Imperium Offtopicum: The Peshawar Lancers

[GBIT]

Ah, sorry to hear it. I know the feeling, actually; I've been swamped with work on my thesis and neglecting the game a bit. Sorry to you all, I know it's confused a good number of you who think I didn't give your nation any CP. I actually haven't sent out CP yet, so it's more that no-one has any than I missed you. I promise to get those PMs out today.

[Stormbringer]

Could someone explain CPs to me and how I would find out if I have any or not? I'm a little confused on that part. Seems that some countries already have level 2 technologies, which seem prohibitively expensive without CPs.

[Deaghaidh]

Could someone explain CPs to me and how I would find out if I have any or not? I'm a little confused on that part. Seems that some countries already have level 2 technologies, which seem prohibitively expensive without CPs.

OOC: CPs are earned via in character posting. They can be spent on technology, where 1 CP= 2 IP. I think everyone with a level two tech got there partly off CPs They can also be used for other things, like diplomatic annexation of non-player territories (10 CP for a 100% chance), or rebuilding the Suez Canal, or other stuff you contact GBIT about.

CPs are handed out via PM, normally just after turns start but GBIT is running a bit behind.

[GBIT]

CP distributed. Orders can now be officially sent in.

Could someone explain CPs to me and how I would find out if I have any or not? I'm a little confused on that part. Seems that some countries already have level 2 technologies, which seem prohibitively expensive without CPs.

You don't start the game with CP, so you just have the ones you earned from last turn. You can hold on to them as long as you want, and their main purpose is intended to be tech research; as Deaghaidh mentioned, you can also use them to diploannex neutral territories and add +1 to a territory's IP yield for 10CP.

[madtemplar0]

A letter from to the Despot of Georgia:

Hail King Constantine V Mukhrani, of all Georgia;
Greetings to you, my brother-king. I see that your daughter Nino Dadiani is in need of a husband. My brother Vasily is currently in a similar situation, and considering our common heritage I hope you see that the match is a suitable one. I recognize you as a powerful man, having been able to increase the size of your domain nearly eightfold during your reign. Such a man needs allies, and Nova Roma offers an alliance through common blood.
Good tidings.
Mikhail II Rurik, Emperor of Nova Roma and King of the Rus

Spend 5 CP to attempt to diploannex the region to my starting position's left.

[Hyzhenhok]

Delegation to the Falkands' Colonial Government

The Territorial Delegation was hardly perturbed by the Falklander refusal to consider independence. In fact, careful observers might say that they expected such a response. The initial demands were not presented with a tone of naive optimism.

They did not predict the uproar they would provoke with the mere mention of the British Empire, however. To any demands they give further detailed information, however, they could not provide much. Contact with the Empire has not been made by the Territories; knowledge of the survival of the British family and their ongoing rule in Australia (and perhaps further afield in India), however, has begun to disseminate across the Pacific. One delegate helpfully suggests the Falklanders outfit an expedition to Australia; from there, the local government will surely send them to meet whatever survives of the British Empire.

In response to the uproar, however, the delegation chose to retire for the day. The missionaries among them (J. F. Smith, Jr. taking a background role after his identity as the President's son--irrelevant to his duties, on his insistence--was revealed) began laying the groundwork for establishing a permanent mission, on the favorable response they received on that proposal.

Several days afterwards, the diplomats again met with the Falklands government and revealed another letter from Premier Roosevelt, apparently written in anticipation of the turn of events:

To: Governor General of the Falklands, Sir Roger Goldsworthy
From: Premier of the United Territories, Theodore Roosevelt

Sir,

If you are receiving this letter, then you have understandably rejected our demand that you revoke your loyalty to your old Queen. There will be no ill-will between us for that--we understand the spirit of revolution does not take root in an instant. Our intent here was merely to plant a seed.

However, I must warn you that so long as your government pledges loyalty to a foreign sovereign, we will be unable to accept further aggression and expansion on your part. We hope and pray that things will not come to the point where we must use a big stick to enforce the doctrine of Monroe. We have no desire for that moment to ever arrive. Our desire and readiness to establish peaceful missionary activity in Latin America, we hope, will convince you of our sincerity there.

