For almost a century, the inhabitants of the Vhistland have lived under the reign of the Caccillian monarchy. Recently however, a combination of rising taxes, removal of privileges and a quarrel between the Densk princess Marie-Attelle and Vice-Roy Joseph di Perranno (which is said to be a failed attempt to browbeat her into a marriage with him) has thrown the area into turmoil. The towns of Mörn and Denskbord have declared independence and rebels have begun raiding Caccillian trade vessels. Joseph di Perrano has officially demanded all aristocratic families, influential traders, bishops and guild masters to swear allegiance to the Caccillian throne, under threat of heavy sanctions.
The question now is, will you take it any longer?
This is a largely free-form, tactical role playing game, set in a world similar to 16th century Europe, in which the players take on the role of important characters in the revolution. If you want to join you'll have to provide the following information:
Name
Position (Duke, trader et cetera.)
Linage (if applicable)
Whom you declare allegiance to (The crown or the rebels. This is not binding though, you can always switch)
and a short description of your character.
I'll accept 6 players.
The game is conducted in turns, which are arbitrary units of time roughly between two weeks and a month long. Each turn, you'll give a description of what your plans are, such as hiring mercenaries, besieging towns, holding a feast or lying dead in your grave. At the beginning of a new turn, I'll give a description of what you managed to accomplish. Impossible actions (such as magiking a fleet of ships out of thin air) will not be appreciated, stupid actions (such as assaulting a 10.000 man army head-on with 500 men) might get you killed. If you're dead you can roll a new character, but you'll be put on the waiting list if there is one.
Success on the battlefield is determined as following:
For each side, a random number is chose between 0 and number of units*(equipment modifiers+moral modifiers+surprise and environment modifiers). If the winner's value is less then 1.25x higher then the loser's, the fight is undecided, if it's less then 2x higher, it's a victory and if it's more then 2x higher, the enemy has been completely crushed, which would mean a large part of his or her army is gone and many generals/admirals have been captured or killed. In sea battles, ships can be captured as a result of victory. Likewise, artillery pieces can be captured upon winning a land battle. In either case, one can take prisoners of war (one could chose to kill them all, but that's bound to get you into trouble with some people).
The success of other actions is less well-defined due to the theoretically infinite number of actions you could take. For diplomatic actions the success depends on how well the other parties like you and if they view you as a trustworthy and respectable partner. If you have a habit of not paying your mercenaries, expect to find yourself lacking in troops. Likewise, for non-combat military operations, the success depends on the experience of your generals/admirals, troops important from foreign lands will have trouble navigating the treacherous swamps of the Vhistland.
Most of the map should be self-explanatory.
The small shrub-like icons near amongst others Cessfenn indicate swampy areas.
The other stick-like icons found on land indicates a heavily forested area.
Bumps in the sea indicates sand banks.
The Vhistland used to consist of two kingdoms, an independent duchy and several independent towns, each speaking their own dialect of the Vhist language. The kingdoms were the kingdom of the Densk and the Kingdom of Aärn.
At the time of the Caccillian invasion, the Kingdom of the Densk covered most of the Denskfrand, Ösfrand and Cessmars, stretching from Denskhahn in the east to Randsmed in the west and Middbord in the south. Though officially an independent town, the king of the Densk was also the duke of Mörn. The area's that were part of this kingdom still speak Ösvhist.
The kingdom of Aärn stretched from Iddenberth in the west to Törmdrecht in the east and Ochmed in the south. Though the last dynasty to rule Aärn had a hereditary claim on Aächenberth and Minsberth, these town, supported by the Densk kings, refused to adhere to these claims, leading to the Iddenkrig, an attempt by the Aärns to invade Aächenberth by sea, which was cut short when the Caccillian armada cut them off near the Iddensjid. Most Aärnish ships were shipwrecked on these sand banks and the Aärnish king Pert was captured. Most inhabitants of the former Aärnish lands speak Honhvist, thought the inhabitants of Kesselharb and Aächelsfann speak Kesselervist.
