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[KaguroDraven]

Perhaps while the solders are makeing war the civilions should be focused on the arts, such as music or plays?

[optimumtact]

Fantastic LP Please keep it up.

[Karnewarrior]

Imma watchin' ur LP.

[Iituem]

A Forge at London - Believed to be a late eighth century depiction of the McBaen forge in the complex at London.

Merchant Dynasty: Excerpts from the Diaries of the McBaen Merchant Adventurers

[4th July, 726]

I cannot believe the audacity of the Christian members of court!  Such a minor, unimportant little cult and just because a few of them are rich they think that they can throw their weight around!  The court scholar, Arhenius Julius, already is trying to push forward his 'Julian' calendar.  He promises it will provide a better system of timekeeping, but frankly I think it is all a lot of Christian hogwash!

Aside from that minor displeasure, things have been going well of late.  Our ventures in staples and sundries are reporting fine returns, though my son Ryan is expressing some concern with regard to the Celys and their growing influence in the pork market.  Certainly they may have interests in internal trade, but our chief partners in Aztlan have plenty of pigs and it is in staples that our main profits arise.

Nevertheless, we should be careful not to put all of our eggs in a single basket.  Andrew has highlighted the nearing completion of the forge complex in London and encouraged us to put money into its development and supply.  It's a sound enough investment - London remains the greatest centre of trade and industry in all the kingdom, though any new venture is risky.  I made the decision to commit three hundred ounces of silver to the effort with a provision to increas to five hundred in two years if conditions seem favourable.

Stephen McBaen

Translator's Note:  The Julian calendar would not be adopted across Britain until the early twelfth century.  Dates are to their nearest approximation based on the Hebrew calendar at the time.



[1th May, 737]

Pins.  Horseshoes, springs, pots, pans and even mining picks, but most importantly pins.  This perhaps is where the future lies, and our investments in this area have returned dividends most excellently over these past eleven years.  It is such a simple thing, as well.  I had honestly believed that we might make more money from swords and axes, but the Dukes and Earls prefer to keep militia production well within their own fiefs.  Such a luxurious investment petered out without mention, but the pinnery has blossomed into a flower of wealth.

Everyone wears clothes, and all clothes need pins.  Even when not worn as part of a garment, they are needed for sewing clothing together.  And how could I maintain all my papyrus sheets together without pins?  I cannot imagine a world without pins, and that alone is the source of their wealth.  An individual pin is cheap, but the pinnery produces hundreds in a day.  By moving these all across the kingdom and Aztlan, we are able to supply an insatiable demand.

Otherwise, an excellent May day fair, though some of the young daughters of town were becoming a little too friendly with my sons and their wives I am sure lashed them with their tongues most disapprovingly on their return home.

Stephen McBaen




[30th August, 740]

This month I have seen a villein attain his freedom and a freeman become a serf, and on both accounts will hardship be expected of them.  I knew the villein by sight, a man of seven generations of serfdom, for he had often made journeys to market for his master.  I understand that he has wronged or displeased his lord in some way, and so has been 'gifted' his freedom.  Without any land of his own, and most possessions belonging to his lord, this new freeman has resorted to labour here in Brickfield because there simply is nothing else.  I saw him sleeping on the streets until a week past, so one may assume he has either found lodging or been forcibly removed.

The freeman had the fortune to possess land of his own, and profitable land also.  It is my belief that Earl Corrigan has sought this man's acres and the fine wheat land for some years now, so when last year's winter came early and spoiled his harvest he was all too ready to prepare offering to purchase the land - for a fraction of its true value.  This freeman refused, believing he could survive the next year by rationing his supplies, or perhaps selling even a fraction of his land in payment for the necessary supplies.

There can be no proof of intimidation on the Earl's part, but the fact that no man would buy the land offered, or provide aid, speaks for itself.  After a solid year, with a bountiful harvest almost prepared but the freeman on the doorstep of starvation and poverty, he had no choice but to submit to the Earl's offer of a pittance for his land.  Earl Corrigan then changed the terms of the deal, and in return for his aid required not only his land but his servitude and the servitude of all his children for all generations to come.

Whatever else I might think, Earl Corrigan is not a man I would cross.  I am somewhat derided for keeping slaves in this modern day, but when compared to the treatment of so-called free 'serfs', I feel my own slaves (Aaron, Isaac and Michael) have the better situation.  I feed them, clothe them, house them and beatings are but sparing.  I feel that on balance, my slaves are thankful for their life and for having such a caring master.

Stephen McBaen




[12th July, 746]

With my father's burial and Aaron's hanging passed, the business has fallen to me.  My father left most of his affairs in order, so the transition will be simple enough, though our mother is shocked that Aaron could do such a thing.  Never trust a slave, say I.  We've sold the rest and will do without.  I dealt with business at the Staple today, but beyond that business has been quiet.  Andrew wanted to see me about an investment proposal, something to do with catapults, but it can wait until the morning.

Ryan McBaen



[Translator's note: The Staple was from 694AD onwards the only approved market for gathering wool (staple) for export.  The Staple was originally located in Brickfield Market and export in staple was restricted by law to licensed Merchants of the Staple, or Staplers.  Staplers sometimes also worked with processed textiles, though there was less of a restriction on cloth exports at the time.]



[14th January, 756]

It is absurd that such a fad exists, but it does.  Artillery duelling has become a sport amongst the nobility, in no small part due to the abundance of ballistae, trebuchets and catapults used for defending fortifications.  Most of this artillery is only used during peasant uprisings to keep dissenters distant from the city, when armed men are diverted from the city to put down rebellion by force.  Yet the bored sons of the higher nobility have turned a machine of war into a game of skill and engineering.  Crews of multiple siege weapons now gather on fields to destroy targets, throw the furthest range and even (in the more expensive fights) destroy one another.  It is wasteful, but it trains siege crews well enough and most importantly it makes us a lot of money.  If this insanity continues, our profits from catapult production will outpace those of our more traditional ventures.

Ryan McBaen




[12th December, 796]

Winters are getting harder for me.  My sons and nephews are all eagerly awaiting to inherit, no doubt to pay off their debts, the wastrels.  When Laura passed, Andrew consoled me.  When Andrew passed, his wife Elise consoled me.  Elise has been gone five long years, and now who is left but me?