With your permission, we would hope that the Mormons missionaries attached to this diplomatic team will be permitted to stay in your capital to begin establishing their efforts. They will act as intermediates until such a time as permanent embassies can be established.

Signed,
Theodore Roosevelt

The official delegation says it has orders to return to the Territories with or without an official response within a fortnight.

[madtemplar0]

OOC: lol. Hyzenhok's playing more Russian than I am!

[DonCossack]

To Czar Nicolae Alexandrovich Romanov II of Russia,

It is with an unfortunate mixture of emotions that I greet this correspondence from you, Nicky. I have heard very little about your court since our worlds were shattered over twenty years ago and truly, as my cousin, I am grateful that you are still alive. I extend you this courtesy because you are, after all still family. Even as you deliver me such a backhanded insult as to have me contemplate delivering my eldest son to your realm and offer me protection from your own nefarious schemes and devices. I have heard rumours and tales that have made my blood run cold, that same blood which I believed ran through us both. These, tidings, are of such a savage nature that I scarcely believed them true. In God's name, what has happened to your lands and people? To you?

You invite me close with one hand while hide your dagger with the other. Your threats are not so subtle, dear cousin and neither are they without repercussion.

I will not authorize mine own son, nor forsake him, to the ravenous rabble that has become of your empire. I do not know what devil holds sway over you, but know that until I have seen otherwise and believe civilization restored, we remain at an impasse.

Signed,

Kaiser Friedrich Wilhelm Viktor Albrecht von Preußen

[Lord Haldane]

THE QUEEN-EMPRESS VICTORIA:

HER GRAND LIFE AND GLORIOUS REIGN




Victoria's Issue: His Majesty the King-Emperor Edward VII, the Queen-Empress, and the Duke and Duchess of York.

The Story of the Life of Victoria, Queen and Empress, is the Story of England for Sixty-four years. Her career was so closely allied with that of the Glorious Empire over which she reigned for so long a period that the history of one is the history of the other. Called to the throne when less than one month over eighteen years of age, she assumed the duties of her exalted station with modesty, bore herself with dignity and at once demonstrated that, while she had the frail body of a woman*, she possessed, like Queen Elizabeth, "the heart of a King of England."

Victoria made few, if any, mistakes. She chose, as her advisers, the wisest, the most learned, most capable and best equipped statesmen in the Realm; she encouraged by her example, the practice of all the virtues; as a mother, she elevated the domestic circle by caring for her children herself, and never left them to the mercies of nurses and attendants. The Queen-Empress of a sturdy race, and a fighting one as well, never gave her consent to mere wars of conquest; she thought of the widows and orphans, the waste of human life and the other horrors attendant upon warfare; but when it was necessary to take up arms to uphold the honour, the dignity, the integrity, the power and the interests of the Empire, she showed that indomitable spirit and courage which she never failed to evince in the most marked degree of emergencies.

It was this tendency that bore us all, the great British family, through the jaws of Hell and back again. The Fall swallowed our beloved home in blankets of ice and rivers of blood; it did not however, and could never, swallow the spirits of the Sovereign. Though at the time she had presently been affected by the greatest grief in her husband's loss, the magnitude of our tragedy called forth the noblest impulses of Her Majesty and led her to shepherd her flock across the sea, to the uncertain shores of a dominion in peril. Through her indomitable courage in the face of endless challenge, the Mutiny was crushed and at present our Empire strides forward into a new century of surely even greater prosperity than the last. It is just that she lived to see the course of British civilisation righted, and it is undoubted that her funeral procession in Benares will draw from far and wide the well-wishers of her Empire. From the highest to the humbles, all will surely come to catch a glimpse of her funeral barge floating down the stately Ganges before she is interred by the Archbishop of Calcutta.

To her son now falls the great task of stewarding our vast Imperial family. With the breaking of the Oriental potentates in Peking, he presides over the largest proportion of humanity upon the globe, and indeed the most diverse collection of peoples thereupon. May this publication express its deepest hopes that the British Empire go forward into this new century greater in vigour and strength than ever before, and worthy of Victoria’s memory.

