire and dumping them overboard, which our men find funny; our firestorm shells make the enemy do our work for us!  They all agree drowning is a better alternative than burning up, however.  Their cannons are equally effective as our fire; the small, dense, shaped cannon shot punches holes through the light, delicate hulls of our ships.  Every hit results in a sunk ship, but that's only coming from their new, limited ships.  They carry their weight though, bringing down many with them, but once they're sunk we have the advantage again.  Curiously, we notice that these ships sit very low in the water and any hit inevitably results in them sinking.  We assume that because it sits so low in the water that once it starts to flood it's nearly impossible to stop.  Still, they aren't anything to roll your eyes at - they inflict such heavy casualties before sinking that they manage to keep us from gaining ground, even with our new extreme-range ballistas mounted on every ship.  It was an expensive stalemate for them though, and we will likely gain ground unless something changes next year.

Our Theatre Commander is unsure of these new developments.  Typically we've had the faster ships, but the fact that they can now keep pace means we're slowly losing our advantage.  Gust of Wind can only move us along so fast.  We will need something to compete with the enemy if these advancements go much further.

Neither side gains ground in the Western Sea.



We are surprised by an Arstotzkan assault on the plains.

Their cannons get the drop on our emplacements; after years of quiet the sudden assault leaves our troops scrambling.  Their cannons manage to get the drop on our ballistas from behind smoke screens, and within minutes they're mostly all destroyed.  Their shorter-range cannons roll up during the barrage to get into range, supporting their heavy calvary as they sweep across the open fields and gain massive ground.  We struggle to mount a counter attack, but our men have grown fat and complacent after so long that our lines are ragged and our artillery support is nonexistent.  Their heavy horsemen sweep us from the field, easily closing the distance without our artillery to stall them or coherent archer fire to repel them.  Their constant shelling from behind thick fog leaves us disorganized, and despite our best efforts they push us back immediately, claiming the wreckage of our border forts.

The battle for the rest of the year is bitter.  Our light calvary immediately takes up the firebombing doctrine, dropping fire grenades in enemy camps and being a general nuisance.  It's too late for us to make much of a difference, however; their towers are up and the plains plunge into tagia-like temperatures.  Much like the mountains our men freeze to death often and our fighting prowess is hampered.  We still have better range than the majority of their artillery, but our initial route was so thorough we have a hard time coming back.  They push us back a section.

Their boats are just as lucky along the east coast; in the west we'd been expecting them, but here in the east they are able to catch us at port.  With nowhere to run, they are able to get in close and unleash the fury of their cannons on our ships.  Our harbor burns and they claim a section of coastline.

Our Theatre Commander explains that had we expected the assault, we might have been able to repulse them or fight them to a stalemate.  As it is, their surprise assault after years of inactivity was brutal and caught us unaware, and their frost towers are a serious concern.  They must be addressed if we are to remain a competent fighting force.

Arstotzka gains ground in the Plains and the Eastern Sea.  Moskurg no longer has the resource bonus.


For the very first time in history, we invade Arstotzka's homelands.

Our grenadier horsemen continue using their highly effective tactics of firebombing and attack their infrastructure.  They ride into a nearby village and burn it to the ground, fleeing before Arstotzka can mount a counter attack to stop the raid.  Many civilians are slaughtered, and with no one to attend the crops in the nearby fields their troops will suffer for it.  As this was not a full-blown assault but rather a raid designed to soften them up, we don't bring in our artillery or infantry. 

Our ships sail up the coast, catching their ships by surprise at harbor and sinking many - much in the same way they did to us on the east coast.  The harbor closest to the eastern sea is completely razed and we claim it proudly.  We've done it, men; we've claimed a section of pure, 100% Arstotzkan soil.  They might have been able to fight us to a stalemate had they expected the attack, but they are caught by surprise and lose a section of coastline.  Without complete control of the seas they will be unable to use their fleet to deploy behind our lines or bombard offshore, if we invade.

Our Theatre Commander stresses that now is the time to strike.  If we can warm it up enough to give ourselves an advantage, and maintain control of the sea, we stand a very good chance of claiming Arstotzka's capital within four years.  Just think - the war could be over.

Moskurg gains ground in the Northern Sea.


