"Five hundred years have passed since Namid, the Greatest, Master of All Things, laid down the Eternal Law on humanity - but despite the wisdom of our Creator, the blood corruption of men has brought the world to the brink of chaos. In Dalmira, at the heart of the Kingdoms, the assassination of the Black King Conrad after his murder of no less than eight Dukes has shaken the Eternal Law to its very foundation. Though the prompt ascension of Conrad's little known cousin to the throne has adverted civil war, no one can say for how long. In the east, the Marcher's War has ended in a humiliating defeat for Meddeland, not just affording the upstart Ardans independence, but also ending the three hundred year reign of the Brier monarchs. Ardans itself, newly independent, is beset on two sides - by the smarting Meddish to the east, who have already vowed revenge and reconquest on the rebel territory, and the warmongering Dalmirans to the west. Meanwhile, the northern outposts of Hendal have reported something never seen before - heathens in the Wastes, a strange ferocious-looking people from a distant land, nomads and riders of horses - who call themselves the Tavan Morin."
Welcome to All For the Empire, a highly experimental forum game that takes place in a low fantasy world entirely of my own devising. All for the Empire is low fantasy - which basically means that there are fantastical and magical elements, but they are not everyday occurances. There are five nations in All for the Empire: Hendal, Dalmira, Ardans, Meddeland, and the Tavan Morin. All have unique strengths and weaknesses. I have written a short guide to each nation (below) and an extremely detailed summary (further below). The game starts in the year 500.
It is never too late to join. Nations and factions will always need more players in this game.
IRC: Go to http://www.coldfront.net/tiramisu/ and use "/join #AftE_Main" (no quotes) to join us on IRC.
Basically the way All for the Empire works is that all five nations have an autocratic leader played by a player-character. However, he cannot govern his nation alone (or if tries, he will probably fail). Other player characters will join their courts, and can and should be appointed to subordinate roles that will allow them to submit orders.
Here's basically how orders work in All for the Empire:
1) You submit orders for YOURSELF, not for your nation. Orders represent what your character personally is working on.
2) Your character can only be in one place at once.
3) You can submit as many or as few orders as you like in one turn, but the more you submit, the more divided your attention is, and the less likely every order is to succeed. So if you try to do twenty things in one turn, they'll probably all fail.
4) Unless otherwise stated, NPCs in All for the Empire possess the bare minimum of competence necessary to keep things running and maintain the status quo, if that.
5) Therefore, if you want to execute lots of orders, or initiate a project in a far-flung corner of your nation, or whatever, you need to empower another player-character such that he can submit his own orders.
6) And if you want something done right, send a player-character.
More on Orders:
Character Creation:
All for the Empire has five nations, summarized below.
National Unique Characteristic Summaries:
All For the Empire
Welcome to All For the Empire, a highly experimental forum game that takes place in a low fantasy world entirely of my own devising. All for the Empire is low fantasy - which basically means that there are fantastical and magical elements, but they are not everyday occurances. There are five nations in All for the Empire: Hendal, Dalmira, Ardans, Meddeland, and the Tavan Morin. All have unique strengths and weaknesses. I have written a short guide to each nation (below) and an extremely detailed summary (further below). The game starts in the year 500.
It is never too late to join. Nations and factions will always need more players in this game.
IRC: Go to http://www.coldfront.net/tiramisu/ and use "/join #AftE_Main" (no quotes) to join us on IRC.
Basically the way All for the Empire works is that all five nations have an autocratic leader played by a player-character. However, he cannot govern his nation alone (or if tries, he will probably fail). Other player characters will join their courts, and can and should be appointed to subordinate roles that will allow them to submit orders.
Here's basically how orders work in All for the Empire:
1) You submit orders for YOURSELF, not for your nation. Orders represent what your character personally is working on.
2) Your character can only be in one place at once.
3) You can submit as many or as few orders as you like in one turn, but the more you submit, the more divided your attention is, and the less likely every order is to succeed. So if you try to do twenty things in one turn, they'll probably all fail.
4) Unless otherwise stated, NPCs in All for the Empire possess the bare minimum of competence necessary to keep things running and maintain the status quo, if that.
5) Therefore, if you want to execute lots of orders, or initiate a project in a far-flung corner of your nation, or whatever, you need to empower another player-character such that he can submit his own orders.
6) And if you want something done right, send a player-character.
