Ab Urbe Condita (HOI DD)

[Kurt_Steiner]

Here we are, another adventure, with higher goals than it is usual in me. I plan to narrate in this story the events that will take place when a former empire tries to recover its domains and to overcome the decadence suffered. To do that I'll show those greats things, events and wonders that lead to glory (or shame) by focusing on a family and their individual stories during the period (1911-1926) covered by the game I am playing right now. In case that I'm sucessful in my purpose, this lines could be the beginning of a tetralogy -eat this, Tolkien!- that would cover a period of time that I, in a most half-unconscious way, may imagine.

· Game: Hearts Of Iron 2 DoomsDay 1.3 (last version, methinks)
· Mods: Mod 1914, scenario 1911
· Country: Res Publica Romana (yessssssss, Rome in 1911 AD... no kidding)
· Difficulty: Normal/Normal (However, if the game need it, I could increase it.. or lower it )
· Goals: With Rome? Are you kidding? What can a decent writer do with Rome? Then guess what I can do with her, me, that I'm just a half-witted writAAR
· Who to blame for that: You, Hypocrite lecteur, — mon semblable, — mon frère! for following me and encouraging me with your kind and warm support.

Index
Book I - An Empire is Born.
Book II - (incoming...)

[Kurt_Steiner]

BOOK I

An Empire is Born

Chapter I
No one writes to the primipulus

Rome, during the kalendas of Sextilis, 2663 a.u.c (1)

The two young Romans where so busy talking about their bussiness that the human ocean that came to them, wave after wave, in the vía principalis, meant almost nothing. One of them was a young member of the Senate and it was quite obvious that he was quite offended by something that had happened to him. By his side, his friend, who had just returned from his tour of duty with his legion, was having a vicious fight with the laugh that threatened to overcome his, at that moment, serious countenance. However, a tin grin was beginning to overcome his resistance, as he couldn't resist the comicity of the situation. For him, a soldier, the troubles that polluted the life of his old friend appeared, in an unmistakeable way, as child's play.

-Trust me, Titus! The one to blame it's that silly bull, what I say, bull!!!! that castrated goat, that purulent scum that the Tiber defecated a morning! Well, as I was saying, all ths chaos in the Senate is caused by the cries of that idiot of Enobarbus! Because of him we are still unable to celebrate the elections for aedilis curulis, ha! Oh, yes, indeed, if he keeps blocking the system in that way, perhaps by the time that our greatsons begin to be interested in politics, by then, I say, we'll have some kind of government properly working, but only by that time, I told you! Never, in all of its history, has Rome seen neither such a level of corruption and disruption of the legal sistem, nor so many people reading to accept a bribe!

Titus couldn't resist longer and, with a playful light dacing in his eyes, asked to his furious friend:

-Has your anger something to do with the fact taht you haven't been offered a decent bribe, not a single sestertius for your endless efforts, my dear Lucius?

As if a lighthing had struck him, Lucius remain still looking bewildered at his friend, until his senatorial experience helped him to strike back:

-Gerrae! (2) Of course not, by Jupiter Optimus! I have been offered a great deal of pacts, with huge amounts of money and even some vilas in the most exclusiver places, but, of course, I have declined such overtures, my dear Titus!

-Perhaps because the would-be bribes weren't the ones you wanted to brib... erm, to promote you, I guess -Titus replied, unable to resist the opportunity to tease his friend. Lucius, sighning heavily, replied, with a sad voice:

-Indeed, indeed, that's the sad true behind all this mess... those cunii (3) who offered me their "help" are unable to find their bottoms even if they used both of their hands and a map. Their "help" would not improve my situation, nor I'm going to sell myself by such a lower price... no, Titus, no... the Republic is loosing their best man because those old freaks of the Optimae doesn't want to loose ground to us, the most valuable men that Rome us. But let's change the topic. I'm tired of being the center of the conversation... Congratulations, Primus Pilus!!!! Who would have said that you would rise so fast! And in the IX Legio, what a chance to rise even higher! Your family must be quite proud about you. I'm sure that your sister Julia is...

-I knew that something like that was going to take place... –Titus interrupted Lucius. Titus' fingers were caressing his chin, trying to cover his lips and the grin that theatened to overcome his resistance.

-What? To take place? Where?

-I was wondering when you were going to mention my sister, you fool!

