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OOC: Lucky break there, Zeppelin (is supposed to) die in two years! I'm also trying to understand what Polar Mongoose's post means. Anyone understand that thing? He seems to be saying he is spying on France, but I don't get the point.
 
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Chasing Destiny

Kaiser Wilhelm II stood above the Bundesrat on New Year's Day, 1915 and delivered an oration that surprised none in the audience. He had instructed the Reichsheer to prepare for the immediate invasion and seizure of central German lands and the former capitol, Berlin. His speech was concise and pointed. His would be the reign that delivered Germany back to its people. With the Hochseeflotte sailing south for Ost-Afrika, the ships would transport the newly formed 4. and 5. Armee to Europe after a short pause to refit and resupply themselves at Mombasa. The mood was much different than the torrent of emotion experienced prior to the landings outside Wilhelmshaven. Uncertainty was replaced by sheer confidence. A national hero had been made of one Paul von Hindenberg, the commander of 1. Armee that had so devastatingly crushed a foreign force more than triple its size and swung the tide of victory back to the intrepid Germans. He was appointed by Generalfeldmarschall von Moltke to oversee the current operation.

The packed gallery buzzed excitedly at these revelations. Berlin. It was spoken with such a reverence that it may have been salvation itself awaiting them.

When the warships sailed north once more, carrying with it the dreams and sons of an empire, people crammed the dockyards. Banners, streamers and wreaths littered the grounds. Blown kisses from blushing women found their mark amongst boys eager for glory.

Africa was behind them. Europe and the future, lay ahead.

Invade Central Germany with Six Armies.
 
OOC: Well, that about does it for my orders and posts for this turn. I more than likely won't be around between now and when I head out on Sunday. Hopefully the turn orders can be extended, next time around. Since we also seem to be lacking roughly half our participants, surely a few PMs might be in order, telling them that we're back in business? Specifically Utah, Confederate and Falklands.
 
OOC: Maybe a little bit of technology sabotage and thievery? Duplicitous! Scandalous! *rabble, rabble, rabble*
 
OOC: Lucky break there, Zeppelin (is supposed to) die in two years! I'm also trying to understand what Polar Mongoose's post means. Anyone understand that thing? He seems to be saying he is spying on France, but I don't get the point.

OOC: What don't you get? The actual content of the post or why I'm doing it? For content, you are correct, the Hegemony is indeed spying on the French and their technology :ninja:

As for why, it's just a different way to RP the beginnings of a Byzantine air program, thought I'd try and bring a little of the old Byzantine Empire into my Neo-Byzantium. No hostile intent against the French or anything, and I dare say Karl will receive reports on the progress of the German program too now that they have one. I wouldn't want to make presumptions on the security of the French Aeronautics program (that's Deaghaidh's business), so the report could well be considered to contain only publicly available information and a few first-hand observations.
 
The Reforming of the Hosts

As the ice descend following the Fall, Ukraine became inhabitable to all but the worst of savages. Kuban and the Caucasus meanwhile fell under the dominion of the Twelfth House. In the ensuing chaos, tens of thousands, even hundreds of thousands, of Ukrainians and Russians made their way along the Black Sea, where they were instrumental in the founding of the Hegemony. Amongst these refugees were a number of Cossacks peoples, who have since the Fall maintained something of their identity. Already the Caucasus is in Byzantine hands having been wrested from the control of the Persians, and soon Ukraine shall join it. Therefore the Hegemony has declared it is time for the Cossacks to return home.

Once again this region shall become a frontier, though this time a northern frontier. The fortified Sich encampments of the Cossacks shall serve as fortified bastions of civilisation, a place of safety and security for settlers to retreat to in times of crisis. In exchange for policing the frontier and maintaining a force under arms, the newly formed hosts shall be exempt from most forms of imperial taxation and granted substantial autonomy.

The reforming of the hosts has not been without controversy however. An insufficient number of original Cossacks are present in the Hegemony to adequately guard the region and so membership has been opened to any citizens who wish to move to the frontiers, a move which some suspect was made intentionally to ensure the loyalty and Byzantineness of the new hosts. Additionally the Hegemony has begun a concerted effort to settle the region, keen to develop further agricultural resources in the region, and the new Cossack administrations have already come into conflict with the local civilians administrations over issues of jurisdiction.

Orders: Commit another 3 armies to the attack in Ukraine (should be ten in total)
6IP on aerial technology
 
OOC: Yeah, Polar Mongoose, I thought it was something like that. I see we're probably going to share another border next turn. Although I claimed Ukraine, i'm not going to do anything. However, don't think I'll let you take Moscow, which is my goal for next turn; Austria-Hungary would be a better target for you then. You're probably not going to attack Moscow anyway, but in the off chance that you are, know that the red flood is coming.
 