I am old, so much older than my father, and I cannot help but feel that the world is leaving my kind behind.  As much as we have profited from its changes, I cannot help but fear them also.  It is almost twenty-four years since I was brought the first crossbow to inspect, and now I see them in garrisons and in the hands of nobles - and thieves and rogues.  What have we done?  When I was a boy a longbow was dangerous, as was an axe, but both required years of training for effect.  Now a man may learn to kill in less than five weeks, and it is all our fault for bringing this to pass.

How will G-d judge me for this?  When I stand before Him in Heaven, when Moses and David and Abraham all stand beside me, and the prospect of paradise at hand, will He show mercy or despair?  I cry to think that I have never thought on this, that in the name of wealth I was a party to the murder of men even if I never struck a blow myself.

Are the thoughts of my sons, my grandsons, my great-grandsons ever this troubled?  I said that we have worked in the name of wealth and wealth has rewarded us richly, so much so that my sons let the staple trade languish in favour of trading in arms and metal, and spending all our earnings on women and wine.  Already those vultures the Celys are picking up the fat and riches we leave hanging because we have not cared to our business.  It may take them twenty years, but unless one of my sons should be hit by a rock and come to his senses, they will dominate the Staple as strongly as we did in my youth.

Not all of it is bad, but perhaps all of it is strange.  The desert of Edinburgh, where in my youth they were building the first workshops by the river, is now covered with waterwheels.  They power machines, crushing ore and crushing grain from the fertile banks of the Thames in the name of production, and it is perhaps comfort to me that our investments and innovations have brought this life as well as death.

Perhaps G-d will take this into account when He judges me.  Perhaps this goodness will overcome a life of selfishness and worship of silver.  But I doubt it, just as I doubt I shall last the winter.

Ryan McBaen




[9th June, 872]

Thus ends my first week in government.  I have a pounding headache, and I had it even before we went drinking to celebrate.  There is a certain justice to this; I was born on the very day, seventeen years ago, that the civil service was first established.  I would not have chosen it myself, but with business as it is this is the only area my father still has influence over.  It could be worse - some of my other brothers are at sea.

I am swiftly learning that Court politics play far more of a role in the Service's function than its members might like.  Even down at my level, the apprentice clerks tread carefully to avoid the wrath of even minor nobles lest they find themselves out on the street.  As a result of our fears, the Service is nowhere near as effective as we can be.  We do our best with the funds we are given (and if the Treasury was run like a respectable business instead of the house of charlatans I am beginning to recognise it as, we might have a lot more of said funds) but the ancient feudal rights bind our hands.  So long as the old code of vassalage remains in place each lord has the right to determine law within his own fief, making any sort of universal legal system impossible.

A better structure of government is needed, but who would dare try to impose it?  Not I - the lords are far too powerful not to resist such a change, especially to their detriment.

John McBaen




[12th October, 874]

Snuck my way out of Jess Barlow's house this morning before her brothers caught me.  Fine woman.  So is Julia, mind.  And Mary.  Got back to the lodging in time for a change of clothes and into work, nobody the wiser.

Busy days amongst the clerks.  There's talk of a new monopoly coming, and my brothers and I have been working for a solid year to make sure it goes where it needs to.  Been nineteen years since the first monopoly came about, when the Celys secured a stranglehold on shipping Aztec cod back to the shires.  Put the last nail in the coffin for our old business, if you'll believe our grandfather.  He says the McBaens used to be in staple and staples ourselves, but that seems unlikely.  Everyone knows the Celys have held that market forever.

So we'll hold a market of our own.  It comes down to crossbows and maces, see.  With revolts in the Shires ever more popular these days due to taxation (Treasury needs to sort its business out, we're getting none of it here in the capital), standing armies are becoming all the rage amongst the nobles.  I gather the king isn't too happy about it, but it's more money for the family.  We've been struggling for three generations, I've been told.  A monopoly on crossbows will put us back in business.

John McBaen




4th January, 880

On this frozen January morning, the first galleon-class vessel (the HMS Maria) was launched from the docks at Hastings.  Built by the local shipyard on a half-and-half basis with local merchants, the Mary will serve both as a guard against the growing threat of piracy and serve as a cargo ship for the rest of the time.  I witnessed this myself, here on business for the service.  It is a magnificent ship, and I can't help but think all those ballistae will come in handy.

My own Mary urges me to return, as she misses me.  I miss her too, though having run into my old acquaintance Julia I have taken the time to enjoy her company.  As that of her sister.  When her husband returned I was introduced as a guest and member of the court, and we together sat and ate victuals before I retired to the coaching inn.

John McBean



[31st December, 892]

What with the plague and the fire, it has not been a terribly fortuitous year for London.  I however have had one of the best years of my life.  The position of Chief Constable carries with it a £300 salary per year, and with the various considerations I have received for my word here and there, I have neatly expanded this by another hundred.  Mismanagement of Tafflander fiefs in particular has led to an increased demand for maces to supplement the standing armies, so my investment in the family's business has been paying excellently.

Mary is still not speaking to me after the last indiscretion, but I shouldn't imagine this will last long.  In the meantime, of course, there is always Emily to comfort me...

John McBaen




A brief military analysis of the Tenth Century in Britain.

By the start of the tenth century AD, there were only three notable powers on the British Continent; England, Aztlan and the minor Irish state of Goth.  As early as 920, England had sufficient forces in its standing army to severely damage if not overcome those of Aztlan, but almost all of the army was required simply to put down the near-constant peasant rebellions at home.  Throughout the reign of John II, noble excesses and overtaxation continued to drain the country of its strength even despite the growing military presence.

The solution came not in additional build-up but in popular entertainment, which reached its crowning age around the half-way point of the century.  Plays like 'The Man of Branston' or 'The Tlaxcalan Revenge' became popular not merely amongst the nobility but the urban classes and soon enough travelling performers began crawling the land to entertain village after village amongst the masses.  Much of this was made popular by King Edward's taxation reforms, probably masterminded by elderly civil servant and Master Treasurer John McBaen in the early 940s.  Although the universal rate of taxation was very poorly received by the landed nobility, the additional revenue enabled sponsorship of the arts to flourish and provide the necessary distractions that lessened uprisings for the remainder of the century.

It is worth noting at this stage that in terms of mineral wealth alone, Aztlan easily rivalled England's own resources.  Where England was smelting copper and tin out of the hills south of London, the clay beds of Tenochtitlan proved equally rich.  Similarly, with England long providing iron from its mines near Edinburgh and Brickfield, it is hardly surprising that Aztlan chose to develop the deposits it controlled near Tlaxcala and Texcoco.  This increased exploitation during the tenth century may well have sparked the envy and fears underlying later aggression, for although England had held a military advantage for centuries its rulers were becoming aware of a new power growing and advancing quickly beside them.