More on Orders:
Example: Armies in All for the Empire basically can't do anything without a general except garrison or camp. If you want to deploy an army as a national leader, you need to either send a player-character to lead the army or lead it yourself. If you choose to lead it yourself, you probably better appoint a steward or a regent or something in your place to make national policy - you won't be able to out in the field.
Example2: Suppose you want to submit a lot of orders - you have lots of policies after all. You may need to appoint a council or a cabinet, a marshal, a treasurer, and a chancellor and whatnot, to oversee policy areas.
This means that players who have joined your court are valuable resources and are necessary to making sure your nation functions. In some nations - like Dalmira - if you don't appoint player-characters, your nation will dissolve or explode into civil war; in others, like Ardans, PCs are necessary to run the country.
Note that players don't have to join a court. They can becomerandom wandering hobos, er independent adventurers. I wouldn't expect much though. They can also fill special character roles (like the Namidist Superius) that I have open. I may restrict/rebalance the courts if too many players end up in one single court.
All for the Empire is turn-based. Every turn represents 1 season (Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter). I will issue major updates each season, with mini-updates as necessary. Battles will probably be mini-updates, for example (I will probably track down people for mini-orders before mini-updates if something of significance happens). I have also compiled massive tables of random events, which will be rolled every turn.
In real time, updates will be irregular. I'll set order deadlines. My Interactive AAR, Power to the People, has priority. I'll generally make them 3-5 days apart or something though. Look in the thread for more instructions on this subject.
A note on orders: I understand that you've gotten accustomed to sending orders by PM. I'm going to say that you shouldn't send me orders by PM unless you're doing something that's actually secret. Matters of simple national policy, construction, recruitment, etc. don't qualify. Military orders can be secret, as are covert espionage actions (ordering an assassination, for instance). If you PM me an order that isn't secret, you'll probably get a penalty.
You can order pretty much anything you can dream up. I'll resolve them through a combination of judgment and dicerolls.
Example2: Suppose you want to submit a lot of orders - you have lots of policies after all. You may need to appoint a council or a cabinet, a marshal, a treasurer, and a chancellor and whatnot, to oversee policy areas.
This means that players who have joined your court are valuable resources and are necessary to making sure your nation functions. In some nations - like Dalmira - if you don't appoint player-characters, your nation will dissolve or explode into civil war; in others, like Ardans, PCs are necessary to run the country.
Note that players don't have to join a court. They can become
All for the Empire is turn-based. Every turn represents 1 season (Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter). I will issue major updates each season, with mini-updates as necessary. Battles will probably be mini-updates, for example (I will probably track down people for mini-orders before mini-updates if something of significance happens). I have also compiled massive tables of random events, which will be rolled every turn.
In real time, updates will be irregular. I'll set order deadlines. My Interactive AAR, Power to the People, has priority. I'll generally make them 3-5 days apart or something though. Look in the thread for more instructions on this subject.
A note on orders: I understand that you've gotten accustomed to sending orders by PM. I'm going to say that you shouldn't send me orders by PM unless you're doing something that's actually secret. Matters of simple national policy, construction, recruitment, etc. don't qualify. Military orders can be secret, as are covert espionage actions (ordering an assassination, for instance). If you PM me an order that isn't secret, you'll probably get a penalty.
You can order pretty much anything you can dream up. I'll resolve them through a combination of judgment and dicerolls.
Character Creation:
The game doesn't have any preset characters in it, unless someone drops out and I need someone to play their character. However, you're not entirely free to make up your character either. I want to establish traits for every character.
You can opt out of the trait system, but if you choose to do this I will basically completely ignore your biography for the purpose of rolls and orders and anything you claim to be (Duke, Superius, title claimant, dragon in human form, whatever), will be nonsense for the purposes of the game.
I use a trait system, where every character has at least two traits: a background and a personality. I have constructed a massive list of both backgrounds and personalities (more than 300 all told), which are ranked --- (disastrous),--,-,0,+,++, or +++ (awesome). The exact contents of both lists are secret.
To get traits, come track me down (via IRC or PM or even just ask in thread). I will then roll a trait pool for your character, which will probably five possible backgrounds and five possible personalities. You get one mulligan (ie: you can ask for a new pool once). I will also assign you a maximum grade, probably ranging from 0 to +6 (++++++), but possibly lower. This determines how good your character is. The sum of the +++s and ---s of your traits has to be equal to or less than your maximum grade.
After you've chosen your traits, I'll note them down on a spreadsheet. Unless they're something that's obviously public knowledge, I'll keep them secret, which means no one else knows what your traits are unless you choose to reveal them. You're also free to lie about them. However, your true traits may become known over time...
