[Romero's Own]

It’s back! Bigger, Better, Bouncier, The Darkness Conquest Roleplay has returned to the lands of the Heresy Online Roleplay Threads. It’s been tweaked, reworked and hit with a hammer. And it’s ready. Don’t hesitate to create nation, a nation that will fight and die in your name and, if the fates are with you, rule the world.

The Great Alliance has fallen in ruin. The world of Kolnur has descended into chaos with the annihilation of the order it has known for so many years. The Alliance was formed 200 years ago by the great powers of the age, and has ensured a time of relative peace of prosperity. But the peace made men weak, soft, and unobservant. Few were watching for the return of darkness, and those few who were watching were unable to rouse the Alliance from its slumber in time to defend itself from the tides of darkness that washed over the land, obliterating all that stood before it till none remained.

Now the Alliance is in shambles, and the few remaining nations of the world, in the forgotten corners of the land, must somehow hold their borders against both greedy neighbours, and the Great Shadow that slew the greatest alliance this world has ever known...


*What is the Great Shadow you ask?: The Great Shadow is the effectively infinite army that will move constantly forward, coming in from the east of the map, throughout the game. The ‘Darkness’ is led by an Arch-Lich. The only way to truly destroy the Great Shadow is to somehow slay the necromancer. All anyone knows is that the name of the Lich is Deknar'Thuul.

*How big can my Country be? : 5 Million max population. UNLESS you take the "Look at all the Babies" Trait, in which case it is 10 million.

*How small can my Country be? : It can be as small as you like although you must have more population that soldiers, for obvious reasons.

*Is the bigger army always going to win?: No. I will be the final determination for any battle, but basically remember this; it will come down to what KIND of battle you engage in. If you line up all your troops and face off on a traditional field of battle with traditional tools of war, then yes the bigger army has higher odds of victory. But if you use magic or technology to alter the scales of battle, a smaller army has a chance of emerging victorious. I will be the one who determines the outcome of the battle although I welcome the viewpoint of each player and the wider players.

*Can I be destroyed in this game? : Only with your permission. Even if another player manages to conquer your nation you can live on as refugees, rebels, or a number of other options. You won't ever be destroyed (Again, unless you want to be), you will just change form and wander until you can find another place to call home.

*How Many Traits do I Get? : 21 trait points, plus a max possible of two racial and two bonuses from races, for a max beginning pool of 25.

Races: Each Race can select 1 racial trait for free.

Dwarves: +1 Trait for either Lesser Earth Magic or Military Traits

Humans: +1 Trait for either Military, National, Divine, or Necromancy Traits

Orcs: +1 Trait for either Military or Necromancy Traits

Goblins: +1 Trait for either Population or Elemental Traits

Gnomes: +1 Trait for either Illusion or Technology Traits

Elves: +1 Trait for either Elemental or Mental Traits

Ogres: +1 Trait for either Military or Physical Traits

You may have up to 2 races in your country, gaining the bonus traits for each. However the following list shows which races do not coexist well.

Dwarves and Ogres
Elves and Orcs
Gnomes and Goblins

National Traits:

Homeland Security: Your spy force is completely dedicated to stopping any information leaving the country. Although you won’t be gaining any information, you can bet on your life they won’t be either. (Any enemy spy’s sent against you will not leave the country again. You can lie about your troop movements and numbers on your posts as long as I know the truth.)

I believe you have underestimated the sneakiness sir: Your nation has an expert spy network set up to discover information which may change the course of war. (Your spies can retrieve vital information. Any false information about other nations is known to you)

Cunning Linguists: Your Nation has long been in the forefront of diplomacy, thus not only are your diplomats smooth in their speech, but they are also masters of customs and dialects of foreign nations, making foreign courts more apt to accept their proposals as coming from a kindred spirit. (Any diplomacy with the NPC nations will almost certainly succeed)

Farmhands: Your people produce a great deal of excess Grain, corn, or whatever other foodstuffs you think would grow in your area. (Food is rarely a problem of your nation as you produce double the amount of other nations)

Ranchers: Your people are experts at wrangling cattle and breaking wild stallions. Their breeding systems make their herds the best out there, no one’s horses can compare with yours. (Any cavalry you command have an advantage.)

Population Traits:

Loyal: Your populace would never dream of betraying you. (No matter how bleak things are your people will not leave you)

Industrious: Your working population is extremely industrious, they don’t take coffee breaks in their work day, and they get stuff done. (Cities are built at twice the normal speed)

Look at all the Babies: Your nation has an excessive population! (You may double your population size and army size)

Academic Traits:

Science Academy: This school of learning is filled with whirring gears and billowing steam, and many unusual inventions. But the main plus side to having this in your nation, is that the people who experiment with technology HERE, are less likely to blow themselves up in the process, or at least to leave notes behind of how they did it. (Your technology is better than that of other nations)

School of Wizardry: Most wizards learn from an aged master that accepts them as an apprentice, but the downside to this is if that wizard dies prematurely, all his secrets are lost. You won’t let that happen, so you made a school for the collection and collaboration of magic. (You mages are more skilled than those of other nations)

Grand Cathedral: The epicentre of any religious nation, it’s also the centre of learning for any student of the divine forces in the universe. (Your priests are more devote than those of other nations and so more powerful)

Academy of War: This is the centre for all your generals to meet and share combat tactics. Future officers are trained in these halls, and benefit from the knowledge of their superiors. (Your forces are superior to those of other nations.)

Military Traits:

For King and Country!: Your nation has proud citizenry who yearn for the chance to serve in the military. As such you have a small, well trained, and superiorly equipped army to call upon; however conscripts don’t mesh well with them.
(Max army size: 100,000 men, no conscripts.)

Grab Yer Pitchforks and Get Marching!: Your nation believes in overwhelming numbers and doesn’t feel training is really needed. In times of war you shove basic weaponry in your soldier’s hands and point them in the direction of the enemy. Morale will be low, but so long as you outnumber your enemies you have a chance…
(Max Army Size: 800,000)

The Knighthood: Your nation has a small, professionally trained core of troops leading conscripts. While the core of your army is well trained and well equipped, they are far outnumbered by the conscript soldiers.
(Max Army Size: 600,000 (80,000 professional troops, the rest conscripts.))