The Queen-Empress is dead. Long live the King-Emperor!

OOC:*A veritable direct quote from a biography of Victoria I own, published in 1902, and from which the picture above was taken with my terrible iPhone camera.

[madtemplar0]

To Kaiser Friedrich Wilhelm Viktor Albrecht von Preußen:

In God's name, you say. Christ is dead. Through the icy winter of twenty years, I have led my people by the grace of a true god- without any assistance from that Nazarene, whose words fell empty on the similarly-conditioned stomachs of the Russians. This conversion has not made a cretin of myself, but only strengthened my character. The old world is dead, cousin. This is doubly enforced by your most grave news. The last time I corresponded with your person, Oscar was your fifth son. If he is your heir, mourning is due indeed.

You take my words as a threat. What use have I of ostracizing my family whilst adding men to the ranks of enemies raised against me? Nay, I reinforced the bond which was between us by ensuring that the swords of Russia would not rise to meet you. But I see now how things really are. I see now that this feeling is not mutual, and that you have no use for an old cousin. Who is truly, then, the wretched one? The symbol of your Lord is no pass to commit crimes that very man found unpalatable.

As for the future of your son- do you truly believe I have fallen so far? It appears you must. I do not hold a grudge against you, for surely the loss of most of your family has been devastating. A revelation in truth has not diminished my morality, even as it drove a wedge between us. As that morality still stands- twisted as you may find it- I shall not raise finger against you while you and yours live. But you are blood of my blood no longer. Be it the ice of the north or the poison of the south which changed us, our veins flow with different cruor. It appears the Catholics of France have more man pumping through their heart than you Lutherans, for the Napoleons have seen the true state of affairs, and have recognized the true worth of the Rus. If only you had not been wrought so simple-minded. Perhaps the Byzantines shall not be in such a state; despite this, whatever their response, after I find safe homes for the rest of my daughters I am finished with you men of Christ.

Czar Nicolae Alexandrovich Romanov II, Emperor and Autocrat of All the Russias

OOC: So I'm pretty much using this (expected) refusal to explain why Russia is isolationist in our game, as it was in the book for different reasons. As for France, I didn't expect to get a marriage, but I accept it still, and hopefully if Byzantium ever responds, even positively, you will be willing to marry off the last of my daughters. Let's just see, eh?

Also, you should've looked into German history a bit more, I'm afraid. Oscar really was the fifth son.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wilhelm_II,_German_Emperor

[Deaghaidh]

CP distributed. Orders can now be officially sent in.




You don't start the game with CP, so you just have the ones you earned from last turn. You can hold on to them as long as you want, and their main purpose is intended to be tech research; as Deaghaidh mentioned, you can also use them to diploannex neutral territories and add +1 to a territory's IP yield for 10CP.

OOC: My orders are already done before the turn officially starts.

To recap, France's orders are:
5 IP to finish the world's first air wing
1 IP and 5 CP on the French share of the Suez Canal (11/16 IP)
Invade South France with 5 armies and 1 air wing

[DonCossack]

Also, you should've looked into German history a bit more, I'm afraid. Oscar really was the fifth son.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wilhelm_II,_German_Emperor

OOC: I didn't go back and read your post, so I just assumed you had asked for a son and figured you meant the first-born.

Somehow, I'll manage to move on.

[DonCossack]

Factory Expansion in Dar-Es-Salaam

The Königlich Afrikanische Gewehrfabrik has been providing the Reichsheer with weaponry since its inception over ten years ago. It is widely considered a marvel of modern engineering and German innovation that a facility with such limited resources has been able to dutifully produce and ship volumes of small arms to the waiting hands of soldiers without delays or defects. The Chief of the General Staff has recently approached Paul Mauser with regards to a contract to provide the military with a more modern battle rifle. Several designs have been brought forward for testing and approval and it seems that a likely successor to the Infanterie-Gewehr 71 will be supplied to all personnel by the end of the decade. Reichskanzler von Bülow acknowledged that a wide swathe of land on the outskirts of the city will be appropriated for construction of the new presses, machinery and supply depots required to fulfill this task. Hundreds of skilled and unskilled labourers are sought to fill critical taskings for this undertaking.