In 990AD we can see a Treasury report, drafted in consideration that there might be reason for war with Aztlan and listing the full force of the standing army that could reasonably be spared from home without inspiring outright revolt.

Assuming that our ranks of light infantry, pikemen and the like, are kept back to deal with revolt, we can expect the following resources to come to our disposal should there be a prospect of sufficient profit in a war.  Not all of these forces may hold to their feudal obligation, however, as in putting down riots of the past.

6,600 heavy infantry
of which 3600 are to be equipped with maces and brigantine armour in 6 divisions,
of which 3000 are to be equipped with axes and leather armour in 5 divisions.

6,150 archers
of which 3750 are to be equipped with shortbows as light archers in 5 divisions,
of which 2400 are to be equipped with crossbows as marksmen in 4 divisions.

1600 engineers divided amongst 400 siege weapons in 4 divisions of 100.

Although we have an advantage in terms of cavalry (the Aztecs do not possess large herds of horses fit for riding as we do), most Aztec military training is in anti-cavalry techniques.  They fully expect us to use this advantage in a war, splitting their forces between light infantry in phalanxes, axemen and archers in defensible positions.  As such, we actually have very little reliance on cavalry for war.


As we can see, the English were in a fine position for the events of the century to come.




Not many pictures today, alas.  Might edit the post later to include some.  War post coming soon, though!

[Dwarf]

Woo.

More!

[KaguroDraven]

Yay war post! Unleash Camran! Aztec by blood, scottish/english by how he was raised!

[Iituem]

I have written Camren into the next post, though not strictly as a general...

[Heron TSG]

Fantastic! I can really see why the roleplaying in Eberron slacks off without you around, you are a truly great storywright.

[Sheb]

Awesome!

[Iituem]

Pre-Crusade Aztec Culture

Seven hundred steps later, I've reached the summit of the Third Pyramid of Tenochtitlan and I am both amazed and exhausted.  I can almost feel the age in the stones here, the echoes of the thousands of souls slain by the ancient altar.  Stretching out in every direction, the Old Quarter still retains vestiges of some of the original stone buildings, and the Old Aztec influence on many of the designs continue to give the city its unique character.  The privilege of being able to see the horizon untrammelled is a far cry from the sprawling towers of the Branston metropolis.

To be more prosaic, this is a privilege fought for aggressively by the Tenochtitlan tourism board.  There is a bylaw preventing any building larger than six storeys being constructed in the city to avoid new construction diminishing the glory of the ancient structures, erected before the advent of modern engineering.  The worst of the ravages of tourism have been avoided up here; the tours keep to a strict path and guideropes prevent fat little Orientals greasing up the ancient murals with their grubby fingers.  I can only imagine how hard the historical society must have worked to prevent the city putting a gift shop up here.

Sitting here on Homer's last, greatest work, I can only wonder what went through his mind on the day of its consecration.  Certainly different thoughts to my own; it was a different world, and he fought as hard as those historians to preserve one that neared loss.  I'd best get moving before security finds I've left the trail.  Photos in the comments thread.

- Excerpt, Archaeolo-3's Blog


Artist's depiction of the Second Pyramid of Tenochtitlan in its heyday.

Modern day Aztlan, one of the earliest additions to the British Empire, bears little resemblance to the days when it was an independent state.  One of the most basic myths to be dispelled is that the Aztecs were a single, cohesive people.


The Aztec People and Government

The Aztec Empire was not an empire in the sense that we are used to; rather it was a series of city-states that retained their independence for the most part save for annual tributes to Tenochtitlan.  The term 'Aztec' ('aztecatl' lit. 'from Aztlan') covers a wide range of different peoples, most of whom spoke Nahuatl and by the end of the Empire were in tributary relationships with Tenochtitlan. 

The most prominent of these peoples were the Mexica, the inhabitants of Tenochtitlan and de-facto rulers of the empire.  The Mexica actually formed a minority of the total population of the Aztlan, but were able to maintain their control over the kingdom through constant suppression of their tributaries and a campaign of psychological intimidation distinct from the tendencies of British cities to simply station garrisons to keep the peace in their own lands.  Although this provided the Mexica less direct influence over their subjects, their demands rarely escalated beyond tributary payments - most of the city-states were self-governed and had less reason to rebel.



Tezcatlipoca, Angel of the Night Sky

Religion and Empire

The first Empire can be said to have taken around 300-100BC, when Judaism first reached Tenochtitlan and supplanted the native pantheon of the time.  Most of the old gods, such as Tezcatlipoca, Tlaloc and Quetzalcoatl survived this transition as angels or monstrous servants of God, persisting in that form for the next thousand years.  Unified by the new hybrid faith, the Mexica formed a loose alliance with the city-states of Tlatelolco and Teotihuacan to dominate the surrounding jungle.  This first alliance stood for approximately three hundred years before collapsing.  It would be reformed three more times by its final incarnation in the Triple Aztec Alliance, believed to have been established somewhere around 830AD.

One particular theme that is often recalled (and perhaps unfairly demonised) is the practice of human sacrifice in Aztec culture.  Although prevalent amongst all the peoples of Aztlan (and later Ireland, when Aztec expansion carried it there), the Late Empire Mexica were paricularly infamous for their use of human sacrifice as a political tool in addition to its religious significance.  The Mexica would often demand human subjects for sacrifice as part of their annual tribute, driving their various client states to war against each other to supply the necessary demands.  Human sacrifices during the Late Empire in Tenochtitlan alone are now estimated to have been in the region of 500-700 per annum, though earlier anecdotal accounts by Crusaders placed this estimate far higher.

Quite apart from the value of the intimidation brought about by this practice in keeping a rather fragmentary empire together, the practice of human sacrifice in Aztec culture was a relatively small part of a much broader tradition of general sacrifice.  Because the world-myth of the hybrid Jewish faith told that all the world and its life had sprung from the body of God, Aztec religion preached that all life owed a debt to God for sacrificing Himself to bring it into being.  Indeed, without further sacrifice to empower it the universe would supposedly cease to function.  The act of sacrifice was considered a repayment of this debt and was practiced on the level of human and animal sacrifice, the sacrifice of grains or flowers, the fashioning and breaking of idols and of auto-sacrifice, the practice of piercing one's own flesh with thorns and offering the blood-soaked thorn as a sacrifice. 