Golden Horde: Your nation is militaristic and has a large standing army, with an equal split of well trained and conscript soldiers. Your soldiers know how to handle themselves, but aren’t all the best of the best.
(Max Army Size: 200,000 professional, 200,000 Conscript)

Fearless: Your soldiers don’t know the meaning of fear and will charge into overwhelming odds without flinching. (Fear has no effect on your armies and they will not run till one army is wiped out)

Strategists: Your army’s high command has a talented cadre of men who have studied military strategy and have good odds of being known as being among the Great Generals of their age. (You can tell me your tactics before the battle, affecting the outcome)

Sneaky Sneaky: Your army is obsessed with stealth manoeuvres, and have perfected ways to move without attracting attention. (Your armies can close with the enemy before they are noticed and so destroy the advantage of ranged weapons)

Superior Forging: Your weapons are forged in an extraordinary manner, whether it’s attributed to dwarven craftsmanship, magical imbuements, or technological advances in blast furnaces, your weaponry is a step above the average. (Your soldiers hit harder than those of other nations)

Mithril Armour: Stronger then steel, but light as a cloth shirt, Mithril armour is the best armour an army can have, but it’s rare to come by. (Your troops just won’t die)

Longbows: Superior bows; they have longer ranges and the ability to penetrate even plate armour at closer ranges. (Your archers are skilled and efficient, more so than those of other nations)

Masterful Cavalry: Your cavalry units work as a cohesive unit, your soldiers ride their horses better than most can even dream of. You are skilled at using the mobility of your cavalry to catch your foes off guard. (You can tell me your cavalry plans before the battle, affecting the outcome)

Soldiers of the Line: Your infantry is the core of your army, and you know how to work them! Your formations are flawless and their shieldwalls are effective at warding off enemy archers. (You can tell me your infantry plan before the battle, affecting the outcome.)

Kill Them From a Distance: Your archers/crossbowmen are excellent shots, and have been heavily drilled to know how to fire in unison, set up barriers to protect them from other units, and at aiming for the weaknesses in the armour of their foes. (Your archers can fire at twice the rate of other nation’s troops.)

Military Units:

Note: By default all conscript forces are either light infantry. However Conscripts are far less effective than the trained versions of these same military units.

Light Infantry: This is skirmishers, men in light armour who meet the enemy often from ambush, or attempting to slow the enemy down. Could also be common conscript spearmen with just a leather jerkin and a spear. These units are fast moving but cannot stand toe to toe with heavy infantry for long, and heavy cavalry plows right through them. However, these men are perfect for use in ambush, or to harry supply lines of the enemy, since they can’t hit what they can’t see, right?

Heavy Infantry: These are the men marching in lockstep formations. Tall shields, heavy armour, and big swords, these are the infantry that will eat through light infantry or be able to hold their line against a cavalry charge
Archers: Men with bows and normally given only light armour, such as padded jerkins or boiled leather and ring mail. These men are very effective at stopping light infantry and cavalry charges, though their weapons normally don’t puncture heavy cavalry or infantries armour.

Crossbowmen: These soldiers have a slow reload time, but their bolts can puncture the armour of even heavy infantry and cavalry.

Light Cavalry: Normally armed with a sword, a lance, and a horse bow, these soldiers are armoured in light armour and meant to scout and harry the enemy. They are good for using in flanking manoeuvres or to slip around the enemy lines and attack from the rear, but against any heavily armoured unit it will not hold up long.

Heavy Cavalry: Knights in shining armour, heavy cavalry is bedecked with heavy armour and so are their horses. These men can crush through infantry formations, unless they have pole-arms to keep them at bay. They are very hard to kill.

Arquebussers: Armed with the deadly Arquebus these men let loose a hail of metal shot to devastate enemy formations. Effective against light armour at long range, and able to penetrate heavy armour at close range, these are deadly weapons. (Requires the Arquebus trait)

Artillery: Whether it’s the Ballista, the Catapult, or the Cannon (If you have the trait) these units all have one thing in common. They are meant to take down walls or devastate large areas of troop formations.

Magi: In addition to your Nations leadership, you have Magi trained for combat in the magical arts. These magi stand with your troops raining devastation in their chosen school of magic across the battlefield. (Without them any magic traits are made redundant. These include necromancers and priests)

Naval Traits:

Iron Waves: Your nation has a powerful navy of elite 'Ironclads'. (1000 Ironclads, each carrying 200)

Travel the Seas: Constant crossing of oceans has created the need for a navy for your people. (1000 transports, each carrying 500 and 1000 ships, each carrying 100)

Peaceful Crossing: There has never been a need for ships of war in your navys. (2000 transports, each carrying 500)

Mass Fleet: In the times of need your nation can call on an entire fleet of small boats.)2000 ships, each carrying 100)


Ship Building: This trait permits your nation to build boats that are ready for war. (Each ship can carry 200)

Ship Artillery: (Requires the Artillery Trait) Allows you to mount catapults and Ballista (Or cannons if you have the trait) on board your ships. (Your ships are far more effective in naval combat)

Ironclad: (Requires 3 points in technology) Your boats are sheathed in steel, allowing them to take immense damage before going under. (Your ships can take a lot more hits than an average ship)

Necromancy: (Cannot be Taken with Divine Magic)

Speak with the Darkness: You know the secrets of the grave, and fear them not. You reach past the veil to speak with the dead. (The secrets of dead are known to you and you can find information of what has happened even when there were no survivors)

Animate Dead: Cause the dead laying in the ground to rise up once more, whether as zombies or as skeletons these forces are mindless and can follow only simple instructions. They command none of their former skills from their life, and are armed only with what they died with, or what you provide them. (In times of great need you can summon 100,000 conscript forces to fight at your side)

The Spirits hear my Call: Ghosts, wraiths, and other fell spirits obey your command, permitting you to summon them to your will. (With enough power you can summon 10,000 elite troops that strike fear into the enemy)

Plaguewalker: (Requires 3 other necromancy Traits) Disease is a useful tool when your soldiers are already dead. You have learned how to create diseases through magic, and spread them through various means. (A random number of enemy troops and/or population will die from your disease before the battle)