OOC: We already do share a border :eek:

I already acknowledged Russia's prior claims (which didn't include the Ukraine) when subscribing to the division Europe suggested by the French, which has Ukraine and central Europe going to Byzantium. If you want to extend your claims, any resultant conflict is on you :p

Your inbox is full btw GBIT.
 
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OOC: What don't you get? The actual content of the post or why I'm doing it? For content, you are correct, the Hegemony is indeed spying on the French and their technology :ninja:

As for why, it's just a different way to RP the beginnings of a Byzantine air program, thought I'd try and bring a little of the old Byzantine Empire into my Neo-Byzantium. No hostile intent against the French or anything, and I dare say Karl will receive reports on the progress of the German program too now that they have one. I wouldn't want to make presumptions on the security of the French Aeronautics program (that's Deaghaidh's business), so the report could well be considered to contain only publicly available information and a few first-hand observations.

OOC: Despite the best efforts of French intelligence, airship tech would slip out. At this point I have two fleets of military airships, plus a growing population of civilian airships. Each ship means more crewmen, technicians and mechanics building and servicing them. Bribing a member of the ground crew at one of the aerobases would be doable by any competant intel operation. At the very least you could build a general outline based on observations from the ground, having agents take a few rides in the regular Tunis-Palermo or Cadiz-Tangiers passenger service, and from information publicly available in newspapers and promotional materials from the airship companies.

The other side of that is that French merchants are discretely buying up stocks of high tech Byzantine, German, British and American small arms for reverse engineering.

You've got me thinking of a potentially good short story, I might have it up this weekend.
 
It's all Greek to me

In the years following the establishment of the Hegemony, the administration muddled through in the dozen or so languages it's citizens use, attempting to keep the peace with an army of translators. Out of necessity an official language of the administration was decided upon, Greek, chosen due to the widespread dispersed nature of Greek speakers throughout the Hegemony, and the initial strong influence of the Orthodox church with the Hegemony. Other languages have retained a strong presence however; Russian and Bulgarian are common within the military, German is used heavily within scientific circles, Serbian amongst engineers and architects, while out of necessity Arabic and Turkish are common in the administration of the provinces. Even amongst those who profess to speak Greek there is shocking variability in dialect to the point of no longer being mutually intelligible. It certainly doesn't help matters that the different languages of the Hegemony don't even share a common alphabet, adding a whole new layer of complexity for most citizens when it comes to being literate in Greek.

In the opinion of Alexios I this linguistic diversity is holding the empire back. The upper ranks of the administration are dominated by linguists, restricting the pool from which talent is drawn. Meanwhile getting anything done seems to take forever as the necessary paperwork is translated into half a dozen languages. The solution to these problems, it is to be hoped, is what has become known as Standard Greek. Not only shall Greek be the official state language, there shall also be an official version of Greek, with certain inconsistencies ironed out. To the horror of traditionalists across the empire there is also to be an official transcription of Standard Greek into the Roman alphabet, some even go so far as to say that this romanized Greek is to become the preferred version, bringing the Hegemony in line with the French, German and British empires.

To promote the use of this common language a network of schools is being built where children are to be taught the basics of reading and writing. And if they learn to count while they are at it, so much the better. Obviously these changes will take a while to have a significant effect, but developing the Hegemony has to begin somewhere.
 

Invest 1 IP in [Technology], don't want to tip my hand and GBIT's inbox is full!
Use 6 IP to build 3 armies
Invade Cascadia/Washington/Oregon with 11 armies


OOC: I have a list of things I need to RP on, but haven't had time! Hopefully later today.
 
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OOC: PoMo: thats why I said *another* border. As for ukrainean claims... Whups forgot that :p
 
Orders:
Spend 2IP to complete construction of a fleet.
Spend 8IP to build Four Armies.
Invest 1IP in construction of a fleet.
Use Two Fleets to invade England with Eight Armies.
 
Orders:
Spend 2IP to complete construction of a fleet.
Spend 8IP to build Four Armies.
Invest 1IP in construction of a fleet.
Use Two Fleets to invade England with Eight Armies.

OOC: So you're not going to finish the canal then? The French stock market is getting impatient. Investors are getting jittery. They want to see some return on investment.
 
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The United Territories
1915-1920

The following is a grab bag of important news articles published between 1915 and 1920 across the territories.

Death of Theodore Roosevelt

Roosevelt passed away Tuesday after a long battle with wastage from the wounds he received on his Eastern Expedition.