The duchy of Marrest consisted of the towns of Rindreth, Rindbronn and Wodesbarth. After an uprising some 50 years ago of Marrestian nobles against the contemporary Vice-Roy, what is believed to be the entire house of Marrest was executed, along with all rebels supporting them. The towns are currently under direct control of the Vice-Roy.
The towns of Axessven and Meskhabn and the small towns that surround them lie on the few dry hills deep in the swamps that enclose the Meskabt. They're predominantly fishing town that rely entirely on trading and have formed a lose government called the Dechsk, which is a semi-democratic parlemaint in which the village elders hold seat. The Dechsk has officially been abolished by Vice-Roy Phillipe Messia, predecessor of Joseph di Perrano. Requests to reinstate it have fallen upon deaf ears.
The town of Perrionne was originally a trade outpost founded by the duke of Risseille, an island nation to the west of the Vhistland. During the wars between Riseille and Caccillia, many Risseillians sought refuge on the mainland town, which was far away from the battlefield, causing it's population to explode. Currently it's a maze of slums and smuggler dens, held in check by one of the biggest Caccillian garrisons on the Vhistland.
vagel7
Name: Ludwig The Scarred
Position: Duke
Linage: 200 years ago a kind had a bastard son, that bastard son was Ludwig's great-great grandfather
Whom you declare allegiance to: Rebels
and a short description of your character:
A tall scarred young man with dark eyes and black hair. Through his right side of the face there runs a scar, vertically, reminding of a war long ago. He has a streak of grey hair in his black hair from a fist fight. He dresses fancily, but practically and carries a masterfully encrusted falcion. He has a strongly built body made for war. He is always very charismatic and holds dear the results, not the ways that they are reached. he is always mindful of himself and doesn't let emotions get in the way.
knave
Name: Corwin Cortobel
Position: Guild Master of the Greater Vhistland Mercenary Guild
Linage 4th Son of a noble in a foreign land. Not in line for any titles.
Allegiance: Neutral
Description: Arrived in Vhistland twenty years ago as a foreign mercenary from the far away Southlands. He established the first Mercenary Guild in Vhistland to legitimize the mercenary profession and give the Kingdom to a more professional mercenary force and selection. Over the last two decades Corwin has transformed the guild into one of the premiere recruiting bodies in the country. Not only giving local mercenaries a place to find honest pay, but a place where foreign mercs can also band together and offer their services.
Sheb
Name: Jonas Whitslefurner "The Bastard"
Position: Captain of the Crimson Company, a mercenary outfit.
Lineage: Father unknown, mother a tavern wench, Jonas was raised by the monks of St Brucius. A superior that was way too close to his disciples disgusted him from the orders and as soon as he could, he fled the monastery to join a Company. A few years and many battle later, he found himself at the head of a small but effective warband.
Allegiance:None.
Description: Jonas is a strong, muscular fellow of about 45 (nobody really know how old he is). Despite fighting for many years, his face is unscared and all in all he is quite handsome. He specialize in mounted warfare, but is also a great fencer. In life, he want nothing but to get enough gold to live a life of ease and luxuries.
kilakan
Name: Khan Le'Griash the Forest's knife
Position :The Leader of the people of the Garnwold Woods, title:Hunt Master
Linage:Unknown parents and origens, he was found fighting a wolf in the forest when he was very younge.
Whom you declare allegiance to:Rebels
and a short description of your character:A younge man of 25 or so, his skin is tanned and leathery, couvered in so many scars most of the hair on his skin is gone, his hair is wild and blonde, surrounding his face in a mane. He is however cheerful and freindly to those who respect his peoples lands and rights, but his temper can change in a flash at a fight. He is of moderate hight, but stocky build.
starting location:Center of the garnwold woods.
Dwarmin
Name: Friar Pyrus Redmoore
Position: (Public) Minor priest serving in Perrione (Private) Member of the Watchful
Linage: Pyrus's ancient lineage stretches back to the surviors of the house of Marrest, other minor nobles, and surving rebels who after being betrayed, disowned and cast from power, vowed to devote their lives and the lives of all their descendants to the destruction of the House of Perrano. They called themselves the "Watchful". They are few in number, but their hooks extend deep into the power structure of the monarchy, military and religion of the Marrest region.