Invest 5CP and 1IP into Army Technology Tier II (13 / 25).

Royal Titles Granted

A decree by the Kaiser has granted the lands of South Africa to the House of Wettin, ancestral rulers of the Kingdom of Saxony. The province will immediately transition to a constituent state of the Ostafrikanische Kaiserreich. The second monarchy to have received African lands from the ruling Hohenzollern dynasty, the court is ruled by a relatively new monarch, Frederick Augustus III. He is a dedicated man, committed to service and duty, having served in the Royal Saxon Army prior to 'The Fall' and continued in that capacity during more recent expeditions. He has already reached out to the former head of state for the Afrikaners and kept the more senior and competent members in positions of influence, as a token of goodwill and trust. The seat of power will remain in Bloemfontein, where Frederick Augustus III will conduct his affairs and take on rights as the King of South Africa.



House of Wettin

[Lord Haldane]

KITCHENER'S FLYING COLUMN CROSSES INTO THE SOUDAN!

Arriving from Port Said earlier this week, the monthly Egyptian dispatch clipper has brought reports of astounding affairs in that antique land. Major-General Baden-Powell's victory over the rotting husk of the Khedivate was thoroughly sealed by the proclamation of a united Egyptian Sultanate, under the newly crowned Sultan Hussein Kamel, the late Khedive's uncle who had maintained order in Alexandria; simultaneously, Sir Herbert Kitchener's border post at the First Cataract was overrun by a deluge of harried refugees from the Soudan. The vast majority were citizens of Khartoum, who related to British authorities that a great host of Mohammedan fanatics had arrived from the east and demanded the loyalty of the city at the sword. It remains unclear as to whether these bore any relation to the 'Mahdi' seen off by General Gordon twenty years previous, but they seem to have been roused by diffusing word of "Christian" influence; Agha Khalil Orphali, in any event, apparently remained true to his salt and, in a display which would have brought a swell to the heart of his old Sahib, fought a valiant defensive action while most of the populace fled north. The fate of the defenders remains unknown, though the city had been extensively prepared for a siege and Baden-Powell estimates that it is likely holding out against the Dervish army. With matters decisively settled in Egypt, he has seen fit to order Kitchener, bolstered by several regiments from the north, to steam down the Nile with a flotilla of gunboats and relieve the city if possible. Though some in Parliament have accused the matter of holding little strategic concern, this publication singularly applauds the Major-General's attempt to save Gordon's hard-fought oasis of civilisation in that vast and unforgiving desert.

Sir Herbert Kitchener, and the departing Khartoum Relief Expedition, seen here riding with the 21st (Empress of India's) Lancers, Camel Corps, as a forward guard for the gunboat flotilla.

Our engaged correspondent in Africa, Mr. W.S. Churchill, has been granted permission to accompany the expedition and will certainly lend an invaluable perspective of proceedings in future editions. In other news from Egypt, preliminary work in sourcing material and labour has begun in earnest by the Royal Suez Canal Company; aided by the positively stable climate in the Delta, ground-breaking cannot remain far off.


Orders: Spend Six IP to build Three Armies.
Invest One IP in the construction of a Fleet.
Invade Soudan with Four Armies.

[Stormbringer]

Politics of early 20th century Confederacy

The Presidential election of 1901 was the first contested election in Confederate history, but it was hardly an exercise in mass democracy. Foster, Clark, and Glass jostled for position, and eventually Foster and Glass formed an alliance, forcing Clark to drop his bid. By the time the actual voting took place there was only one name on the ballot.

Foster's Presidency proved to be the period of political revival in the country. With internal problems largely put aside, and an existential threat no longer looming over the country, debate turned to more divisive issues. Foster himself proved to be a rather divisive President on a number of accounts, and by the end of his term there was an organized political opposition. Due to the history of the Civil War political parties did not become established in Confederate political culture as all politicians tried to emphasize their lineage to the Democratic Party of the United States, but the 1907 election certainly saw different wings of this "party" compete for popular support.