(1) August 1st, 1910
(2) "That's silly!" "Nonsense!”
(3) Plural form of the word 'Cunnus', a Latin taboo word, very disgusting in those days

[Mico94]

sounds nice...
nice title for the first update...it reminds me of a book...

[Enewald]

We readers must blame oursevles for the existence of this aar?

And then you blame a BULL and then you have a idiot called ENobarbus?

You silly author!
Where is Petius?

[El Pip]

Rome in the Great War, that'll be fun. I'm sure they'll be no 12th Battle of the Isonzo with the IX Legion on the case.....

[comagoosie]

Primus Pilus...sounds rather familiar

Anyways, nice start, and I suppose I have myself to blame, I just keep on supporting your brilliant writiing

[Lord Finnish]

Originally Posted by Kurt_Steiner

(3) Plural form of the word 'Cunnus', a Latin taboo word, very disgusting in those days

Hmm I wonder what that means in English

[Myth]

Ave, Caesar!

Oh wait, is Rome still a republic?

[Kurt_Steiner]

Originally Posted by Mico94

sounds nice...
nice title for the first update...it reminds me of a book...

By Gabriel Garcia Marquez, perhaps?

Originally Posted by Enewald

We readers must blame oursevles for the existence of this aar?

Erm... yes, somehow, you know...

Originally Posted by Enewald

And then you blame a BULL and then you have a idiot called ENobarbus?

Sheer coincidence, trust me.

Originally Posted by Enewald

You silly author!
Where is Petius?

Petius is trying to have the Senate to pass a law enforcing the recognition of the pizza as one of the Seven Wonders of the World.

Originally Posted by El Pip

Rome in the Great War, that'll be fun. I'm sure they'll be no 12th Battle of the Isonzo with the IX Legion on the case.....

Well, I'll try not to be stuck on that river for so long. Nor in any other River. Just imagine: the 12th Battle of the Somme... the 9th Battle of the Rhin... the 21st Battle of the Moscowa...

Originally Posted by comagoosie

Primus Pilus...sounds rather familiar]Anyways, nice start, and I suppose I have myself to blame, I just keep on supporting your brilliant writiing

Thanks a lot. I hope I'll be able to keep the level. My readers deserve the effort, of course!

Originally Posted by Lord Finnish

Hmm I wonder what that means in English

No idea, really.

Originally Posted by Myth

Ave, Caesar!

Oh wait, is Rome still a republic?

Yes. Rome is again a republic, once the last Imperator was deposed, but that's another story, that I'll explain in due time I just wanted to skip a long historical introduction this time, but you'll get to know (somehow quite lightly) how Rome survived.

[Enewald]

Both SPQR and old spoken latin survived?

[Jushu]

What on earth, it's the mod 1914 AAR´s revolution! RUN RUN!

[gaiasabre11]

Great start and good to see you begin another masterpiece. Bring more updates on!

[Kurt_Steiner]

Chapter II
A Portrait of a Virgin as a Young Woman

Rome, a.d. X Kal. Sep., festival of Volcanalia, 2663 a.u.c (1)

Pater looked to be awfully tense when he came to my room, that distant morning, to talk to me. It was odd. He, the proud patrician, being not at ease with his obedient daugher? Then I saw him going away with Mater. One of our servants, Pumpidius, helped him to enter into the car. Then Mater did it. It was always the same: he was the first to enter, then she did it, because when he had to go out he needed a lot of help, as Pater was in a delicate state of health and needed a lot of help. U

-Listen carefully, Julia –my father told me that morning-. A close friend has asked me about....

-What?

-He wants to marry you

-Who?

-Quintus Proximus... He’s a good man, from a good family... he has a good social position, you know him... you know, Julia, we have nothing but our dignitas... many sacrifices have been done to keep it intact, and many more will be done.... I know, my daugther... he’s older than you... you must understand... He looks younger, trust me... There will be no problems for the wedding...

"No problems? There are, of course! Not one, but many! I'm not going to marry him, but you're going to marry me with him. There is no love in this affair, I do not love that man, so when I'll give myself to her I won't desire him. I will be like a prostitute, and when I'll say "yes" I'll be lying, thinking just the opposite.

---

Quintus, who was to become my husband, came a bit later. It was a grey day. From time to time a small fragment of light came out from two clouds. Quintus had given me a gift to formalize our union. It was some kind of armchair, small and black, with golden decorations over it, that, it seemed, Quintus had brought to Rome from a place in the East, from a city of Japonia. It had not impressed me, not because it wasn't beatiful- it was, indeed. I was just incapable of showing any delight. I had just become another good, like the little armchair.

