You’ve Been Canonized!: Judas Maccabeus
Good evening , everyone , and welcome to this installment of You’ve Been Canonized! our weekly interview segment here on Timelines that brings to light one of our patron authors and we get to know more about them , their thoughts on our AAR , and their current project ! If you’re new to the programme I’m your host canonized author of
Timelines: What if Spain Failed to Control the World? Today’s guest is our good friend (and busy one might I add) Judas Maccabeus author of the CK AAR
After Hastings: A Weekly Report From England the EU2 AAR
O Lord, Our God, Arise: More Weekly Reports From England. It’s also just recently JM’s Birthday so Happy Birthday Judy ! Let’s get to the questions !
Part I: Jewish National Hero and Prolific WritAAR !
A look into who Judas Maccabeus is and his ambitions
canonized: How long have you been writing AARs and how long have you been reading them ?
Judas Maccabeus: I've been writing AARs since I joined the forum in the summer of 2002. I've been reading them even longer--I remember Ariel's old English AAR for EU1... The main one that got me writing (and joining the forums) was Peter Ebbesen's "World Conquest for Dummies". Probably the second-funniest AAR I've ever read, behind Rustican's German RISK AAR.
canonized: It's needless to say that you're a prolific writer ; just one look at your signature repository and you've got a plethora of works under your name . What got you to start writing AARs and what has kept you writing so many to this day ?
Judas Maccabeus: I've always been an avid reader. As soon as I could start reading I got to the great writers of the past and present. Everything from Euripides to Eco. Once I came to the Paradox forums after getting EU1, I saw the stories there, especially the aforementioned England AAR by Ariel. Once I got EU2, it was just a matter of finding a good game. That one was a Spanish 1492 game that became "The Catholic King". I love writing, and I don't get as much of a chance to write in real life, so I do it here. I'm also not afraid to experiment, which causes a large volume of short, abandoned AARs.
canonized: Which of the Paradox games do you own and which are your favourite for writing AARs for and why ?
Judas Maccabeus: I have the first two EUs, Victoria, CK, and HoI 1. CK is my favorite, because of the focus on people--they are given traits, and the events involving them are personal. Vicky has a good political system to work with. And EU2 just has the grand struggle of empires and connections to history. I'm not much of a WW2 person so I've never done a HoI AAR. They're still fun to read, though.
canonized: So tell us why you write , JM . What do you think it is about writing AARs that is such an engrossing experience ?
Judas Maccabeus: It's writing itself, really. I know where the audience is, and know some of them as well as one can know someone on the internet. Also, there's the serial format, which works very well, especially in building up suspense. I think one person here, a few years back, pointed out the similarities to reading Dickens when it first came out. Also, playing the games gives a basic storyline which makes writing easier, allowing one to focus on the details. That's why I don't write as much in real life, even though I'd want to--it's the basic storylines I have most trouble with.
canonized: Even though you have the game to guide you , it's apparently clear that you do a lot of historical research for your pieces . What kind of resources do you use to bring so much accuracy to your works ?
Judas Maccabeus: I have an extensive set of books at home and easy access to two libraries, one of them a university library. Then, of course, there's good old Wikipedia when all else fails. Currently, I'm using two books--a biography of Edward IV and one called English Society in the Later Middle Ages--for my English AAR. I also have an Old English dictionary for the linguistic changes.
canonized: So where did your penchant for history stem from ? Although a lot of people here in the Paradox forums enjoy the subject of history and alternate histories , they have varied motives . How about yourself ?
Judas Maccabeus: My entire family is devoted to history. I caught the bug from them, really. Plus, the real stories of history sometimes captivated me more than stories from fiction. My favorite series of books is Colleen McCollough's (sp?) Masters of Rome series, which are novels based on actual events in the late Roman Republic. That's one reason I like history-book AARs so much--it's as if it were real history rather than a fictional story.
canonized: Well your style certain displays your vast repertoire of readings . Have you thought about going into the history book writing field yourself ?