The biggest issue of the Foster Presidency was Cuba. In return for Glass' support in the election Foster promised to establish control over the island, which was done in 1903. To this end the Confederacy required a standing army and navy - an idea that drew significant opposition from many citizens. Up until Foster all Confederate politicians agreed that "a government is best which governs least," and had relied on minimal taxes, no government regulation, and an ad-hoc organization of "rifle clubs" to govern the country. The establishment of a professional military was greeted with suspicion, and the taxes required to pay for a navy with outright resentment.

However by the early 20th century the older generation of Confederate politicians was giving way to a new one. Among the younger politicians Woodrow Wilson, Carter Glass, and Joseph Robinson were eager to see the government do more. Glass wanted to see a strong military capable of projecting power to the continental North America, while Wilson and Robinson believed that the stagnant nature of Confederate economy and society could be fixed by government action. All of them, and their supporters, backed Foster in his goal of creating a military and establishing control over Cuba.

As all had expected, Champ Clark emerged as the biggest critic of Foster and Glass, and was ready to run in 1907. In his eyes, the idea of a larger government was folly, and he campaigned actively on a promise to disband the military, sell the navy, and withdraw from Cuba. Many expected Carter Glass to be his challenger, but in 1906 Glass unexpectedly ran to be the first Governor of Cuba, a position he won with ease. This left the "progressive" field without a presumptive nominee. Wilson and Robinson begun to jockey for position, hoping to emerge as the main challenger to Clark. Neither one was particularly popular, although Wilson more so. Heading into 1907 it looked like Champ Clark would win the election with relative ease.

But Clark was opposed not only by "progressives," but also by those who felt that his racist attitude towards the natives did the country a disservice. During his career Clark repeatedly blocked legislation aimed at giving the natives the right to vote. On his watch the national government allowed four states to essentially disenfranchise natives, and resentment was brewing. One of the sharpest critics of the anti-native laws was John Williams, who had fought hard to preserve the rights guaranteed to the natives in the "Wilson" Constitution. Seeing no serious challenge to Clark, he begun to campaign for himself.

In the months leading up to the election little attention was paid to Williams. His campaign was aimed primarily at the natives and at rural populations who had to interact with them. He held no major rallies in the cities, and received not a single newspaper endorsement. The stage appeared to be set for an election that pitched Champ Clark and his wealthy conservatives against the moderate middle class of Robinson and the wealthy progressives of Wilson.

Williams won on an unprecedented turnout by natives and poor rural voters. The "urban elite" was split three ways, but even if it had been united it would not overcome the numbers that voted for Williams. His was the first truly national campaign, and it brought about the realization that democracy was not a privilege for the few well-off anymore. Clark and his supporters tried to challenge the result due to the massive participation of natives in the election, but were ultimately unsuccessful. Williams became the first President who won because of native support.


John Williams, sixths President of the Confederacy

[Thandros]

Just so you know my orders are:

Declare war on Mongolia
Invade with 8 armies
Build 3 armies so I have 8 to invade with
Spend Both my culture Points to help research the Infantry tech (6/25) It should be.

The last one wasn't there before but it is now mainly as before I didn't know how many culture points I had.

[DonCossack]

Political Incorporation of South Africa

In 1904, the Treaty of Bloemfontein received its final assent from Kaiser Wilhelm II. Contained within its pages was the official resignation of Paul Kruger as State President of the Vrijstaat Suid-Afrika and the formal annexation of all previously held lands, titles and holdings. Reichskanzler von Bülow had spent many of the months leading up to this historic agreement journeying to the state capital and receiving dignitaries from its considerable populace. Of particular concern to German officials was the fate of Deutsch-Südwestafrika. Amongst the obligations of the Kaiserreich was to maintain the centre of government at Bloemfontein and the placement of all qualified peoples as Imperial citizens. In addition to this, immediate measures were taken to bolster the ranks of the frontier guards and Schutztruppe. Reinforced feldkompagnies marched against the Herero tribes in the west, who were subsequently driven north and away from the German settlements. Actions were also taken against the Zulu tribes who refused to lay down their claims in the east and by 1905, the area was pacified.