Thus, we went all to a jewelry. Quintus wanted me to have a real jewel, as her mother and her grandmother and all the women in his family had. A woman could not be a real lady without that, he said. He wasn't to take anything too humble nor too simple and send away many boxes filled with many gorgeous jewels as they didn't fill his pride. Then came the pièce de resistance, a fantastic jewel that looked as if it had emerged from a dream. It lookes as boucade made of flowers whose leaves were huge diamonds which slept in a golden bed. It was a quite big object, impressive to see.

Quintus then made me happy, as he hesitated when he saw me delighted by that excessive display of gold and diamonds. I was most pleasured when I heard him asking me:

-Is it not too big, darling?

Too expensive, you mean, I thought. I didn't care to answer, and, with hardly a whisper, went to a mirror to see how the little wood of shinning flowers looked on me

Thus, in that way, I was bought by my husband.

---

Some years later, while sitting on the library, I wondered about where in the world Japonia was...

...regio ampla Asiae, in mari Or. f. Sinico, quae tum nativa nobilitiate, tum rerum ab Europaeis ibi gestarum ocasione, multorum calamis tractari meruit, ultima et regionum à nobis versùs Ort. remotarum, elevationemque Poli habet 3.5. gr. tres insula complectens...

An Eastern sea, I thought. I wondered what may be like to cross the seas.

(1) August 23th, 1910

[trekaddict]

Japonia = Japan, right? If so then these romans are displaying almost american levels of ignorance to the rest of the world. This doesn't look good.

[El Pip]

Most interesting to see classical ways mixing with modern technology, driving around in cars but still selling your daughter into marriage to preserve dignitas.

Should be an interesting old tale.

[Enewald]

Patricians don't need to know anything as long as der Kaiser knows what is good for them.

[Kurt_Steiner]

Old and new questions...

Originally Posted by Enewald

Both SPQR and old spoken latin survived?

Of course. After the failure of the Emperors to produce any good ruler, Rome returned to the old days and the Senatvs Popvlvsqve Romanvs came again to full life, as when the first kings of Rome were deposed and the Republic created.

Latin survived, but, as all languages in the world, had its time of evolution and change (from Old Latin to Modern Latin, not forgetting the Middle Latin, the Rennaisance Latin, the New Latin, etc). However, Classical Latin is still spoken among the educated classes and it is still taught in many primary, grammar, and secondary schools, often combined with Greek in the study of Classics. One of the changes suffered included the introduction of signs of punctuation (Thankfully!) so no one writes

LVGETEOVENERESCVPIDINESQVE

today.



But it is still used, as tourists well known in their trips.

Originally Posted by Jushu

What on earth, it's the mod 1914 AAR´s revolution! RUN RUN!

There is nowhere to run, mwhahahahahaha!!!!

Originally Posted by gaiasabre11

Great start and good to see you begin another masterpiece. Bring more updates on!

There you have another one, my friend! Do you think that your Rommel, plurilingual heroe, may speak Latin?

Originally Posted by trekaddict

Japonia = Japan, right? If so then these romans are displaying almost american levels of ignorance to the rest of the world. This doesn't look good.

Why to care about the rest of the world -barbarians, after all- when they are ROME?

Tsch, tsch, tsch...

Originally Posted by El Pip

Most interesting to see classical ways mixing with modern technology, driving around in cars but still selling your daughter into marriage to preserve dignitas.

Should be an interesting old tale.

I hope so

Originally Posted by Enewald

Patricians don't need to know anything as long as der Kaiser knows what is good for them.

The Caesar will tell them, in case some day they would return to have one. Meanwhile, let the Senatvs speak for them.

[demokratickid]

I love it so far! KUTGW, sir!

[gaiasabre11]

Originally Posted by Kurt_Steiner

Do you think that your Rommel, plurilingual heroe, may speak Latin?

Well, most likely not, but his son probably can (but it still depends when I actually write about his son). It's so cool to be able to speak Latin.

BTW, the mentioning of Japonia adds a lot of spices to your AAR. Great Work!

[Hannibal Barca2]

This is just to cool Steiner

Will we see barbarian Gaul tribes ambush Romans in mountains with artillery?

Will Hannibal and his panzers roll in from the Po plains?