Negative Energy: You know how to manipulate the powers of darkness and bend them to your will. You can drain life from foes; leach away their strength, and other methods of negative energy. (You instil fear into your enemies and render their strategists useless)

Divine Magic: (Cannot be Taken with Necromancy)

Angels Whisper in Your Ears: Your priesthood has the power of prayer, and receives answers. The questions they ask the higher powers receive answers, even if they don’t always make sense. (News that would have otherwise remained unknown is known to the church)

Divine Energy: The power of Christ compels you! No seriously, you area able to channel the power of your god(s) into healing energy, buffing the natural attributes of your followers. (Your soldiers and/or population are harder to kill than normal men)

Holy Wrath: (Requires Divine Energy) Your priesthood can not only heal with their gods magic, they can also wreak havoc with it, doling out the energy of the gods to smite your foes. (Your priests can kill a random number of troops and/or population before the battle)

Divine Charisma: The power of the gods powers not only your arm, but your tongue. Your priesthood is able to rouse the crowds to great feats through their oratory, and are able to convince people to see your point of view with ease. Your people follow you and may even worship you as a god yourself. (Your people follow you without question and any diplomatic action with NPC nations are likely to succeed)

Elemental Magic: All Greater Elemental Magics Require their Lesser Counterpart. (Cannot be Taken with Technology Traits)

Lesser Air Magic: Your people can control the winds in minor ways, creating small barriers of air to block arrows, creating fists of solidified air, creating or diverting small breezes. (This creates a small bonus in combat for your mages)

Greater Air Magic: You can hurl bolts of lightning or create/redirect gale force winds. All the fury of the storm is at your beck and call. (This is a greater bonus to your mages and you can double the movement of any ships you have.)

Lesser Water Magic: You can create water from nothing, freeze it to create a shield of ice or create spears of ice to cast at your foes. (Gives a small bonus to mages)

Greater Water Magic: The tides obey your call; you can raise and lower the levels of water in any area with ease. Ice storms can be conjured from thin air to pelt your foes and walls of ice can be raised upon even a desert floor, though it’s not likely to last long unless you sustain it. (Larger bonus for mages and a bonus in naval combat)

Lesser Earth Magic: The ground beneath your feet lends strength to you, you can reshape rock faces to a form more pleasing to you, raise small juts of earth in front of you to form small defensive emplacements or pick up and hurl a small rock and have it grow to a boulder in the course of its flight. (A small bonus to your mages)

Greater Earth Magic: The forest speaks to you, the ground beneath your feet informs you when someone treads upon it. You can rip asunder stone walls like it was made of paper, and can create earthquakes that sunder the homes of your foes. (A larger bonus to mages and before the battle you can affect the terrain to counter any tactics used against you)

Lesser Fire Magic: You can start even wet wood on fire and can propel jets of flame from your hands. (Small bonus to mages)

Greater Fire Magic: Great balls of fire, that’s right, you sunder the earth and fill the air with the smell of burnt flesh. You make walls of flame to cordon off your foes and make people spontaneously combust. (Very large bonus to mages in combat)

Illusion Magic:

Master of disguise: Your magic allows you to alter your appearance, convincing those around you that you belong to a different race, or sex, then you really do. (Your mages can transform entire armies so that they can pass unhindered through NPC nations)

Cloak of Invisibility: You are able to extend a blanket of illusion over a fair sized area and grant yourself and others the illusion of not being there. (Your mages can conceal entire units of troops, you do not need to state these troops on your post as long as I know about them)

Spectral Army: You are capable of forming an entire army of imaginary soldiers from the stuff of your mind. Unfortunately at the slightest knick they poof out of existence. (Your mages can conjure an army of 100,000 sceptres; you can add these troops to your post as long as I know they are not real)

Imaginary Swords Cut Too: You are able to fabricate illusions so convincing that those pierced with the weapons of your imaginary attackers feel real pain, and can die from the assault. (Your mages are able to conjure 10,000 sceptres who can strike down the enemy as if they were real.)

Technology: (Cannot be taken with any Elemental Traits)

This…is….my…BOOMSTICK!: You are able to create an Arquebus, a firearm capable of piercing plate armour at close range, but at long ranges it will only penetrate lesser armours. (You are able to field Arquebussers)

Flamethrowers: That’s right, who said you need to know magic to throw magic around! With a tank of highly explosive materials strapped to your back, and a wand held in front of you, you can let loose a burst of flame! Course if someone should hit that tank… (You can equip your ships and mechanical warriors/walkers with flame-throwers)

Alchemical Alloys: (Requires Two other Technology Traits) You know the secret of combining metals to create a stronger end product. But you go further; through alchemy you can transmute them into something stronger than others would even dream! (Your mechanical creations are tougher those of other nations.)

Cannons: You have decided that if you can make a small metal ball be fired at someone, why not go with a large one? You have cannons with which to pulverize your foes! (You are able to equip your ships and mechanical walkers with cannons)

Steam Engine: You can create energy by boiling water! Amazing! (Your mechanical walkers/warriors are faster and able to keep up with the main force)

Trains: (Requires Steam Engine) You have learned to create large mechanical forms of transportation (Your army moves at twice its normal rate across your or your allies territories)

Mechanical Walkers: (Requires 4 other Technology traits, one of which must be steam engine) Large metal frameworks within which warriors can mount weaponry, these machines are deadly powerful and hard to destroy. They require a large crew to keep working, and must have at least 6 legs.(Powerful in combat and requires 10 troops to man them.)