Some characters will have automatic traits. Kings, for example, will almost certainly automatically get the Royal Blood (+++) background.
I basically composed this system to prevent godmoding (stop people from declaring themselves title claimants and whatnot) and give people interesting traits. It was not really intended to limit RPing, so I'm pretty flexible about it. If you have a character you really want to play but the trait system won't allow it, come find me and we'll talk about it. We can probably work something out, assuming you don't want to play some kind of epic God-King.
After you get your traits you can make up whatever character you like. If you get killed or die, the performance of your last character may affect the max grade of your new character.
Example:
Character Name: John "Example" Doe
Born: 476 ((the game starts in the year 500))
Background: John "Example" Doe was born in Example City in the proud Kingdom of Examplia. He has a long and proud history of serving as an example, like his father before him, and was first called into service as an example by the King at the age of 16.
Remember, you don't have to share your traits if you don't want to. They're secret. You can also lie about them.
You can opt out of the trait system, but if you choose to do this I will basically completely ignore your biography for the purpose of rolls and orders and anything you claim to be (Duke, Superius, title claimant, dragon in human form, whatever), will be nonsense for the purposes of the game.
I use a trait system, where every character has at least two traits: a background and a personality. I have constructed a massive list of both backgrounds and personalities (more than 300 all told), which are ranked --- (disastrous),--,-,0,+,++, or +++ (awesome). The exact contents of both lists are secret.
To get traits, come track me down (via IRC or PM or even just ask in thread). I will then roll a trait pool for your character, which will probably five possible backgrounds and five possible personalities. You get one mulligan (ie: you can ask for a new pool once). I will also assign you a maximum grade, probably ranging from 0 to +6 (++++++), but possibly lower. This determines how good your character is. The sum of the +++s and ---s of your traits has to be equal to or less than your maximum grade.
After you've chosen your traits, I'll note them down on a spreadsheet. Unless they're something that's obviously public knowledge, I'll keep them secret, which means no one else knows what your traits are unless you choose to reveal them. You're also free to lie about them. However, your true traits may become known over time...
Some characters will have automatic traits. Kings, for example, will almost certainly automatically get the Royal Blood (+++) background.
I basically composed this system to prevent godmoding (stop people from declaring themselves title claimants and whatnot) and give people interesting traits. It was not really intended to limit RPing, so I'm pretty flexible about it. If you have a character you really want to play but the trait system won't allow it, come find me and we'll talk about it. We can probably work something out, assuming you don't want to play some kind of epic God-King.
After you get your traits you can make up whatever character you like. If you get killed or die, the performance of your last character may affect the max grade of your new character.
Example:
Character Name: John "Example" Doe
Born: 476 ((the game starts in the year 500))
Background: John "Example" Doe was born in Example City in the proud Kingdom of Examplia. He has a long and proud history of serving as an example, like his father before him, and was first called into service as an example by the King at the age of 16.
Remember, you don't have to share your traits if you don't want to. They're secret. You can also lie about them.
All for the Empire has five nations, summarized below.
National Unique Characteristic Summaries:
Hendal - Absolute Monarchy - medium population, small excess
Sound Toll: The Hendal capital, Burnhem, sits on the critical Stenian Straits, controlling the entrance into the Kitrine Sea. The lucrative trade along the straits gives Hendal a unique source of income - it charges a toll on all the traffic, the proceeds of which are tremendous. Of course, this is somewhat offset by the necessity of having a navy to protect the trade.
River Watch: An ancient quasi-knightly order in Hendal, called the River Watch, protects the sealane and guards against criminal extortion of the traffic - the power to levy on toll on this traffic is rightly the King's alone, of course. The River Watch is a large military force which has its own revenue sources - it's essentially free.
Trading Center: Goods of all kinds, including extremely exotic wares, are available on the markets of Hendal. This presents some very interesting and unique opportunities, while the merchant marine mounts daring expeditions to distant lands...
Dalmira - Feudal Monarchy - huge population, tiny excess
Eternal Law: Dalmira has always been governed strictly according to the Eternal Law, the holy law code that Namid laid down on mankind. The concord between state and church means the peasants understand that everything is as The Creator of All Things intends them to be. So long as the Eternal Law is not broken (or as long as the church says it is not broken), the peasantry is very unlikely to revolt. No such guarantee can be made for nobles, however...