Judas Maccabeus: Yes, and since I'm pursuing a history degree I might just well pull it off. I'd be just as happy writing biographies as fictional stories set in history, so I can have some flexibility. It's just a matter of that vital inspiration. "The Eternal City" or "The Trees of Autumn" might have worked out that way if I hadn't put them on the forums instead. And if I'd refined them, of course.
Part II: After The Long Haul
JM shares his experience of reading Timelines
canonized: As a history buff such as yourself , what's your take on the alternate set of events that have unfolded as the major backdrop of Timelines ?
Judas Maccabeus: I'm always wary of the "conquering the world" sort of alternate history, but it can be made plausible, and if it is then it can have it's own feel to it. If anyone had a good chance at that sort of thing in that time period, Spain was it. They already did manage to get a good portion of the world... I suppose having a mystical device and some secretive groups on your side helps.
canonized: Haha not to mention control of the Curia
Judas Maccabeus: Yes, having God on your side really helps.
canonized: You and I share a common dilemma that in the grand scope of a history in that there is only so much time we can give to characters and their development , what are your thoughts on Timelines' approach to this ?
Judas Maccabeus: Well, yours is a much larger story concerning a much smaller time period, so you have more room than I do. Your characters are definitely well-made, though. Space is only one part of the equation, after all, it's how you use that space that matters. To accidentally paraphrase an old saying.
canonized: Like so many others recently , you've been someone who's caught up reading over thirty pages to get to where we are now . Tell us a little about your catch-up experience and how it's illuminated the work for you .
Judas Maccabeus: Well, it certainly made sure I didn't forget things. I've been following another long work--frogbeastegg's "Machiavellian Adventures of Princess Eleanor"--from the beginning, and I routinely forget things that happened far back in the narrative. With yours, though, I can still remember most of it. It was also a very fun 8 or 10 hours almost straight. If I can manage to do that I'm obviously reading something good.
canonized: Any happy memories that you would say were the highlights of what you had read ?
Judas Maccabeus: Anything with Cardinal DeWitt. Seriously, though, the adventure under Mecca. A nice little adventure story that had implications for the rest of the tale. The descriptions were wonderfully vivid.
canonized: Haha ; Speaking of Cardinals , you also mentioned to me before that as a fellow Catholic the imagery in the work also contains a deeper meaning for you ; could you explain that and tell us your opinion on the work itself as having Catholic themes ?
Judas Maccabeus: Well, one doesn't see religious imagery that much around here--at least deeper imagery and allegory rather than the usual overt part religion has played in history. Being a Catholic, I'm able to spot the Catholic allegories somewhat (although not necessarily considerably) more easily than I would, say, Jewish or Muslim allegories (though I'd appreciate them if I spotted them). Religion isn't as common a theme for underlying meanings now as it was in the past, and it's always nice to see it show up from time to time.
canonized: Lastly from this section: Any guesses on what the ubiquitous coveted Timepiece is ?
Judas Maccabeus: Perhaps something sent by God to save the world--or the Devil to destroy the world? But that's only one guess of thousands of things it could be.
Part III: Weekly Reports from the Anglo-Saxon Isle
Let’s ask a few questions about JM’s latest project and its CK background !
canonized: Obviously the first thing someone reading your work would notice is that the Battle of Hastings is not exactly how we would recall it in our history ; why did you choose to have an Anglo-Saxon England ?