Mechanized Warriors: (Requires Mechanical Walkers) Slightly larger then man size, these robotic automatons are a marvel of technology. They are able to be programmed with basic instructions, and follow them through. By no means the most gifted warriors, they are nonetheless hard to kill and unswervingly loyal. (These robot soldiers count as 1 Elite troop)

Racial Traits:

Ogres:

Awesome strength: No other race can compare with you for sheer brute strength. A single hit from you is enough to send a lesser race flying across the room. (Your race has a bonus in combat)

Increased Fortitude: You can take a hit and keep on coming, even if that hit just ripped one of you arms off. After all, it’s just a flesh wound right? (Your armies just keep on going through injuries)

Impaling Throw: You wield thrown weapons in a capacity feared by your foes, you are able to pierce common metals with your thrown javelins, imagine what you can do to people hit by them? (You have a bonus in close-range combat)

Orcs:

Berserk: Your warriors go berserk in battle, blind with bloodlust they ignore wounds they take and fight with a ferocity such as to set fear into your foes. Of course they rarely survive such a bout of bloodlust, since while in it they ignore threats and wounds they have taken in the name of killing as many people as they can. (You lose all sense of fear but cannot use tactics)

War Chiefs: Your nation has a single war chief who leads the armies, and he has proven himself in battle time and again. This war chief is considered one of the Great Generals of the age. (You can tell em your battle strategy before a fight)

Shamanistic Ties: Your people are close to their ancestors. The Shaman of your nation hold great authority in your nation for good reason, their elemental magic is potent enough to drive your people away from the more common arts of necromancy.(Gets one Lesser Elemental trait free)

Goblins:

Horde Tactics: Always fight with overwhelming numbers, that is the rule of thumb for your military. ( Your conscript army numbers 50,000 more than normal.)

Sneaky Lil Buggers: Masters of the ambush, your people are experts at using hidden structures to watch for incoming foes, and setting up ambushes in the terrain you know. (You are impervious to the ‘Sneaky Sneaky’ trait)

We’re Not Running Away, We’re Advancing To The Rear!: Your people may not be the bravest out there, but by god they know how to survive a fight! You always have a back way out of any city, or fight, prepared in advance. (Your people can pull out from a battle at your call)

Humans:

Explorers by Nature: Your people have been filled with wanderlust for as long as you can remember, you have extensive maps of the world and know where most other nations lay. (Your people know where the potential enemies and potential allies lie)

Born on a Horse: Your people have always viewed the horse as a form of wealth, and even now children seem to learn to ride a horse before they can even properly walk. Your cavalry is second to none. (Your cavalry gains an advantage)

Farming is in the Blood: Your people have tilled their fields for so long, that they ARE the land. Agriculture is an integral part of your nation, and you work hard at it. (Your food production is increased)

Elves:

Elven High Mages: Your Magi are exceedingly powerful, having studied for hundreds of years the arcane lore they have accumulated. They can weave powerful defensive enchantments over your lands, creating defences that will dazzle foes with their intricacies. (Your mages are exceptionally powerful compared to those of other nation)

One with the Forest: Your people are adept at living among the woods, you know when something is wrong and you know how to travel it without being noticed. (In forests your people instantly gain the ‘Sneaky Sneaky’ trait)

Master Archers: Your people have practiced archery since your people have existed. They are unequalled in their accuracy with a bow. (Your archers gain an advantage)

Dwarves:

Stone Fortitude: Your people are stalwart warriors, and have long lived in harsh environments. They can take hits that would kill lesser men and keep on trucking. Poison has very little effect on your people. (Like the Ogres your soldiers just won’t damn die)

Gems in the Rough: Your people are obsessed with the wealth hidden in the mountains and below the ground. You have delved long and hard, and have been rewarded with rich deposits of precious metals, gems, and other valuable commodities. (You can take ‘Mithril Armour’ or ‘Superior Forging’ for free)

Dwarven Defences: Dwarves know how to build structures that last the ages. And when they build for defence, no one can best them. Your defences are the best out there. (Your cities are built to hold, and they do.)

Gnomes:

Need More Boom: Your guns and cannons pack a bigger punch then others can manage. This is due in part at least to your aptitude for experimenting with things and blowing up your workshop in the course of your studies. (Any cannons or Arquebussers you have gain a bonus)

No One Lives Here, Honest!: Your people are masters of concealing entire communities with a shroud of illusion, making it difficult for others to find you. (It is nearly impossible to map your location and you can lie about your cities as long as I know the truth)

Hiding is a Skill: Your people are adept at concealing themselves (You gain the ‘Cloak of Invisibility’ trait)

History: Select one from each category, THESE DO NOT COUNT AS TRAIT POINTS, SIMPLY GIVE SOME BACKGROUND:

Recent History:

Shattered by the Shadow: Your nation was utterly demolished by the Shadows attack, and a new government has formed to try to bring order from the chaos.

Bastion of Light: One of the few nations to withstand the siege of the Shadow, your nation is a unifying example to others.

Opportunists: With the attack of the Shadow you took the opportunity to obtain some lands and riches you felt your neighbours didn't really deserve, enriching you but it's bound to make you unpopular with the neighbours.

Refugee Camps: Your nation is filled with Refugees fleeing the Shadow. You haven't yet tasted the blade of the Shadow, but your trying to find a way to help those made homeless by it.

Isolationist: You were never part of the Alliance and thus far are untouched by the Shadow, now may be a time to create a small alliance of your own, or remain solitary, but maybe take some new territories from your weaker neighbours.

The King has Fallen: The Shadow managed to murder your monarch/ruling class, leaving his successor(s) to take their place.

The Slaughter was horrible: The Shadow ravaged your nation, you survived, or at least parts of you did. Large chunks of your land are now desolate and lifeless, as scars of the war still stain your lands and your population was horribly reduced.

The Shadow Sounds like a good employer..: Your nation hasn't been harmed by the Shadow yet, and though no one has yet managed to negotiate or even parley with the Shadow, you are looking for a way, because it seems to you that if you can't beat them....

Older History:

Champions of the Alliance: Your nation has always championed the cause of the Alliance and has engaged in many wars on it's behalf.

Grudging members: You joined because you didn't see any other choices in the matter, not because you really believed in the cause.

Warlike: You have, whether on behalf of the alliance, in spite of it, or just because you want to, been engaged in warfare every time you turn around. Your people have a reputation as warmongers, which may cause others to respect, or despise you.

Pacifists: You have been a leading voice on every peace conference, constantly trying to bring all sides to a mutually beneficial agreement. This gives you a reputation as someone that does not enjoy war, making some view you as a visionary, and others see you as weak.

Show me the Money: Any agreements made at any conference you go to, and any war you engage in, seems to be involved in some way with the acquisition of more money.