Even the temples that served as the stage for such sacrifice were themselves offering mounds; the original bases of the temples were stuffed with treasure, soil and sacrifices upon which their pyramidal structures were based.  Every 52 years, the Aztec equivalent of a century these temples would be rebuilt over the former temple, with a fresh layer of offerings and sacrifices beneath the new stone.  The resultant temples would be even greater, such that by the end of the Late Empire the Second Pyramid was not only the tallest building in Tenochtitlan but consecrated by the deaths of tens of thousands of men and untold numbers of animals.

This rather grim picture is not fully representative of Aztec-Jewish culture; much of the worship that went on did conform to traditional Jewish rites and was relatively bloodless, but the idea of human sacrifice strikes the collective consciousness so powerfully that it deserved extra mention.



Human sacrifice on the summit of the Second Temple

The Late Empire

The Late Empire of the Aztecs came to fruition with the final unification of its people under Moteczuoma I during the ninth century AD.  The Late Empire would last approximately two hundred years, during which it would experience something of a great age of cultural and industrial development before its increasing stature attracted the ire of its more powerful and advanced neighbour.  During this time they perfected iron working, but eschewed the production of steel swords in the English fashion in lieu of making use of the extensive natural deposits of obsidian within the Nahuatl subcontinent.  During this time the first macahuitl were created and used to devastating effect in slaving raids.

Slavery formed an important aspect of the Aztec economy, though the most common form was debt-slavery, a state into which a member of any level of Aztec society could fall into.  As well as providing a valuable source of sacrifices, slaves were instrumental in establishing and working the growing iron mining industry in northren Aztlan and Ireland.  This lucrative trade would lead to the speedy growth of Tlaxcala and its fortification against raids from the Irish Goths.  This fortification would begin the tensions that led to the Crusade.

[Iituem]

The First Crusade

ORNISH: (Admiring) O-ho-beware these professional diplomats. Well now, for example; next week at Deptford we are launching the Great Harry-one thousand tons, four masts, sixty-six ballistae, an overall length of one hundred and seventy-five feet; it's expected to be very effective-all this you probably know. However, you may not know that the King himself will guide her down the river; yes, the King himself will be her pilot. He will have- assistance, of course, but he himself will be her pilot. He will have a pilot's whistle upon which he will blow, and he will wear in every respect a common pilot's uniform. Except for the material, which will be cloth of gold. These innocent fancies require more preparation than you might suppose and someone has to do it. (He spreads his hands) Meanwhile, I do prepare myself for higher things. I stock my mind.
- Excerpt, 'A Man For All Seasons', Robert Bolt

The Influence of Camren Ornish

Camren Ornish was born the bastard son of a Scottish blacksmith and an Aztec seamstress.  He ran away at the age of twelve, served with the Aztec warrior class at Tlaxcala in their constant battles with the Goths and returned to England in service of the Synod.  By the age of 25 he was a competent soldier, could speak English, Welsh, Scottish and Nahuatl fluently and had attached himself to a high-ranking member of the Synod as a private secretary.  Versed in the law and accountancy, he had the ability to resolve disputes and manage the Synod's lands, but his true ability lay in a natural skill with people.  Ornish's existence as something of an anomaly outisde of the usual power structure of court put him in a position of low rank and high influence in London.

Ornish made himself indispensible first to his master, and when his master fell from favour, to the king.  Although Ornish never achieved an official title that would mark him a position at court, he was first observed in public close to King Robert in late 1013 at the debut of 'The Mummers' Dance' in the new Branston theatre.  Though officially accredited to Sir Warrick Dunne of Brickfield, more recent studies indicate that without Ornish's involvement in the project, the first brigade of Medical Cavalry might never have been established.

If this is the case, this may prove the earliest indication that Camren Ornish considered the possibility of war with Aztlan to be real.  The formation of a dedicated force of mounted medics trained as surgeons and horseback archers belied a preparedness for war that would have concerned the Aztec warrior class, though officially they were established in support of injuries received during peacekeeping or conflicts with Gothic raiders.

It is unlikely that Ornish held any particular dislike for the nation he had served in and had birthed his mother.  Rather, we must look to the temperament of King Robert for answers.  Though lauded as a great and wise king during his life (and really, who would not laud their king as great and wise during their own rule?), his highly variable temperament was infamous.  Robert's favour could leave as suddenly as it came, even amongst those in less ephemeral positions of power than Ornish.  Geoff Tornbay in his analysis of the period describes King Robert as:

"[...] deeply insecure, manifesting in a sometimes harsh, sometimes jolly and overbearing nature to mask his fears.  In many ways, Robert may have felt himself a lesser man than his forefathers, having fought no great battle or overcome any great enemy.  Brought up on tales of Scotch and Tafflander conquest, of Harold the Strong and Godwin the Pious, the young Robert dreaded the idea of passing into history uncelebrated.  To an equally young and very clever young statesman, Roberts' fears represented an unrivalled opportunity..."

For nearly twenty years, Ornish is believed to have used his growing web of connections in court to produce evidence to strengthen the king's belief both in English military superiority and the barbarity of Aztec practices.  In return for pandering to the king's own prejudices in this matter, Ornish kept his increasingly unstable position and was richly rewarded for his apparent loyalty.  Pressing a focus on the Aztec use of sacrifice and the growing prevalence of Confucianism in the northern Aztec city-states, whilst enlightening Robert's ministers to the only recently tapped mineral wealth to be found in Aztlan, Ornish hastened a degradation of relations that had already begun the century before.

It is of course both foolish and simple-minded to point to one cause (let alone one man) as being the root of an historical event.  England was already predisposed to war; with the advent of popular entertainment, much of the standing army was restless and unnecessary for keeping the peace.  Because it was unwise to disband large segments of the army (for fear they would turn to banditry) it became obvious that there was need for a constructive use for them, but most expected an invasion of Goth.  The state exchequer was always impoverished, and the quick returns of conquest would have appealed immensely to its Chancellor.  The revulsion for the practice of Aztec sacrifice was recorded long before the Crusade, and the distaste of the Synod for the growing Confucian influence strained relations between the British and Aztec branches of Judaism.  Finally, the Synod's own works propagated a belief that as there was one kingdom of God in Heaven, so there should be only one on Earth.