It was with great joy that the South Africans, of all descents, proclaimed their loyalty to the Kaiser. A semblance of order had been instilled into the volatile countryside and the restless natives had been pacified. Status within the Empire had been granted to its people and as such, the ability to maintain positions of influence and authority. Many young men eagerly volunteered for active service within the Schutztruppe and Reichsheer. The close ties promoted by German diplomats have clearly had a positive effect on the entire region. The economic benefit was immediately obvious, as new markets for products and material were opened and goods were freely traded. Gold mining has recently become a very profitable endeavour in the former Transvaal region and the area has been flooded with German investors and entrepreneurs looking to expand their fortunes.



Policing the Frontier

[DonCossack]

Resumption of the Campaign in Central Africa

Following the dreadful losses incurred in the initial stages of the expedition into the province of Congo, Generalfeldmarschall von Schlieffen has indicated that the army has been authorized to draw from the populace of the incorporated teritories in South Africa. The base of volunteer manpower there is substantial. In addition to this, the amount of native Askaris flocking to the banners have not subsided. The wars on the continent have also provided an experienced cadre of veterans that have bolstered the teaching staff at the various depots and acadamies across Ost-Afrika.

A recent report from many of the field hospitals and segregation wards for those having been infected by one or several disease strains is positive and the head of the medical corps has authorized the release of the majority whose symptoms have disappeared and show signs of recovery and most importantly, a lack of transmission to surrounding patients. Some have even been permitted to rejoin their former units and will shortly be making there way again to the front lines.

1. Armee has continuously held the town and lands of Albertville since it was seized. The reconstituted 2. Armee is being marched out to that location for a renewed push on the interior of the region. 3. Armee, composed primarily of German settles from the former south-west colonies and volunteers from South Africa, are reported to be marching against the Herero settlements in the southern Congo and their ultimate goal is Léopoldville itself. It is hoped that a twin assault against the region will sufficiently drain the defenders and lead to the capture of the critical supply and infrastructure hubs of the Belgian resistance.

With recent British incursion into Africa and their attempts to spread their influence into the Sudan, there is a keen sense of urgency amogst senior officers to see this campaign to a successful conclusion.

Spend 4IP towards the creation of the second and third armies.

Invade the province of Congo with three armies.

[Watercress]

Negotiations Conclude in Government House!


Roger Goldsworthy presents the terms agreed to in the Government House negotiations

A joint press statement today by the Governor and a prominent member of the American delegation announced the resolution of negotiations, of which the two parties had been committed to over the previous week. Prompted by a 'reserve' letter brought with the delegation, negotiations came to a amicable, positive conclusion, signified at the end of the statement with a friendly hand shake. The Governor outlined to the public that the Americans had dropped their demand that the Dominion should separate itself from Britain, though he stated that the Americans would like to continue to encourage such a move. In addition, the Americans have requested that further expansion into the Americas was not to occur, and further to this, Mormon missionaries among the Americans will be allowed to remain in Port Stanley to establish missions for their faith.

The American's agreement to allow the Falklands to remain in the Empire has been reacted positively among the population. However, some of the populace, particularly those more conservative, are still disgruntled by the Mormon missionaries, and the request to halt further expansion. Yet the news that news of HM's government may still stand, albeit in the pacific, has fired the imagination and passions of many Falklanders, and now many lobbyists are petitioning for the Governor to organise some sort of Pacific expedition, as the Americans suggested. Has the Queen survived the tragedies and massacres of the great Fall? That is the profound wish of all of us here at the Telegraph, and indeed all of the Dominion. I can confidently say that the day comes soon when we are finally re-united with our brothers and sisters of British blood. Godspeed to the Governor, should be intend to pursue these claims.

[madtemplar0]

OOC: I didn't go back and read your post, so I just assumed you had asked for a son and figured you meant the first-born.

Somehow, I'll manage to move on.

OOC: I hope you don't take my post the wrong way. I've been looking for a way to move my guy's daughters out of the equation, yes, but also and mainly for a way to make Russia become introverted and fall even more into its horrid route, thus remaining true to the story's Russia while changing it for ours.