Crusaders: Your people have engaged in crusades against other nations and peoples on behalf of your gods, giving you a reputation as zealots that lingers to this day.

Leave me out of it: Your nation has largely ignored other nations and has asked in turn to just be left alone in return. Sometimes this works, sometimes it seems like the lone beast without a herd is the most vulnerable.

Founding Member: Your Nation was one of the Super Powers that formed the Great Alliance. Though your power and influence is now diminished, you were once viewed as one of the mightiest nations in the world.

Ancient History:

Tribal Roots: Your people come from a tribal culture, family ties are very strong.

Divinely Mandated Rule: Your nation was founded by the will of the gods, or so your clergy tells you at least. The founding father(s) of your nation are revered as saints or gods and their descendants are incapable of being wrong, they are after all descended from perfection.

Nomads: Your people were nomads once upon a time. Whether this is still in evidence in your culture is moot, because as a result of your travels you have very accurate maps of the parts of the world you lived in, at least barring changes in the last several centuries.

Wizards in Hiding: In ancient times the Magi were a feared and reviled group, most nations would not permit them to live in their borders, let alone give them positions of power. Thus your nation was a hiding ground for a large number of Magi, they chose to band together for safety and community, eventually emerging to either take over the culture or merge with it when the people's fears had passed.

Tyranny: Your founding is written in blood, on parchments of flesh. Your nation was not founded willingly, and whether this resulted in a later rebellion, Great Alliance intercession, or whether the Tyranny goes on to this day, the fact is, your nation has a rep as an inhospitable place to live.

Common Defence: There is nothing great and noble, or frightening and vengeful, about the story of your founding. It's quite simply a group of people banding together to defend themselves against the threats of the world. Somehow, it grew from there.

Feudalistic Society: Your lands were founded by a warlord, or a wizard, who swiftly named himself ruler and set about establishing a system of lords to help him govern his newly claimed lands, granting land in exchange for service.

Republic: A nation by the people for the people, that is the dream your founding fathers had, and that is what your nation has tried to fulfil since then.


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HOW IT WORKS

You will start off the game with a number of provinces decided by me and affected by your trait choices.

Your nation will populate the map along with other players, NPC nations and most worrying of all the constantly advancing Shadow. To put it simply there is no spare room for you to easily colonise.

Now each NPC nation, of which numbers are not confirmed, has a ‘personality’, be it peace-seeking or lovers of war, this ‘personality’ will affect how they respond to your actions towards them. Some will happily form an alliance with you in return for protection of they will murder your diplomats and send you their headless corpses. These NPC nations will remain independent no matter if you are in an alliance with them not although you can ask for their help or help them.

The only way to expand your territory is to conquer the provinces of either other player’s nations or NPC nations through war.

In battle your tactics will determine how you square up against your foe, be it concealing an army in ambush or commanding a storming cavalry charge, and will affect the final result of the battle. I will decide the result of the battle using a simulator and will relay the results and consequences of said results to you for your next move.

To conquer a province you must first defeat the army located there, if any, and then deal with any cities that have been built there, if any. After driving the enemy from the province you can move your civilians in to populate the new province and claim it for your own.

A constant threat to your nation is the Great Shadow, a seemingly infinite army that constantly moves across the board unless stopped, not an easy feat. The strength of the Shadow’s armies will slowly increase throughout the game until the only possible way to defeat them is to band together with the other nations and make a stand, shoulder to shoulder with strangers. Not that I’m hinting at anything…..

Throughout the game your nation will obviously recruit and train new troops, so best to defend against the numerous enemies. However when times are hard, honest men that will fight hard for your nation are hard to find. To represent this, the recruitment level for troops are set as such;1000 professional troops in two turns or 2000 conscripts in one turn. In any province under your control you are able to train this number, so if you have two provinces you can train 4000 conscripts a turn, three provinces and 8000 a turn and so on.

With navy it will be 100 Ironclad's in two turns or 100 ships/transports in one turn. Again, in every province under your control that borders with water, you can build this number of boats. So with two provinces on water you can build 100 ships a turn, three provinces and 200 ships a turn and so on.

However there are downsides to this. The larger your army/navy the more attention you will receive from the Shadow and the more hostile your neighbours will become towards you. At any one time a province in your nation can be making troops OR ships, never both at the same time.

Another use you can put your provinces towards is the learning of new traits. At the moment this system is limited to climbing the 'tech tree', that is you can only learn traits in categories that you already have a trait in. However, the only way for this to be possible is if you have the 'building that corresponds with the trait. So to 'learn' the 'Mechanical Warriors' trait you will need to construct a 'Science Academy' in the province you are 'learning' the trait. If you have the Science Academy trait on your original nation sheet then a Science Academy will be constructed in all your starting provinces.

Constructing these building is a mammoth project for the people of the province and it will require all their efforts, so no troops/ships can be trained/built while these building are being constructed. It will take two turns to build these buildings, however if you have the 'Industrious' trait it will take only one.

Once the desired building is built you can begin learning the trait you wish. It will take a further two turns to learn the trait and it will take all your nations greatest minds, so you can only learn ONE trait at a time in your nation. However once it is learnt the new trait is instantly effective.

After battles there is a chance you will be rewarded with Military Traits (such as Fearless or Masterful Cavalry) in recognition of the great success of a particular contingent of your army.

You can NEVER have more than one 'army/navy size' trait. This means you cannot have 'Golden Horde' and 'For King and Country'. You made that choice when you made your nation, there's not way back.

To conquer a province you must first defeat the army located there, by defeating them and killing them all or driving them from the province. After this you can move your citizens into the newly conquered province. If there are any buildings there (Academy of War, Science Academy etc) then your people will be able to use them to learn new traits.

The traits you choose will shape your nation completely and affect your military strength, ambition and way with words. Therefore choose wisely, once your nation is forged there is no turning back….

RULES

1: Be civil to everyone, participating or not.
2: Absolutely NO godmodding.
3: Don't carry grudges from this RP out into the rest of the forum.
4: Don't get all grumpy if someone attacks you. Just attack them back.
5: I have the final say in all matters.
6: If you are going to join this, please do so confident you will not disappear for weeks on end with no notice.
7: Only one post per turn as it represents your nation’s actions. The only exception is diplomatic action as otherwise the alliance system is redundant.
8: One post per update is compulsory or else your nation does nothing and is easy prey.
9: I will aim for updates weekly as I’m sure everyone will by dying for the chance to hammer their RP rivals to oblivion.