Ornish saw all of these factors and recognised war as an inevitability.  What he did was speed its progression from a hundred years to less than two dozen.  State policy became less accepting of Aztec immigrants, policies that would be later described as the beginnings of mercantilism were enforced to 'protect' English monopolies, and the prominent and barbaric nature of Xochicalcan Confucianism was paraded as an excuse for violence.  By 1022 outbreaks of banditry and violence on the Edinburgh-Xochicalco border were pushing relations between the country closer to the point of war, and Aztec archers and axemen were observed moving to the garrisoned port town of Atzcapotzalco on the southern Scottish coast.

The years 1025-1030 saw a revolution in practices of military engineering; roadbuilding techniques were improved, and many of the old roads rebuilt to take advantage of them; the first true castle designs were drafted and some of the foundations were laid; the design for the basic spear was improved to support a longer haft, giving rise to such weapons as the awl pike and true polearms.  During this time mercantilist policies extended to the reach that trade was all but cut off with Aztlan, and when a raid by Aztec bandits hit an outlying town under the protection of Edinburgh, England was set to go to war.

The true irony of this is that a year before, Ornish had fallen out of the King's favour and his enemies in court had seen him executed.  He never lived to see the war he had brought to pass.



Historian's note:  Although the Julian calendar would not be accepted officially by the state until the twelfth century, it was already prevalent in Scotland and Taffland and many of the peasantry and nobility already used the months as part of the farming seasons.  The below diaries reflect this.



Xochicalco

From the diary of Sir Robert Ford, Captain, 1st Nottingham Medical Infantry

12th June, 1031

We're about a day out of Edinburgh now, and this might well be the first piece of real action most of these men have seen.  I won't lie, I'm expecting more resistance than a handful of Gothic raiders as well.

We left Edinburgh with a combined force of 1200 macemen between the 3rd York Heavies and our own medical brigade, and Lord David Bronwyck of Brickfield's own guard of 600 axes.  In support two detachments of 750 light archers from Branston and York are backing us up, but I don't expect them to get involved in any serious fighting.  Probably take us a week to get to Xochicalco by foot, even on the roads; a horse might make it in half the time.

We're a new unit, the Medics, mostly assembled from the various monasteries.  Complement of 600, mostly trained in heavy infantry tactics.  50 of them are combat surgeons, and any one of the rest have the basic training to assist in the field.  The term 'sawbones' is getting thrown around a lot, and we aren't popular, but those surgeons are going to save a lot of lives if this comes to fighting.



20th June, 1031

After what felt like a dozen delays, we've reached the border of Xochicalco.  The town proper isn't more than two miles distant, but we're holding off marching until the twenty-fifth.  Orders are to sit here, look impressive and scare the Aztecs into giving up some tribute.  That's what this has all been about, really - the money.  Lord Bronwyck doesn't really give a damn about some border town, and neither does the king, but they both give a damn about the treasury.

I can't complain; we're all on marching pay, and if they couch up within the next five days we don't even have to cross the border.  Easy money, and I'll be glad to avoid the fight.



25th June, 1031

No word from Edinburgh.  Now that we're supposed to be attacking, even Bronwyck's getting nervous.  Officially the orders are to break camp and make preparations; we all know it's stalling for time.



26th June, 1031

Still no word.  We're crossing the border.



27th June, 1031

G-d have mercy on us all.

We're in Xochicalco, what remains of us.  I spent most of the day assisting the surgeons patch up the wounded or putting down riots.  Where to begin?

We reached Xochicalco's gate around yesterday mid-morning.  They didn't have a real wall as such, just a palisade.  Some challenges were issued, mostly as a distraction, and then the York 3rd charged the gates.  About a third of them went down in the first volley, and more by the time they reached the archers.  Short ladders were brought, and the heavies scaled the wall and laid into them with the maces.  They were slaughtered almost to a man; we're saved a handful here and there but the regiment is finished.

What the 3rd did manage was to buy the rest of us time.  My regiment flanked the town from the north, Bronwyck and his guard from the south.  We lacked the training and equipment of the 3rd, but by tying up the better-trained archers we were able to cross around and enter from the rear.  My brigade caught the rear guard by surprise and were able to close before enough shots were fired to decimate us, and Bronwyck's guard rushed through and slaughtered the front archers from behind.  Any remaining defenders ran at that point, and most of the men turned to looting.

We've captured some of the higher members of the town, and together with ransoms we can expect to get a fair haul; some of my men brought me a set of silver chocolatl drinking cups as part of the looting.  I talked with the quartermaster; he's estimated upwards of 50 pounds of silver's worth will end up making it to the treasury.  Probably that much again into our pockets, so no complaints there.

The great irony is that on the eve of the battle, whilst we were garrisoning the town, a rider approached from the west to deliver the news; three days before, the Aztecs had presented a tribute of two hundred and fifty pounds of silver.  They had literally emptied their own treasury trying to bring peace, and here we had started the war.

I have prayed five times since then, and still I feel dishonoured.



The army at Xochicalco.


The York 3rd Heavy Infantry fall.


Bronwyck's guard turn the battle into a rout.



Teotihuacan

From the diary of Baron Charles Brehgo, Captain, 4th York Heavy Infantry

4th April, 1035

His Majesty, Protector of the Faith, Duke of York and our esteemed Sovereign King Robert has declared this a holy war against the evils of Confucianism that have gripped the land of Aztlan, that this war is no evil and that for every Confucian sympathiser slain in honourable combat one's soul shall find purchase in Heaven.

Which is quite fortunate, as it puts the men's minds at ease.  I would rather something to put my stomach at ease, as I have grown to hate the months spent at sea.  King Robert himself, as Duke of York, came aboard our ship today and feasted with some of the captains.  London's only official addition to our numbers has been the provision of the 1st and 4th London Light Archers (travelling on the king's boat), but the 1st York Heavies are travelling along with us, making the whole force directly loyal to the king.

This is probably for the best.  I understand there was a lot of consternation in court regarding possible assassination attempts, but the king has agreed to keep to this first expedition.  There is some concern about the king's advancing age and his lack of direct military experience, but such concerns are dangerous to voice with the king so close by.



1st May, 1035

There were a few short Mayday dances amongst the men, less to welcome the spring and more because we are overjoyed to be able to stay on dry land.

Dry land is an overstatement.  The ground is half-bogged, and frustrating insects constantly bite or scratch me.  I brushed a fern earlier today and now I have a rash like that of poison ivy.  We've eliminated any resistance in this small port and garrisoned it for the duration of our stay.



6th May, 1035

A messenger arrived today from deeper in the continent.  A detachment of archers from York were sent ahead into the jungle on an earlier boat to collapse the iron mines near Texcoco.  They moved into position to start burning down the supports, but were caught by surprise by a phalanx from the nearby city and killed or captured.  Robert has promised retribution.