Expense Credit:  Ma Tuan-lin is very taken with the teletalk wands.  Having gotten the chance to view them last visit he immediately jumps on the chance to buy as many as we're willing to sell.  We load a crate of the wands up on his boat and he shells out the appropriate coin to pay for it, giving us enough for an Expense Credit.

He and his crew wave goodbye as they sail out of the harbor.


It is 931, the Design Phase.

Spoiler: State of Forenia, 931 (click to show/hide)

Northern Taiga: 4/4 Arstotzka
Central Mountains: 4/4 Arstotzka, 0/4 Moskurg
Western Jungle: 1/4 Arstotzka, 3/4 Moskurg
Eastern Plains: 1/4 Arstotzka, 3/4 Moskurg
Southern Desert: 4/4 Moskurg

Northern Sea: Disputed
Western Sea: Disputed
Eastern Sea: Disputed
Southern Sea: Moskurger

Spoiler: Moskurger Mundane Equipment (click to show/hide)

Sabre:  Officer weapon.  A single-edged blade that favours cavalry combat over infantry combat.  Requires training to wield, one-handed.  Expensive.
Spear:  General infantry weapon.  Essentially a dagger on a long stick.  Very cheap, requires minimal training to use.  Can be used double-handed, or single handed with a light shield.  Cheap.
    Halberd: An axe, a hook, and a spear all rolled into one.  Does well against armor and in formation. Cheap
Buckler:  General infantry equipment.  A small iron shield, held in one hand.  Only protects a small area, but can be wielded alongside a shield.  Moderate cost, requires training to wield properly. Cheap.
Pavise Shield: A large, thick, high-quality shield to guard against arrows.  Can be staked into the ground, or slung across the shoulders.  Needs both hands to use while on the move. Very Expensive.
Padded Armour:  General infantry armour.  Very cheap, just layers of cloth, but doesn't protect against much.  Well ventilated in hot conditions, though.  Cheap.
    Scale Mail:  Officer armour.  Scales of steel on a leather backing.  Expensive, but lighter than chain mail.  Expensive. Obsolete.
    Elite Lamellar Armor:  All-purpose armor.  Worn over padded armor.  Thin plates of steel sewn together with leather thongs, backed by more leather.  High quality, decent protection against arrows and melee attacks. Cheap.
Recurve Bow:  General infantry weapon.  A light bow composed of laminated wood and horn, curved backwards to provide more force.  Inexpensive enough to equip many troops with, with very reasonable medium range and power.  Can be wielded by horse archers.
    Bodkin Arrows: Arrows with needle points.  Can reliably penetrate plate armor at point blank range.  Can penetrate less reliably further away.
Arabian Horse:  A light riding horse, from short-lived Iberian settlers in the past.  Very fast and maneuverable, but not too strong.  Expensive.
Horse Breeding Program:  Mass amounts of horses available.  Tend to do poorly in the desert, and aren't quite as high quality as the Arabian Horses. Cheap.
Lances:  Essentially a heavily upgraded spear.  Has a tendency to splinter after the first use.  Cheap.
Sailing Ship:  Wind-propelled wooden ship.  Fast, requires minimal crew, cannot carry many passengers, but does carry at least one wizard - so long as they don't make puns.  Very Expensive.
Ballista: Large siege weapon. Can fire javelins or stone shot great distances accurately.  Reliable enough for consistent use.  Can be mounted on ships.  Wheeled. High-quality siege engineers.Expensive.
    Firestorm ammo: Pots filled with Alnnar Almuqaddasa - "Holy Fire".  Bursts into sticky flame on impact.  Incredibly lethal, incredibly dangerous.  Nearly impossible to extinguish.  Normal Cost.

Spoiler: Moskurger Magical Equipment (click to show/hide)

Wand of Heroism:  Makes a squad fight beyond human levels.  A National Effort.

Teletalk:  Short-ranged psychic communication between mystics.  Enough beacons can be produced to outfit an army.  Expensive.

Staff of Tubikh Rrahim Albarq: Area-of-affect spell anchored to the caster.  Prevents all magic from being cast within a short range.  Spell contained within a staff of ivory, field of effect controllable.  Produces a glow. Expensive.
   Dispell Enchantments:  Dispells enchantments on items, including standard crystal weapons. Expensive.