The Nation Sheet.

NATION

Nation Name:
Chosen Colour for Nation:
People of Importance:
Population:

TRAITS:

National Traits

Population Traits

Academic Traits

Military Traits

Military Units Traits

Naval Traits

Necromancy Traits

Divine Magic Traits

Elemental Magic Traits

Illusion Magic Traits

Technology Traits

Racial Traits

History


MILITARY:

Navy

Army


I hope to see some of the original nations returning as well as plenty of new blood.

 

[son of azurman]

will see if i can get one up but if i will it wont be the monorealm. do you still want the traditional one or just the conquest one

 

[Romero's Own]

ACCEPTED NATIONS
The Pure - Alexander_Millar Defeated - Winter 1245

Nation Name: The Pure
Chosen Colour for Nation: White
People of Importance: The Council of Twelve, The Immortal Lord
Population: 1.2 Million Elves and 7.2 Million Humans

TRAITS:

National Traits:
-None

Population Traits
-Loyal
-Industrious
-look at all the babies

Academic Traits
-Grand Cathedral
-Science Academy

Military Traits
-Mithril Armour
-Superior Forging
-Golden Horde


Military Units Traits
-Heavy Infantry
-Magi
-Artillery
-Arquebussers

Naval Traits
-None

Necromancy Traits
-None

Divine Magic Traits
-Divine Charisma
-Divine Energy
-Holy Wrath

Elemental Magic Traits
-None

Illusion Magic Traits
-None

Technology Traits
-Steam engine
-Trains
-Alchemial Alloy
-This... Is... My... BOOMSTICK
-Cannons
-flamethrowers
-Mechanical Walkers
-Mechanized Warriors

Racial Traits
- Elven High Mages
- Explorers by nature

History
It is said that The Pure came from another world, brought to this one by their ruler and god, The Immortal Lord, to bring the light of truth to this forsaken land. With there first arrival, the men of the land they first touched fell to there knees in awe and reverence at the sight of The Lord and his servants. Soon a great change came across this land. Under the guidance of the Council of Twelve and the priesthood, a new golden age was brought about, with technology bounding forward under the zeal of worship. But this shinning exterior only served to hide the bloody truths. Any questioning of the council or their lord ws swiftly dealt with, and the trespassers made a brutal example of.

Soon The Pure Land, as it had come to be known as, was a shinning bastion of faith and technology, ruled over by the church and The Immortal Lord. Soon The Pure turned its eye outward, looking towards expansion and the purification of the lands that were beyond it's borders. The prosecution of fanatical crusades of purification and expansion soon followed.

With the first appearance of the Great Shadow, The Immortal Lord stirred from his great white Citadel for the first time in over a half a millennium... The alliance was swiftly joined to end this "impure" stain on the world, and The Pure were instrumental to holding the Shadow back for long enough for the Alliance to muster it's armies.

After the defeat of the Shadow, The Pure retreated back to their lands to continue with plans known only to them. In the intervening centuries very little was heard from The Pure, with only minor Crusades as the only indication of life in their lands...

Now with the Shadow once more arising, The Pure are one of the few who stand ready to hold back the unending tide of undead, and may hold the key to the survival of all, deep within the White Citadel, with Their Immortal Lord and god...

MILITARY:

Navy
-None

Army
100 000 Heavy Infantry
60 000 Arqubussers
60 000 War Priests
140 000 Mechanized Warriors
16 000 Cannon and Artillery Batteries
2 400 Mechanical Walkers

400 000 Light Infantry(Conscripts)

Salthiusar - Septok

Nation Name: Salthiusar

Chosen Colour: Teal/Sea Green

Nation Government Type: Benign Dictatorship

People of Importance:

Hésperion (Co-founder, status unknown)
Irèsp (Co-founder, current ruler)
Calleis (Head Magus)
Dalàth Scieris (Head Librarian)
Slaér (Head of The Guardians)

Population: 500,000 Elves

Summary of populace*: The Salth (the name for all inhabitants of Salthiusar) are a community of book-lovers, philosophers and magi. Their city, Salthiusar, is home to the largest library of magic in the known world, and contains one of the greatest magic schools known also. They have a reproduction problem, as less than 1% of their race can reproduce, but they also enjoy immortality. As such, they rely greatly on a lack of war and incoming magical students to support their population, as their curse turns students into immortal elves (albeit with killing their reproductive system) at the end of a single month within Salthiusar.


TRAITS:

National Traits: Homeland Security

Population Traits: Loyal; Industrious

Academic Traits: School of Wizardry

Military Traits: For King and Country! (They don’t really have much of a military, but they do have a lot of mages who are keen to defend the country and who will blast elements on the enemy)

Military Units Traits: Magi

Naval Traits: None!

Necromancy Traits: Speak with the Darkness; The Spirits hear my Call

Divine Magic Traits: None!

Elemental Magic Traits: Lesser Air; Greater Air; Lesser Water ; Greater Water ; Lesser Earth ; Greater Earth ; Lesser Fire ; Greater Fire.

Illusion Magic Traits: Cloak of Invisibility; Spectral Army; Master of Disguise; Imaginary Swords Cut Too

Technology Traits: N/A
Racial Traits: Elves – Elven High Mages

Historical Traits: Isolationists; Leave me out of it; Wizards in hiding

Historical summary*: Founded long before the Alliance, the nation of Salth was formed by Hésperion and Iresp, a pair of friends, both mages trained by a kindly old mage. They shared a love of books, knowledge and most importantly magic. After their tutor’s death, they travelled far and wide, across the land, learning and collecting, until they eventually realised that a simple dwelling would be insufficient – they needed a better place. So they travelled to a distant land, after learning crystal singing from the masters, and imbued the land with magic. They sang, aided by a choir of those drawn to their cause, and, after weeks of tireless chanting, Salthiusar was built.