Judas Maccabeus: Me being of Germanic ancestry, I've always been fascinated by England's Germanic roots. That, and reading Tolkien caused me to be infected with his fascination with them. I'm also a student of languages, and the Anglo-Saxon language is a very interesting one to look at from the perspective of a speaker of its main descendant, to see what's the same and what's different. Part of the whole history is to look at how Anglo-Saxon might have evolved with much less interference along the way. Both politically and culturally as well as linguistically. Then all the neighboring regions get drawn into things as well, as nothing works in a vacuum, so the Welsh, Scots, Irish, and Dutch become very different as well. The result is, in a way, the same as how I look at people in this alternate history, just on a larger scale.
canonized: One of the things that caught me by surprise with your work is its meticulous attention to historical detail even if it is an alternate history . The creation of Crusader States in Iberia, for example, instead of outright vassalization or putting your family members on the throne adds both legitimacy and singularity of focus to your work . What kind of attitudes did you enter with into this endeavor ?
Judas Maccabeus: Well, I knew from the beginning I was intending to make an AAR out of it, so I made sure it was a coherent history rather than a world conquest or the complete chaos that tends to result from CK games. That meant that I have to play sub-optimally, even less than my usual poor ability at gameplay. I decided to think, how would a person of the time view things, and how can I simulate the kinds of things that really happened but which the CK engine doesn't do very well?
canonized: Speaking of your conversion to EU2 , what motivated you to switch ?
Judas Maccabeus: I just couldn't leave things hanging in 1453. Too much had happened to England and too much was unresolved in the historical narrative. Besides, EU2 is a fun game to play, so I couldn't pass that opportunity up.
canonized: How satisfied were you with the EU2 conversion as far as reflecting the historical realities that you wished to bring over and preserve ?
Judas Maccabeus: Fairly, although a few details were wanting. I spent time to make sure everything was tweaked as I wanted it to be. EU3 would have made it easier (and wouldn't be as strained with the alternate setup), but my computer can't run it, so...
canonized: A staple of your work has been the family relations , the role of wives , marshals etc . The political intrigue of vassals within the realm contributed to a large portion of your battles and narrative as well which provide for a very rich tapestry of character movement ; how do you think you'll transfer this over into EU2 ?
Judas Maccabeus: Fortunately, English history in the 1400s and 1500s continued to contain those, so I could just carry that sort of thing over and use EU2's historical events to spark them. And that sort of thing can continue all the way to 1820--political intrigue never stops, and neither do family relations. Just it becomes Parliament and the Peerage rather than real vassals, and the family relations don't have the vital importance they did in the Middle Ages. I can imagine that the political and personal events surrounding the William Pitts, Wellington, and George III can be as captivating as with Siward of Essex, Renaud the Ill-Starred, and the like.
canonized: What kind of alternate history should we expect in the EU2 Arc ?
Judas Maccabeus: Basically, rather than what occurred in CK (with alternate events connected with real-life themes), it will be more real-life events punctuated with alternate twists. Some things have irrevocably changed, though... I'm not going to reveal too much, but it's more than just a few names and locations changing.
canonized: And lastly , what are your AAR plans after this one both for conversion to Ricky and any new AARs you'd like to start ?
Judas Maccabeus: I don't have Revolutions, so it would be plain Victoria, unfortunately. I'm working right now on an opAARa (AAR opera), set in CK... Sort of a high-brow MusicAAR. But I certainly intend to go into Vicky, and maybe even HoI if the game and potential story remain interesting. That would be the main priority.
canonized: Well thank you very much , JM for being on the show ! It was a pleasure . Thank you also to our wonderful audience and thanks again for coming around this week ! I also have a wonderful
announcement to make : our Canonization series will now be sponsored by the new AARLander Monthly Magazine coming out July 1st ! Once a month , You’ve Been Canonized! will be interviewing someone in the AARLander format . We will still continue to do our weekly interviews but the fourth interview that will be featured each month will have its copy featured on the AARLander . All our Canonizations will also be indexed on the AARLander so that we can get greater visibility from the community as a whole ! We look forward to this wonderful new opportunity to expand the Canonization series into the mainstream ! To inaugurate this partnership we will be having anonymous4401 on the show next week and he will be the first to be interviewed for the AARLander format ! Look forward to that and if you have any questions let me know !