4th June, 1035

We should be moving sooner rather than later, but the king seems content to wait for the heavy rains to cease.  They have been pressing us almost constantly for a month now and the fear is that combat under such conditions will be all the worse for us.  Another messenger arrived, this time by a small boat.  The Brickfield Medical Cavalry hit the mines to the far north at Tlaxcala, burning them out and destroying or capturing most of the equipment.  Part of the iron supply for Aztlan has been broken, but with a functioning mine at Texcoco they still present a serious threat.



15th June, 1035

Praise be to G-d!  The rains have let up for three whole days, and we feel it is safe to progress to battle.  Furthermore, news has returned from Texcoco - the 1st London Light Archers have broken the garrison at the Texcocan mine, though reinforcement of the structure has prevented them destroying it in a timely manner.  Regardless, their brethren have been avenged, and we prepare to war on Teotihuacan.



20th June, 1035

The roads to the city were too dangerous to travel, being regularly patrolled and risking our position being spotted.  We have travelled instead through the jungle, and are the worse for it.  Many are feverish, and it seems as if snake and shrub alike wish to kill us in this place.  The march is slow, and one can only hope that most of us will make it to the city alive.



30th June, 1035

There is a rather excellent treat made from the local barley, a sort of thin pancake coloured with dyes and spices into pleasant patterns.  Normally it is reserved for special days, and what is today if not special?  I've taken a suitably spacious house and have even enjoyed the luxury of a bath whilst my men stand guard.

We led the charge of course, the king at our head and my men not far behind.  A fantastic charge, with the king on his great shire horse resplendent in breastplate and chain.  Truthfully the king was wounded in the first charge and removed from battle to rest and recovery, but we will remember him leading us to victory, and victory it was!  We suffered from losses from initial archer fire, but once we reached the city we were easily able to dispatch the rogues.

From there it was a simple matter of the 1st Heavies coming in and smashing the phalanxes readied behind the walls, and then to stripping the city down for spoils.  Fantastic day, and very good for the old barony.  I certainly wouldn't want to live in this place, though.



18th September, 1035

The king's well enough to go home, and news from further inland tells us the archers finished off the mine at Texcoco too.  Personally, I think I might stay around a little longer sampling the women here; why not take the offer of an Earlship over a Barony and manage this place after all?  Even if it is a bit hot...



Disposition of forces at Teotihuacan.


The 4th York Heavies lead the charge.


The 1st York Heavies press the advantage.

Historian's Note: Approximately 130lbs of silver in pillage and ransoms was officially returned to England from the battle.




Tlatelolco and Tenochtitlan

From the diary of Captain Ernest Bowman, 2nd York Heavy Infantry

12th May, 1039

It's been three months since we landed in that G-dforsaken hole Teotihuacan, and all of it spent trudging through a hole even worse.  The flies drain at my strength and the men have been killing birds and rodents at every opportunity to replenish it - there is almost nothing to eat here but what we bring.  We dare not; everything here is poison.

I hate this country, and I will be glad to be rid of it.  If our liege had not attached us to Taffeta's regiments, I would gladly be taking part in the siege in Ireland where at least only the men try to kill you.

Earl Taffeta himself does not seem to mind.  The man is so wrapped up in tales of his own conquests (military and, regrettably enough, sexual) that he could have staged a war atop the Pennines and he would not have noticed the cold.  He is utterly convinced that this will prove to be a splendid military victory and that we will just roll into the city and it will bend over and let us take it.

Bollocks it will.  Even under the best circumstances, we're going to take losses.  I've seen the scouting reports; 'only' a brigade of archers and axemen, but what about the defences?  The walls and trenches at Tlatelolco are infamous for stopping even just scattered raiders - how much better are we going to fare?  I just hope the engineers weren't spouting a lot of hot air about bypassing them.



20th May, 1039

Fantastic.  The place is a veritable murder-hole after all.  Pit traps, trenches cut to drive us into the pit traps, into murder-walks where the archers can kill us from above, high earth walls, a bleeding moat and fucking wooden stakes everywhere.

The good news is, we have two detachments of engineers with us, the York Artillery and Branston engineers.  They've brought catapult parts, but it looks like most of their work is going to go into filling in the trenches over moveable shelters and otherwise taming this field of death.



30th May, 1039

Taffeta is a moron.  The engineers are out of materials and we've barely taken down the defences.  The catapult ammunition is all used up bringing down the walls and there just isn't the available rubble left over to keep filling in the ditches.  Unless we're willing to wait the time it takes for more to arrive or be gathered (which means a protracted siege), we shouldn't be trying an attack at all.

The Earl won't be having any of that, of course.  Oh no, not him!  He knows Nottingham's landing next month to siege Tenochtitlan and refuses to be shown up.  So of course he sent us in this afternoon.

We were lucky.  Really lucky.  We rigged up some of those moveable shelters on wheels and managed to trundle most of the men into position against the worst of the archer fire.  We struggled past most of the murder-walks and got close enough to hit the archers and brought it to a melee.  I've got a dagger cut on my leg that's itching like a bastard from what the surgeon put on it, and that was only one run.  We've taken the outer city, but they're setting up barricades further in.



1st June, 1039

Taffeta is insane.  So he thinks that just because we got lucky yesterday, everything else is going to go as well.  He sent in his own heavy infantry to take down the barricades and clean up.  Sure enough, they broke through the barricades easily.  Too easily in fact, because it left them in the winding streets of Tlatelolco, at the mercy of the defenders and the citizenry alike.  Most of them were killed in ambushes or just by Aztecs throwing stones from the rooftops.  The last detachment tried to escape and ended up in the centre of the city at the barracks, a former temple and apparently the training grounds of one of their big warrior chiefs; Tlacaelel, brother to their 'Tlatoani' Montezuma (fancy Aztec word for king).

That's when they met the Jaguars.  We met a couple of jaguars in the jungle, nasty great cats that took out five of our pack horses during the journey, mostly during the night.  They leapt from seemingly thin air, here one moment, gone the next and in between would just crack open a horse's skull with his bare fangs and drag it away.  We killed one, though he took down two men in the effort, and none of us could believe that a great bright orange and black spotted cat could be invisible in a green and brown jungle.  The jaguars were probably the most deadly beasts I've ever faced.