Spoiler: Moskurger Spells (click to show/hide)

Detect Ambush:  Reveals non-magical ambushes prepared by enemy troops or physical traps.

Lucky Strike:  Magical guidance makes a squad shoot or strike true far more often than usual.  Expensive.

Detect Thoughts:  Read the mind of an enemy commander to determine their tactics ahead of time.  Expensive.
  Zen Inception:  By putting enemy soldiers in a zen-like state, we can use their minds as a relay system to read minds further away.  The spell is easy to disrupt, but simple to use.

Gust of Wind:  Evokes physical force to create a heavy gust of wind, sufficient to disperse fog and most minor concealment, as well as disperse irritating swarms.  Expensive.

Cyclone Shield:  Protects the beneficent from most arrows and some blows with a sheath of wind.  Expensive.

Storm Strike:  Summons heavy rain and winds over the course of a day.  Expensive.
  Clear Weather:  Negates inclement weather within the given area.  Nests within Storm Strike for protection.
  Hammer of Allah:  Induce lightning from summoned storms.  Strikes indiscriminately, so can't be used in "danger close" situations.
  Spear of Allah:  Call down an individual bolt of lightning to target enemy commanders.  Difficult to control, has a tendency to hit the caster as often as not.  Our mages refuse to use it.

Tubikh Rrahim: Area-of-affect spell centered around the caster.  Prevents all magic from being cast within a short range. Cheap.
   Dispell Enchantments:  Dispells enchantments on items, including standard crystal weapons. Expensive.

Behavior Rules.  Please Read.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

As inspired by the "Behavior Rule" attached to Sensei's new Arms Race thread, I've decided to adapt them to Wand Race.  Most of these are blatantly copied from his thread, and I expect them to be followed.  After running this game for a few weeks now and following the last Arms Race, I'm aware that they're prone to attracting bad attitudes.  Keeping the game smooth, on schedule, and argument free is probably a greater concern of mine than whatever you are arguing about: I expect you to be mature and adopt the same attitude.

1. Don't be salty! If at any time you find yourself having an urge to mouth off at another player, step away from the keyboard, go outside, and take a breath. Seriously. Players who repeatedly get angry or passive aggressive will be asked to leave. If you have an issue with the way the game is being run, DO NOT expect a tantrum to get you what you want.

2. Keep in mind that I am not a historian, so there will sometimes be mistakes and inaccuracies. Even in the best of circumstances, minor inconsistencies are a common occurrence. If some piece of equipment is imbalanced/unrealistic, I might consider changing it if you bring it up once -AND ONLY ONCE- and politely state your argument. However, I will err on the side of consistency with my own game, I do not like to go back and change things. Sometimes it is more important to simply keep the game running smoothly than other concerns.

3. Do not accuse me of being biased. Do not accuse me of being biased. I put a lot of effort into being objective and fair and being accused otherwise is pretty fucking irritating.  On multiple occasions this has nearly derailed the game and made me want to abandon it all together. I have absolutely no more patience for this, and if you do it YOU WILL BE BANNED.

4. Do not spy on the other team's private thread. Trust me, playing fair is more fun for everyone!  If you suffer from a lack of self-control and cannot stop yourself from spying, keep it to yourself.  Do not use it to metagame.  And do not post what you saw in the central thread.  This has happened multiple times now, and if you do it you will be banned with no warning.

[Devastator]

Spoiler: You probably don't want to read this (click to show/hide)

Rifling?  They get rifling for a pair of ones?  Rifling that works and doesn't even nerf rate of fire?  Rifling that was successful nerfs rate of fire and adds cost.  Rifling that fails should get nothing.  For two ones on revision we got period-reasonable bodkin arrows that did essentially nothing, and they get a range category and more accuracy on their cannons.  I'm not even sure 1800s era rifling could work with the low pressure of steam.. I think it needed the explosive force to expand the wrapping into the grooves.

That's not even complaining about Steam Engines without riveting or welding to make pressure vessels..

[evictedSaint]

I am allowing all types of bullshit because of magic.

[Devastator]

Can we have mecha-wings for our horses, then?

[evictedSaint]

Knock yourself out, give it a whirl.

[Devastator]

Gimme a sec, then.  We've got grenades, so they'll have a good weapon to use..