France's Internal Struggles 2
Hello everyone! I'm blklizard and I am pleased to announce my newest forum game, France's Internal Struggles 2. For those who have played my first game, this is the sequel with the same basic idea but changed mechanics which will be explained below. I am still somewhat of a beginner GM so bear with me if I make any mistakes. I hope to improve quickly and bring a satisfactory experience to those who participate. As the title suggests, this game will be taking place in France. Unlike the first game, we won't be working with a map except for rare occasions where I find it necessary. There will be a lot of numbers involved but I will try my best simplify it as much as possible for our fellow players. Without further ado, let's get to the rules!
Game Rules:
Introduction:
There are no specified dates but various events that arise might give you an indication of the era the game is taking place. Now, I believe you are probably wondering what I meant by internal struggles. There will be a number of noble families that will be competing for power within the nation. We will start with three families but, depending on the number of participants, I might increase that. The main objective is to make your family the strongest in France. There are a number of ways to do so that will be explained below.
This game will be turn based. At the start of each turn, the players will get a chance at making a number of decisions. The decisions might be limited at the start of the game but, as time passes, there will be more made available. At this moment, you will be able to roleplay to your heart's content as you pursue both your own interests and the interest of your family. For the most part, you will need to make wise decision on how to invest your limited resources to get the greatest return. There will be events happening at times to add some diversity.
Influence:
Influence is an indication of the power the family has in court. The higher the influence, the more votes the family has in matters. This is how it works:
Family A, B and C all have 30 influence each at the start.
The three families control a total of 120 votes (for simplicity). Therefore, each family has 40 votes since they control a third of the total influence [30/(30+30+30)=1/3 ].
Family A has 4 members. Each member has 10 votes each.
Family B has 8 members. Each member has 5 votes each.
Family C has 5 members. Each member has 8 votes each.
If Family A's influence grows to 40 while the other two Families remain at 30, Family A controls [40/(40+30+30)] 40% of the total votes (48 votes) while the other two Families control [30/(40+30+30)] 30% of total votes (36 votes) each. As you can see, Family A will be gaining more votes because their influence increased.
Votes on laws will be made available later that could have enormous impact on each families. Influence will only be acquired by certain events I present from time to time. Unlike the first game, influence will only be visible to each individual families so one could never be certain how many votes other families have.
Reputation:
Reputations can rise or fall depending on the decisions made during events. Neutral reputation is 0. Good reputation is greater than 0. Bad reputation is less than 0. One's reputation has direct impact on the rewards of certain events. For example:
The reward for a decision is: + 50 * (1 + reputation * 0.01) ducats.
Player A, with reputation of 50, gets 75 ducats while Player B, with reputation of -50, gets only 25 ducats.
Wealth (ducats)
Wealth will be represented in the game in the form of ducats. Ducats are needed purchase things like buildings and recruiting soldiers. The cost of buildings are shown below:
Farm: (level*100) ducats
Market: (level*100) ducats
Smith: (level*100) ducats
Stable: (level*100) ducats
Food
Food is what you use to feed your people and soldiers. It's usually wise to stockpile food for disasters or you might be facing some peasant problems.
Weapons/Horses
Weapons are needed to equip all your soldiers. Horses are needed for the recruitment of cavalry.
Buildings
Buildings will be needed to make your family strong. Given your limited resources, pick wisely how you wish to use it.
Farm: +10 food/level per turn
Market: +10 ducats/level per turn
Smith: +10 weapons/level per turn
Stable: +10 horses/level per turn
Rebels
Rebels might rise up at times creating havoc if you don't contain the problem in time. There is one type of rebel at the moment (more might be added later) shown below:
Peasant: the most basic rebel type (0.75)
Note the number in brackets. The number indicate the army you need to suppress the rebel type. See example below:
There is a peasant rebel army of 1000 infantry. You need 750 infantry to defeat the army.