After some time, Hésperion realised that his and Irèsp‘s lives would be over. So he began on a dire and dark quest. He sang a new tower from the mountain to the north, entered, and never returned. However, one night, Irèsp went searching for him. He found the tower, found its darkest reaches, and conversed with Hésperion. He learned of the curse bestowed upon the nation, a curse with a flip-side. The population had been rendered mostly incapable of reproduction, but they also enjoyed one benefit – they had all become immortal. Time could not touch them, but Hésperion was lost to them.

Following this, Irèsp took control of the nation, which none minded. He knew war would come, as it always does, so he set up the Salth Mages’ Guild to aid in magical tuition and The Guardians to protect the city. He trained many for both organisations until he could pass the responsibility on to those he had trained. Meanwhile, more and more people travelled to the city and the library grew. New accommodation had to be sung; new library sections had to be made; new wizard professors were needed. All happened, and Salthiusar grew strong, but still in need of support.

The modern time is known by the Salth as the time of Shadow. Iresp rules the land fairly, though, like the entire populace, cares little for politics. Every person who stays even a month in Salthiusar gains the curse, but few who stay so long rarely wish to leave, save for voyages in the pursuit of new knowledge. The nation has a secret in Hésperion, who keeps in hiding in the northern tower. Some say that he has seen the future, the end times and all, but has become a slave to the gods. None know for certain, but there is something fishy in Salthiusar, and war is due to come. But when it arrives, they will be ready.

MILITARY:

Navy: None – they have no potentially useful naval routes, mostly because they live in a massive city of turquoise magic crystal.

Army: The nation has only 500 full-time soldiers, hired as both mages and protectors, but the citizens of the nation are all prepared to defend the land, so up to 50,000 are willing to fight in defence. They are all Magi.

*I know it’s not required and shouldn’t be on the sheet, but I felt like it’s a good thing to have.

Turokhi - KeyanM Defeated - Spring 1247

NATION
Nation Name: Turokhi
Chosen Colour: Red
People of Importance: The Dwarven King Kragnol. The Shaman Council.
Population: 6.5 million humans, 3 million dwarves.

TRAITS
National Traits:
-Homeland Security
-I Believe You Have Underestimated The Sneakiness Sir
-Farmhands
-Ranchers

Population Traits:
-Industrious
-Look at All the Babies

Academic Traits:
-Academy of War

Military Traits:
-Fearless
-Superior Forging
-Mithril Armour
-Masterful Cavalry
-Soldiers of the Line
-Golden Horde

Military Units:
-Heavy Infantry
-Light Cavalry
-Artillery
-Magi

Naval Traits:
-None

Necromancy Traits:
-Negative Energy
-Speak with the Darkness
-Spirits hear my call

Divine Magic Traits:
-None

Elemental Magic Traits:
-Lesser Earth Magic
-Greater Earth Magic
-Lesser Fire magic
-Greater Fire Magic

Illusion Magic Traits:
-None

Technology Traits:
-None

Racial Traits:
-Born on a Horse
-Gems in the Rough

HISTORY:
The origins of the Turokhi nation lay in the distant past, long before the coming of the Great Shadow, or the forming of the Alliance.

Once, they were little more than tribes of warring warriors, living day to day, never building permanent homes, or settling down. These fierce horse warriors competed of the scarce and limited resources of their homeland, and bloody conflict was a daily occurrence. This harsh lifestyle instilled crassness in the value of a human’s life, and bread a ‘dog eat dog’ mentality. Despite the hardships, the tribes grew large and strong, with only the greatest among them living to an age past twenty. A members worth in a tribe was measured by a combination of their skills as a warrior, the stock of their horse and the name of their fathers.

With is growth in population, the Turokhi raiders were forced to expand the territory in which they plied their bloody trade in, and soon gathered a reputation as the bloody handed horse masters. It wasn’t long after that they were noticed by the powerful nations of this world, and their age of unopposed raid and slaughter was soon to end.

They were mercilessly prosecuted, with tribe after tribe falling to the power of these nations armies, until none but the strongest tribes remained. It was in this time that the first great hero of this nation’s history was born.

Pragos was a young boy, no more than sixteen when the first campaigns of extermination were prosecuted against his people. Long had the shamans of his nations predicted the coming of a saviour, a man to unite the tribes and lead them to a paradise, where they could live in plenty and never worry about a meal. Little was it known that this prophecy was to come true in their hour of darkest need. Four years after the beginnings of the great extermination, Pragos had become a powerful warrior, a skilled horseman, and an inspirational leader. Under his leadership, his tribe grew to consume the remainders of the tribes shattered by the Extermination.

Knowing that he could not defeat this invader, he lead his people in a mass exodus, fleeing before the oncoming foe, for more than a moon they fled, but hey were slowed by the need to bring their herds, as well as children and elders. With the enemy closing with every day, Pragos made a decision. He, with twenty thousand of his followers turned to face their enemy and buy time for their people to escape.

With Pragos’ sacrifice, his nation was able to flee into the mountains, but now, they were leaderless and trapped in unfamiliar lands. Hundreds of thousands of refugees, with flocks numbering in the millions, the Turokhi nation was shattered. It was at this time that a twist of the fates led a scout to a ravine in an attempt to find water. Following the ravine, the scout stumbled onto a sight that would forever change the fate of his people…

A new land, one of rolling hills and raging rivers, going on as far as the eye could see, and in the centre, a single peak, reaching up to pierce the very clouds. The Turokhi were quick to spread into this land, but had failed to see the truth. This paradise had already been claimed. A nation of dwarves, ruled over by an ancient household, with an ancient king, had created their kingdom in the mountain in the centre of this land. Quick were the dwarves raised to war, and soon the black smokes of war were seen on the horizon by the Turokhi.

An epic battle, lasting days, with thousands on both sides falling. A stale mate was reached on the fifth day, with the dwarves unable to pin the Turokhi and finish them, and the Turokhi unable to breach the dwarves’ defences. A truce was called, and the leaders of the respective sides met for the first time, in council. When the story of the Turokhi was explained, the dwarf king understood the pain they had suffered, as his people had too suffered at the hands of the nations of this land, and everyone knows, no one can hold a grudge like a dwarf…

A treaty was formed, one of mutual cooperation, where the Turokhi pledged to supply the dwarf nation with food and a portion of their spoils, and the dwarves would open their land to these people and would supply them with any goods they wished to trade with. But the core of their understanding was forged in the mutual hatred of the outside world, and a pact sworn to avenge themselves on those that had wronged them.