Whom you declare allegiance to: Rebel
Description of your character: Pyrus is a firebrand preacher, serving in Rindbronn-he's only about 25, short in both height and temper, well toned, with a shock of red hair and green eyes. His fire and blood sermons attract all-wretched and sanctified alike, drawn to his supernatural force of will. Recently, his tone has become far more violent, leadng to riots or mob lynchings against loyalist supporters-little do the people know, he serves the Watchful, and nothing happens he and his compatriots did not plan.
starting location: Rindbronn
Other info: Pyrus has been serving for many years in Rindbronn, carefully cultivating a flock of followers-the recent trouble is a perfect oppurtunity to wrest control of the city away from the crown, and put the Watchful one step closer to putting a dagger in Perranos black heart.
The origins of the watchful are not well documented-the Marrest believe the Perrano family, whom with they had an ancient grudge, manipulated events to goad the Empire into destroying them. The only survivor of Marrest House massacre was the Lords mistress-his true love, so the tale is told. She was carrying 2 sons and a daughter at the time, and gave birth to them not a month afterward. One son and daughter would go on to found the Watchful, and still serve as it's highest members to this day, whilst the remaining son split from his families passive strategy and attempted to kill Perrano directly-he was unsuccesful, and reportedly died in torment in the dungeons of Cessfenn, though no order secrets passed his lips.
The ancient feud between the families, which has led to the death of hundreds and untold misery for all involved, was believed to have been started over something as simple as a thrown fruit at a theater premiere.
Little
Name: Oliver 'Iron' Morte
Position: Pro-Dechsk Revolter, former blacksmith
Linage: Oliver is of common lineage, his father running a smithy in Denskbord and his mother running a small shop where she patched up and made clothes while managing the house.
Whom you declare allegiance to: Rebels
Short Description: Brown hair, tanned and muscular with clear blue eyes and an easy smile. His hands are scarred and callused, more used to beating iron into whatever form he pleases than writing orders and plans.
Other Info: Oliver was always intelligent growing up, his mother taking care to educate him as best she could. His father trained him in the art of weapons-smithery and general forge-working, and was apprenticed at the age of 13 to a family friend in Mörn where his skill was noted. After working hard at the smithy during the day, Oliver would head into town with his band of miscreants and sneak into pubs and brothels, roam the streets, and generally get into trouble, Oliver learning street-smarts and how to manage troublemakers to his best advantage.
Oliver was a hard worker and quite charismatic, and at the age of 17 he boarded a ship and sailed to Meskhabn. Using his wages from working as a deckhand and doing various odd jobs while working on fishing boats for a few months, he set up shop near the harbour and found plenty of work making various weapons for the fishermen and sailors on trade ships and made a bit more money on the side gambling. Always the organiser, he went to his town hall meetings, and was amazed when he learned about the Dechsk. He admired how it allowed the common people to be represented, and slowly struggled to learn to read and write in order to understand the Charter Of The Dechsk. He has worked hard for the eight years he has been in Meskhabn, making many connections in the local guilds and pubs, making many friends among the fishermen and traders and fellow craftsmen and labourers that serve the sailors.
When the Dechsk was abolished, Oliver was outraged and began using his circle of contacts to smuggle anti-monarchist and pro-Dechsk literature throughout Perrionne, Axessven, and Meskhabn. When the Vice-Roy refused to reinstate the parliament, Oliver gathered his more militant and strong compatriots and attacked the local garrison, setting it ablaze. Fleeing into the swamps with his band of former labourers and smiths the next day, Oliver began plotting. He has constructed a base in the deepest part of the marshes, and has armed his little force using weapons smuggled from guild contacts. Now, at the age of 25 and feeling like he can handle anything, Oliver 'Iron' Morte is determined to restore the Dechsk and bring down the Vice-Roy, one way or another.
Author
Topic: Rebellion! Turn 5: Time for a prison break, m'lord? (Read 11362 times)