There are negative modifiers if the rebels succeed:
Peasant Rebellion Success: -75% ducats/turn, - x ducats (amount may vary throughout the game), - 10 Reputation
Soldiers
There are two types of soldiers: infantry and cavalry. Infantry is your most basic unit that will make the bulk of your army. Cavalry is three times stronger than infantry making them, at times, the deciding factors of battles.
Mercenaries
If a family has insufficient weapons and/or horses to fight rebels, its final line of defense is mercenaries. Mercenaries are very expensive but they are often the better alternative than allowing the rebels to do as they please. The cost of mercenaries will vary throughout the game.
Exchange
The exchange is a building that will be made available every turn where each family can acquire goods they need. A family might be focused on ducat making but require food so the exchange will allow them to exchange ducats for food. Note that the exchange rates may vary at times so, if you need a certain good, it might be a good idea to pay attention to the exchange rates. Only one exchange can be made each turn for each family.
Events:
Events will happen at random occasions at my choosing. They will be in the following format:
Event Name
Event Description.
A. Option 1 (-10 ducats)
B. Option 2 (- 5 ducats)
C. Option 3 (nothing)
First, please bold your decision and make sure you meeting the requirements shown in brackets. If you don't meet the requirements of the option, you will be assigned the default option where nothing happens. Secondly, the outcomes of the options won't be made available until everyone interested voted. This will allow you to make your decisions based on your own hunch without numbers affecting your decision.
Votes:
Votes will happen at various times. Some might involve laws directly affecting a certain class. Others might decide on the future of the nation. They will be in the following format:
Vote Name
Vote Description.
A. Option 1 [France goes with exploration idea]
B. Option 2 [France goes with trade idea]
C. Option 3 [France goes with naval idea]
First, please bold your decision. Secondly, the outcome of the options are shown in the square brackets. Note that votes have no costs. They might have hidden rewards and could unlock new mechanics. Certain votes will have an impact on reputation which affects all families regardless of their stance in the matter.
Reports:
Reports will be presented at the start of each turn. The objective of the reports is to present the various numbers to keep the players updated so they could make the their decisions. If you notice any errors, feel free to notify me.
Character Creation:
Please present in the following format with each player limited to one character:
Name:
Family:
Class:
Religion:
Bio:
Name is pretty straightforward since it's what we call you in-game.
Family will be listed below. Your primary objective is to make your faction the strongest in the government so you hold the most power. Do note that when a faction gets too powerful, they will go through trials that are attempts to weaken them.
Classes consist of noble, merchant and officer.
Religion is the faith that your character follows. At the start, everyone will be Catholic. Once the Reformation starts, you may choose to be Protestant or Reformed as well. After the reformation, different religions will offer different benefits which will be revealed later in the game.
Bio is a simple past to give your character more life. Chances are that this bit won't affect the character.
There is no date of birth. You may keep your character for the entire duration of the game if you'd like. If you wish to change the name, feel free to notify me and I will make the necessary change.
Noble Families:
The three starting noble families will be:
House of Bourbon
House of Orléan
House of Valois
There aren't any differences between the three families except for their names. Feel free to join any of them.
Classes
There are three classes that are available at the moment: noble, merchant and officer. Their bonuses are listed below:
Noble: +10% food/turn from the farm, +10% horses/turn from the stable
Merchant: +10% ducats/turn from the market, 10% discount when family uses exchange (50% is max)
Officer: +10% weapons/turn from the smith, +10% combat bonus to armies (50% is max)
Note: The bonuses above do stack.
Below are explanations of the second bonuses of merchant and officer:
Originally, Family A needs 100 ducats to exchange for 50 food. With one merchant present, this ratio becomes 90 ducats to 50 food.
Originally, Family A needs 750 soldiers to fight 1000 rebel peasants. With one officer present, this ratio becomes 675 soldiers to 1000 rebel peasants.
Heirloom
These could be collected by each families through certain events that might arise. They don't give any bonuses but, rather, are a show of wealth and power.
It's never too late to join!!!