An outstanding leader even as a young man, he was instrumental in helping reunite America in the wake of disaster. He led a large band of Northerners and Midwesterners to Texas, to safety, where he was instrumental in resolving a political crisis. He led us to unity during the Western Civil War. He served admirably as Premier. And he stepped down with dignity.

In the years after leaving the Premiership, Roosevelt used his personal wealth to finance an expedition into the Great Plains. Over many months, his troupe bagged thousands of kills in wild game and vicious predators, including over 300 bears, 3,400 bison, 7,000 deer and 5,400 cannibals. After that great success, he embarked on an even more ambitious plan to travel up the Ohio River.

The expedition, which claims to have crossed the Appalachians and nearly reached Roosevelt’s hometown, New York City, was forced to turn around when they were ambushed by an army of cannibals. Many expedition members were killed in the attack, including several of Roosevelt’s eldest sons. The ex-Premier himself survived but was gravely wounded. After a year of doctors prolonging his life against all odds, he has finally found peace.

Whatever Roosevelt was seeking in New York, we hope he finds it in Heaven.

Roosevelt is survived by 10 wives, 45 children and a cohort of grandchildren.

Roosevelt’s Foreign Policy Abandoned

Plans for rebuilding a navy that have been jammed for years have finally been scrapped by the Congress.

Such a navy would have been necessary to send armies abroad and intervene internationally, as Theodore Roosevelt seemed eager to do. Indeed, when first proposed, it was clear the purpose of the new navy would be to allow our speedy and decisive intervention against the British aggression in Brazil in accordance with Roosevelt’s warning. It is now clear such intervention will never happen.

Congressmen and prominent Church members are now openly criticizing the ‘pseudo-imperialist’ policies Roosevelt had sought to implement, and it seems unlikely we will see a return to any sort of aggressive foreign policy.

Great Plains Homesteading Success!
New Settlements in Oregon Approved
Labor Shortages


The Territorial Army has reported that settlements as far as New Chicago no longer need fear attacks from cannibals or natives, as nearly the entire Ohio and Missouri basins have been secured.

While settlers continue to stream into the Great Plains, the army is expanding the safe settlement zone in North Hold. The government hopes their land-and-silver program will continue to motivate settlers. They are aiming for a settlement area as far north as Vancouver Island.

With enormous lands now needing to be settled, however, the horde of unemployed refugees of yesteryear have been replaced with a shortage of hands. While population growth is solid, it cannot keep with the increasing demands of the booming economy and rapidly receding frontier. Zion’s Board of Trade is looking at subsidizing moving Mexican laborers into industries and large plantations where needed. The Board is also considering a rule change to make unmarried or childless men ineligible for land and silver grants.

Revelation on Presidential Selection

The Quorum of Apostles of the Church of Latter Day States has revealed the President has received a series of revelations that will call for a shift in several policies and matters of administration. The most revelation concerns succession of the presidency: that a blood relation to the original Prophet Joseph Smith is necessary for eligibility to the office of President of the Church.

The Church seeks to calm those who might worry, recalling the schism after the death of Joseph Smith. They reassure that this does not mean hereditary succession; that anyone with any prove-able blood tie to Joseph Smith will have full and equal eligibility. As an aside, it is not believed any of Joseph Smith’s direct descendents survived the Fall.

Some whisper that this is a final act of political decapitation, fully excluding Church moderates who had allied themselves to the secular politics of Theodore Roosevelt from eligibility from office. And others cannot ignore that Joseph F. Smith, Jr., son of the President, a distinguished diplomat and missionary in his own right, is now clearly the most eligible successor.

Everyone knows the President of the Church will also be the President of the Territories. And if before anyone yet did not doubt we were living in a democracy, surely none are left now.

This last article was pulled from the streets the day it was printed.
 
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WIP Article

Orders:
Build 1 Army for 2 I.P
Invade Brazil with 6 Armies
 
OOC: So you're not going to finish the canal then? The French stock market is getting impatient. Investors are getting jittery. They want to see some return on investment.

OOC: The IP portion utterly slipped my mind. Lately I rather need month-long turns to find any time to really think about this game.

Revised Orders:
Spend 2IP to complete construction of a fleet.
Spend 4IP to build Two Armies.
Invest 4IP to complete Suez Canal.
Invest 1IP in construction of a fleet.
Use Two Fleets to invade England with Six Armies.
 
Happy Easter, all! I'm staying with my family, and haven't been around on the forums. Sorry for the traffic jam in my inbox; it's all cleared up now. I can't get to the actual battle results right now, but do have the new map on my phone. Hopefully that sates you a bit!

So please do send me those research expenditures, and I'll still accept CP stuff for last turn until I can get the nitty gritty stuff later. The Suez Canal is opened, as well.


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