The Aztec Jaguars lived up to the name.  In their perverse form of Judaism, the jaguar represents one of G-d's servants, Texcatlipoca, the keeper of the night sky and one of the nastiest, most cut-throat beings to ever grace Heaven.  Well, I can believe why.  They came at the survivors of the ambushes all at once, dressed in the skins of those beasts and wielding great bright shields and these awful weapons - macuahuitl, they call them.  Like a cross between a club and a sword, a stick of wood with shards of obsidian wedged so tight into it they form a solid blade.  The Jaguars came upon the men, and the macuahuitl aren't designed to kill - they're designed to maim.

The three men that escaped said they could still hear the screams of their fellows behind them, limbs ripped ragged by the weapons and being dragged away to slavery.

Taffeta wanted us to send the archers in to try and finish them off.  Insanity, and nothing more.  The rest of the captains and I have put the Earl under house arrest 'for the good of his health and that of his men'.  Yes, it's treason, but so is sending those men in on a suicide run.  We'll siege the town as long as we have to, but we're not losing our lives for his glory.


Disposition of forces at the start of the siege of Tlatelolco.




From the diary of John Roberts, Earl of Nottingham

12th June, 1039

The HMS Maria, HMS Danielle and MR Xochita have all beached south of Tenochtitlan and the last of my men have disembarked.  We're a couple of days' march distant from the city proper, but I'm glad to be breathing the air above decks again.  Most of the men are restless, but I have them all on drills whilst the rest of the equipment is unloaded.  Branston's engineers are confident that they can bridge the natural moat that Tenochtitlan's lake provides, and I am impressed by how disciplined Duke Edinburgh's marksmen are in their drills.

The McPhearson Clan don't exactly put me at ease, but they are infamously capable mercenaries and I am glad to have the additional manpower.  There may be perhaps discipline issues there, but their own clan chiefs keep the men well enough in check that it does not become a serious issue.  All in all, we've a total of around 1800 heavy infantry, 800 engineers and a little over half a thousand marksmen.  Tenochtitlan's forces number half that, so we should be able to break their resistance before it becomes a siege.



15th June, 1039

Wounded.  A scribe is taking dictation for me.  On balance, the battle went well.

About halfway through the process of building a land bridge across the lake, it became clear to me that my men could not sufficiently overcome enemy resistance on their own.  Remembering the catapult parts brought to overcome built fortifications, I ordered half the engineers to desist from this effort and instead prepare the catapults for a direct assault on the city.  The engineers were understandably perturbed - the sharper amongst them would have realised that it was going to doom them.  Nevertheless, with encouragement from the 2nd Heavies they were persuaded to go ahead with the plan.  The heavy infantry bought them cover by attacking across the rather thin bridge whilst the catapults let loose volleys into the city itself.  I am pleased to say that although the Aztec axemen that were able to slip out under cover of fire slew the majority of the engineers and destroys the catapults, we rained sufficient collateral damage down upon their forces to soften them up for the following charge.

The 2nd Heavies managed to hold the line long enough to eliminate their first line of archers, with two thirds of the troop surviving to everybody's surprise.  I was not yet willing to risk my own men against the remaining entrenched archers, so I opted to field Edinburgh's marksmen in perhaps the first battle test of their ranks.  Edinburgh's captain later complained to me that they were meant to be used against infantry instead of archers, but I feel they held up well enough.  The marksmen engaged in a ranged battle that lasted about an hour, taking as many losses as the enemy.  In the end their superior discipline held up, as the enemy balked and ran before their own nerve broke.  I must commend them.

From there I called upon Clan McPhearson to fulfil their contract, which they did by charging the gates and slaughtering the remaining axemen in defence.  I led my own guard (the 1st Heavy Infantry) to the city where we ended up in heated combat with the Aztec king's personal soldiers, men dressed up in these ridiculous jaguar skins and wielding what I can only describe as clubs with rocks in them.  As absurd as they dressed, they were remarkably capable fighters.  I sustained a wound from their captain before I killed him, but in the end we were victorious and successfully captured the king Montezuma as our prisoner.

The temples here, barbaric as their practices may have been, are still Jewish.  I have forbidden their desecration on threat of execution, though I know that some looting will still take place.  Once things have settled down, I will remain a short time to ensure that this Montezuma is inclined to rule in a manner amenable to us before returning home to my estates.


Disposition of the army at Tenochtitlan.


The 2nd Nottingham Heavy Infantry buy time for siegecraft and eliminate the first rank of archers.


The 2nd Branston Engineers Corps is sacrificed.


The 1st Edinburgh Marksmen engage in a ranged battle.


Nottingham's guard take the fight to Tlatoani Montezuma.




Tlaxcala, Texcoco and the End of the Late Empire

Excerpt from 'A History of the Aztec Crusade' by Kendrick Wales

In 1043, after years of protracted siege, Earl Taffeta's money ran out and he ordered one last strike at Tlatelolco.  His captains, taking over strategic planning, agreed and repeated Nottingham's earlier strategy of sacrificing some of their engineer corps to mount an artillery strike on the city.  This tactic proved less successful than anticipated, as by this time some of the veterans of the Tenochtitlan battle had escaped and joined the men in Tlatelolco, training the soldiers there in anti-siege tactics.  During the attack, spearmen crept out of the city and sabotaged dozens of the siege engines before they were stopped. 

Despite this tactical advantage, though, sheer numerical advantage meant that assault prevailed and Taffeta ordered the last of his surviving infantry into the breach to let them take on the Jaguars individually.  Sometime during the battle his nemesis the Aztec warrior chief Tlacaelel escaped by boat and would later resurface in Tlaxcala.  Taffeta marched what was left of his army into the city and once looting had been completed was just about able to cover the extensive debts his campaign had brought him.  He returned home victorious, but infamous for the protracted siege.


Breaking the siege at Tlatelolco.


The fall of Tlatelolco marked the end of serious Aztec resistance in Aztlan, and the war would grow cold for the next ten years whilst the Aztecs attempted to secure their position in Ireland.  A white siege persisted around Tlaxcala with constant raids by the Scottish to sap the enemy's strength, culminating at last in the battle of 1055.

The young Duke Edinburgh had broken Tlaxcala's high stone walls after months of protracted assault, and once they were brought low enough in August 1055 he was able to move in his army for the kill.  A short, brutal ranged battle began the exchange with the famous Edinburgh marksmen assaulting the Aztec light archers' position.  Aztec arrows blotted out the sun, whilst English crossbow bolts thudded sharp against stone and dull against flesh.  Though the English ranks were almost completely annihilated, the discipline of the 2nd Edinburgh Marksmen held and they maintained ranks long enough to draw back the wounded.