Feudalism: The Eternal Law mandates feudalism as the system of governance for the faithful, and no nation is more faithful than Dalmira. Dalmira uses vassal territories, Margraves and Dukes, instead of governors and generals. These vassals are highly autonomous, with their own armies, finances, and - on occasion - foreign policy. The King generally must rely on troop contributions from his vassals to go to war. On the plus side, most people are serfs, and serfdom has various benefits.
Religious Center: Dalmira is the home of the Namidist High Priesthood, the Superiacy, and is the spiritual home of Namidism. This gives Dalmira vast influence over the church... and the church vast influence over Dalmira.
Meddeland - Limited Monarchy - medium population, medium excess
Great Council: The King's power to levy taxes in Meddeland is limited - most taxes, like property and city taxes, can only be levied by the Great Council. When the King wants to embark on an expensive campaign, he can request funds from the Council, who have tremendous power to provide it to him... but they may attach strings, conditions which are binding on the King if he accepts the money.
Council Code: In the not-so-distant past, the Brier Monarchs accepted the Council Code, a code of laws that cannot be breached, even by the King. In addition to abolishing serfdom, they guarantee certain "rights" to all people - or respectable people, at least - including the right to trial. That means the King can't dispense justice as he pleases, executing and imprisoning people willy-nilly, nor can he demand labor and property from free men without compensation.
Banking Center: Hendal might have had a powerful banking sector if it weren't for their Kings' unfortunate tendency to raid banks for gold when they run short of cash. Instead, the banking sector is based in Meddeland, where the Council Code gives some more concrete guarantees on the subject of private property. It gives the King the latitude to borrow money when he's not on good terms with the Great Council, and also means that every other foolhardy monarch running a deficit has to look for Meddeland for funds.
Ardans - Oligarchy - small population, medium excess
Nationalism: The Ardans engineered their own Liberation after eighty years of occupation, defeating the Meddish army decisively and throwing off the yoke of those who would claim to be their "King." The Ardan people are proud and strongly believe in their own state. This has a variety of benefits - people are more likely to work hard and shed blood for their sacred soil, but be wary. Nationalism can be a double-edged sword.
Oligarchy: Ardans has no sovereign - "Death to Kings" was a rallying cry of the Liberation. Instead, the nation is governed by a council of five oligarchs, headed by a "Marcher." A new Marcher is elected by the oligarchs when the old one dies. Though this is realistically little more than a military dictatorship, it is a deeply engrained part of the Ardans culture.
So Far From God: The primary religion of Ardans is Old Statism, a heresy of Namidism that diverged from the mother church hundreds of years ago. It rejects the incorporation of feudalism into the Eternal Law. However, during the occupation, Old Statism became decentralized (and somewhat disorganized); if the Superiacy is to be believed, Ardans is breeding ground for new and even more egregious heresy. It certainly is true that the secretive Cult of the Skyseeker is much more active in Ardans. Though hated and feared by the public, perhaps they could even help an ambitious Ardan on his road to power...
Tavan Morin - Tribal Despotism - enough people, excess not applicable
Nomads: The Tavan Morin migrate freely and have an entirely nomadic culture, living off the land and whatever they find along the way. Concepts like "cities," "administration," "economy," and even "government" have little meaning to them. They do not have a budget or territory to constrain them, and that makes them dangerous.
Horse Masters: The Tavan Morin spend their whole lives in the saddle. Horses are not just their mainstay; horses are part of the Tavan Morin religion and are practically their currency. Their leader, the Dagch Morin, is literally the "horse master." Everyone owns a horse and is an expert rider - which could prove an unexpected challenge for the Namidist Kings, who have not been fielding much cavalry of late...
Strangers in a Strange Land: Fleeing their enemies, the Tavan Morin have migrated thousands of miles from parts of unknown. Their language, culture, and religion are all deeply strange to the Namidist princes and kings. Concepts, social mores, and conventions that have kept the order for centuries do not apply to them.
Sound Toll: The Hendal capital, Burnhem, sits on the critical Stenian Straits, controlling the entrance into the Kitrine Sea. The lucrative trade along the straits gives Hendal a unique source of income - it charges a toll on all the traffic, the proceeds of which are tremendous. Of course, this is somewhat offset by the necessity of having a navy to protect the trade.
River Watch: An ancient quasi-knightly order in Hendal, called the River Watch, protects the sealane and guards against criminal extortion of the traffic - the power to levy on toll on this traffic is rightly the King's alone, of course. The River Watch is a large military force which has its own revenue sources - it's essentially free.