The 3rd Edinburgh Marksmen stepped straight out into the position their retreating fellows had left and held ranks in preparation for the Aztec assault.  Spurred on by tales of English atrocities to the south, the Tlaxcalan axemen emerged from their fortress and charged the English, a thick wave of Aztecs threatening to shatter the English lines.  The captains are reputed to have told their men to hold fire until the very last possible moment, when as one the entire corps let loose their bolts.  Two thirds of the Aztec horde fell in an instant, and though the remainder of the battle was a bloody melee it was soon concluded in English favour. 

The strongest bastion of Aztec culture now broken, Duke Edinburgh is said to have celebrated with seven days of drunken feasting whilst his men lay waste to the city.  By the time they were done, only a thousand inhabitants remained within the city's limits, all others slain, enslaved or fled.  Once again, Tlacaelel escaped the slaughter and retreated to the hilltop fortress of Texcoco to lead his people in rebellion.


The army at Tlaxcala.


The archer battle.


The war grew cold again, save for the almost amusing Battle of Tlacopan in 1058.  In one of the more risky military raids in history, the 2nd Nottingham infantry sack the port town of Tlacopan.  The captain's debts at home are suspected to be a motivation.  Spurring on his ill-equipped, ill-disciplined men to take the town, the captain was barely successful and at cost to his forces.  He was court-martialled, but in light of the 96lbs of silver contributed to the exchequer he was pardoned of all charges.  It is understood that his debtors pardoned him similarly thereafter.

It is estimated that a contributing factor towards his forgiveness may have been due to over half the tax income of the country being spent not even on the war effort but on trying to keep the newly extended kingdom in line.


Finally, in 1071, a combined force of the various Duchies and Earldoms of the kingdom laid siege to Texcoco.  Branston engineers scaled the cliffs at Texcoco, hammering metal spikes into the rock and from them suspending rope ladders to the summit.  Under cover of night the 4th York Heavy Infantry, well-known for their high expertise at fighting in crowded urban environments, scaled the hills and crept into the city, slaughtering the first rank of defenders and opening the gates.  The 1st Heavies lay in wait and, when the gates opened, rushed in to tackle the defending axemen.  Though possessing superior training, the English heavy infantry's advantage in equipment and surprise was sufficient to carry them to victory.  Seeing the battle going well, the York Medical Infantry are believed to have proceeded into the cuty to offer support, but were ambushed and slaughtered by defending archers.  The 4th Edinburgh Marksmen, having taking up positions on the rooftops, were able to clean out the remaining resistance.


The 4th scale the cliffs at Texcoco.


The York Medics are ambushed.


From the diary of Lord Robert Ford, Captain, 1st Nottingham Medical Infantry

12th October, 1071

The long war is over.  We moved into the city to offer support, but as we did so one of my men spotted an escape route dug into the side of the hill.  We followed it and found the leader of the Aztec resistance, Tlacaelel, escaping with a band of his Jaguar guard.  There was no time to gather additional support, so I and those men around me ran after him.

We clashed on a beach of a thin strip of sandy land separating Lake Tipperary and the Eastern Sea.  The fight was intense, and I lost two good men in the melee.  At the end, I came face to face with Tlacaelel himself.  He was a short man, lean but muscled and not particularly comely.  He had suffered a broken arm from a mace strike and his shield hung limp, but he still held his macuahuitl with strength.  I parried a blow from it with my own sabre and the obsidian nicked the blade.  In the next exchange my sword broke his collarbone and when it wrenched it out it was over for him.

With Tlacaelel's death, the Aztecs have no leader.  The war is over.



The last battle with Tlacaelel, on the coast of Tipperary.



The Last Work of Homer

The last rags of resistance on the British continent were wiped out over the next thirty years; Calixtlahuaca, Aztcapotzalco, Goth.  In 1092 a great colossus was built at the docks of Taffeta to celebrate the end of the Crusade, a bronze statue seventy feet high of Moses looking out over the sea and still visible today.  The architect of the design, Homer of Branston, had long been a sympathiser of Aztecs who throughout his life had been characterised as a conquered people.  He studied much of the old culture of the Late Empire and early sketches of the design indicate that the colossus of Moses was to have been cast with Aztec features truer to the origin story of the prophet rather than the distinctly English depiction he ended with.

Known to all is Homer's last work, perhaps the most dramatic and possibly the most violent piece of performance art in history.  Homer sunk his entire fortune into rebuilding the Second Pyramid of Tenochtitlan (after his reconstruction named the Third Pyramid), the ancient temple of the city and centre of faith.  He intended it to be a sign to the Aztec people that their culture lived on, that they would not be forgotten.

On the darkest day of the year 1099, Homer gathered nearly a thousand slaves and a handful of dedicated supporters and began to sacrifice them on the summit of the Pyramid.  The governor of the city sought to intervene, and the sacrifices soon turned into a pitched battle that claimed well over a thousand lives both slave and soldier.  In the final moments, Homer (with the help of his allies) cried out that one last sacrifice would 'repay the debt of Heaven, and that no more need ever be made'.  Homer had his own heart cut out and his body thrown down the steps of the Pyramid, and with that he both ended the contract of sacrifice that defined Aztec culture and immortalised its memory.

A year later Atzcapotzalco and Goth fell, marking the end of resistance on the British Continent and the start of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Aztlan.



The Fall of Goth

Spoiler: The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Aztlan (click to show/hide)

-------------

Goodness that was long.  Homer there at the end was a Great Artist I sacrificed in Tenochtitlan for the sweet culture bonus of 12,000 points, enough to expand its borders to cover most of Aztlan.  One of the worst aspects of war is that it screws the borders of the cities you capture.

[Yaddy1]

Good update. Liked how you used game pictures for battles. What difficulty are you playing on? And what size world?

[KaguroDraven]

Comepletely and utterly awesome. The Aztec are gone. Who next will face the wrath of England?

[Sheb]

Nothing else to add. This is awesome in its purer form. Can we put in suggestions?

[Iituem]

Surely, as I've finally reached the bit I've played to and haven't started any more turns yet.  Probably play some tonight.  Also, thank you for the praise!  Keeps me wanting to do more, hah.

Largest world setting (Huge?), and I think there are 10 Civs left (we either started with 11 or someone died early).  Since the UK now covers an entire continent, we're in good stead for a while.  Sadly, only playing on Noble - I'm not particularly good at Civ.