Trading Center: Goods of all kinds, including extremely exotic wares, are available on the markets of Hendal. This presents some very interesting and unique opportunities, while the merchant marine mounts daring expeditions to distant lands...
Dalmira - Feudal Monarchy - huge population, tiny excess
Eternal Law: Dalmira has always been governed strictly according to the Eternal Law, the holy law code that Namid laid down on mankind. The concord between state and church means the peasants understand that everything is as The Creator of All Things intends them to be. So long as the Eternal Law is not broken (or as long as the church says it is not broken), the peasantry is very unlikely to revolt. No such guarantee can be made for nobles, however...
Feudalism: The Eternal Law mandates feudalism as the system of governance for the faithful, and no nation is more faithful than Dalmira. Dalmira uses vassal territories, Margraves and Dukes, instead of governors and generals. These vassals are highly autonomous, with their own armies, finances, and - on occasion - foreign policy. The King generally must rely on troop contributions from his vassals to go to war. On the plus side, most people are serfs, and serfdom has various benefits.
Religious Center: Dalmira is the home of the Namidist High Priesthood, the Superiacy, and is the spiritual home of Namidism. This gives Dalmira vast influence over the church... and the church vast influence over Dalmira.
Meddeland - Limited Monarchy - medium population, medium excess
Great Council: The King's power to levy taxes in Meddeland is limited - most taxes, like property and city taxes, can only be levied by the Great Council. When the King wants to embark on an expensive campaign, he can request funds from the Council, who have tremendous power to provide it to him... but they may attach strings, conditions which are binding on the King if he accepts the money.
Council Code: In the not-so-distant past, the Brier Monarchs accepted the Council Code, a code of laws that cannot be breached, even by the King. In addition to abolishing serfdom, they guarantee certain "rights" to all people - or respectable people, at least - including the right to trial. That means the King can't dispense justice as he pleases, executing and imprisoning people willy-nilly, nor can he demand labor and property from free men without compensation.
Banking Center: Hendal might have had a powerful banking sector if it weren't for their Kings' unfortunate tendency to raid banks for gold when they run short of cash. Instead, the banking sector is based in Meddeland, where the Council Code gives some more concrete guarantees on the subject of private property. It gives the King the latitude to borrow money when he's not on good terms with the Great Council, and also means that every other foolhardy monarch running a deficit has to look for Meddeland for funds.
Ardans - Oligarchy - small population, medium excess
Nationalism: The Ardans engineered their own Liberation after eighty years of occupation, defeating the Meddish army decisively and throwing off the yoke of those who would claim to be their "King." The Ardan people are proud and strongly believe in their own state. This has a variety of benefits - people are more likely to work hard and shed blood for their sacred soil, but be wary. Nationalism can be a double-edged sword.
Oligarchy: Ardans has no sovereign - "Death to Kings" was a rallying cry of the Liberation. Instead, the nation is governed by a council of five oligarchs, headed by a "Marcher." A new Marcher is elected by the oligarchs when the old one dies. Though this is realistically little more than a military dictatorship, it is a deeply engrained part of the Ardans culture.
So Far From God: The primary religion of Ardans is Old Statism, a heresy of Namidism that diverged from the mother church hundreds of years ago. It rejects the incorporation of feudalism into the Eternal Law. However, during the occupation, Old Statism became decentralized (and somewhat disorganized); if the Superiacy is to be believed, Ardans is breeding ground for new and even more egregious heresy. It certainly is true that the secretive Cult of the Skyseeker is much more active in Ardans. Though hated and feared by the public, perhaps they could even help an ambitious Ardan on his road to power...
Tavan Morin - Tribal Despotism - enough people, excess not applicable
Nomads: The Tavan Morin migrate freely and have an entirely nomadic culture, living off the land and whatever they find along the way. Concepts like "cities," "administration," "economy," and even "government" have little meaning to them. They do not have a budget or territory to constrain them, and that makes them dangerous.
Horse Masters: The Tavan Morin spend their whole lives in the saddle. Horses are not just their mainstay; horses are part of the Tavan Morin religion and are practically their currency. Their leader, the Dagch Morin, is literally the "horse master." Everyone owns a horse and is an expert rider - which could prove an unexpected challenge for the Namidist Kings, who have not been fielding much cavalry of late...
Strangers in a Strange Land: Fleeing their enemies, the Tavan Morin have migrated thousands of miles from parts of unknown. Their language, culture, and religion are all deeply strange to the Namidist princes and kings. Concepts, social mores, and conventions that have kept the order for centuries do not apply to them.
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