Now, seven hundred years later, with the weakening of the outside world, the Turokhi and their dwarven allies stand ready to smash apart their enemies and reclaim the lands rightfully there’s, and nothing will stop them this time.

Legions of dwarves, and a host of horse warriors the likes of which this world has never seen stand ready to complete the will of their leaders and destroy the lands remaining in this world. And there are few powers in this world left that can stop them…

MILITARY:
Navy:
-None
Army:
-400 000 Conscripts (Human)
-175 000 Light Cavalry (Human)
-100 000 Heavy Infantry (Dwarven)
-25 000 Shamans (Human)
-100 000 Artillery Batteries (Dwarven)

Kerin-Curan - Malochai Defeated - Spring 1249

Nation Name: Kerin-Curan (also known as Tri-Kazelim)
Chosen Colour for Nation: Brown
People of Importance:

-King Gandogar Killisson, ‘The Anvil’
-Prince Farin Gandogarsson, ‘The Hammer’
-Scholar-Lord Keran Rudensfer, ‘The Cartographer’

-Lord-General Bokkad Falisson

-Lord-Admiral Thorur Agrammsson

Population: 3 million (1 million dwarves and 2 million humans)

TRAITS:

National Traits

Homeland Security
Ranchers

Population Traits

Industrious

Academic Traits

Academy of War

Military Traits

Golden Horde

Strategists

Masterful Cavalry

Superior Forging

Military Units Traits

Light Infantry
Heavy Infantry
Crossbowmen
Heavy Cavalry
Magi
Artillery

Naval Traits
Iron Waves
Ship Building
Ship Artillery
Ironclads

Illusion Magic Traits
Cloak of Invisibility

Imaginary Swords Cut Too

Technology
Flamethrowers
Alchemical Alloys
Steam Engines

Racial Traits

Explorers by Nature
Dwarven Defences

History

Common Defence

Pacifists

Refugee Camps

The history of Kerin-Curan is steady, akin to the dwarven kings who ruled over it long before humans arrived on their shores.

It was over three thousand years ago, the exact date lost even to the extraordinary minds of the dwarves, that a ragtag band of humans, the first of their kind that the dwarves had met, found themselves washed ashore, desperate and weak. They were half-crazed with exhaustion, starvation and dehydration, but their leader managed to get one point across - they were only the precursor to a much larger influx.

The dwarves, intent on gathering as much knowledge as they could from the few who survived, fed and cared for the men and women. Eventually, they managed to make some sense of the story :-

The humans came from across the Ocean that the dwarves had never traversed, and had been expert sailors, travelling the world and growing rich on their exports - fine silks, the best horses, and huge amounts of food. They had neglected to look to the envious eyes looking to their borders. Generations of successive kings and queens had indulged in luxuries, and neglected the armies until they languished in the shadows, struggling to recruit and train men.

Their enemies saw not a civilisation at the height of prosperity, but a corpse that didn't know it was dead yet, still fat with meat. They started to swarm, and eventually attacked. Villages, forts, towns and cities fell within a matter of days, until only the capital, Queestra remained. It was a coastal city, an idyll with more manses than any other city in the kingdom combined, and less defensible than most - the city grown to such proportions and having lived in peace for so long that the gates and walls were merely ornamental. Only a last-ditch effort of the queen of the day, a proud woman of the name Terah, allowed the thousands upon thousands of the city to escape, cannibalising ships of every kind to create a fleet which carried all of the accumulated knowledge they could carry and as many people as could fit. Having travelled so extensively, they knew of the island nation of the dwarves, even if they hadn't deigned to land before. Now, they came begging, a last resort.[/i]

The dwarven king of the day, after deep discussion with the clan and guild leaders, agreed - they would be benevolent. The humans could stay. And after them, came their enemies. Fleets of man and elf alike followed the refugees from Queestra to Kerin-Curan and landed, willing to go to war to stop their descendants from claiming their lands in the future. Unfortunately for them, the dwarves were prepared for war. The cities were as strong and as unyielding as the indomitable will of their creators, fortified with thick walls, stalwart defenders, and ballistae that could reach further than the range of anything their enemies brought against them. But the humans wouldn’t retreat again - they had brought war to the dwarves, and would stand firm with them. As opposed to joining the cities and draining their saviours resources, they took to the seas in their fleet and harried the hastily constructed pursuers - according to legend, they were so skilled seafarers that for every ship they lost, re purposed though they were, they sunk five.

Those that couldn’t serve on the ships acted as guerilla fighters, hiding where they could, raiding supply lines and killing quietly.

Thousands died, but eventually the dwarves and humans of Queestra came out on top. They formed a society where the dwarves ruled, and the humans happily agreed to this - they knew it was impossible to return to their homes, and they found that the new life wasn’t as bad as they had feared.

Eventually, the humans were accepted as equal to the dwarves and some were granted lordships and titles equivalent to some dwarven lords. Of course, not all were happy about it, but as time passed it became the norm.

Since the two civilisations amalgamated, they have proved valuable to each other. The humans taught the dwarves how to effectively sail, and the dwarves retaught the humans how to fight - skills they had effectively lost. Now, they work together in perfect synchronicity. They also have greater empathy for the refugees of the Shadow than many others would, due to their cultural history.

MILITARY:

Navy

-1000 Ironclads

Army
Conscripts:-
200,000 Light Infantry
Trained:-
50,000 Heavy Infantry
50,000 Crossbowmen
98,000 Heavy Cavalry
1000 Magi
1000 Artillery

Anicea - Yru0

NATION

Nation Name: Anicea
Chosen Colour for Nation: Light Green
People of Importance:
Population: 8.2 million approx.

TRAITS:

National Traits

Cunning Linguists – Throughout their history, the Aniceans have discovered that war is not always the best answer to a solution which can often be far more effectively resolved with dialogue. Anicean diplomats and negotiators treat their work almost as an art, and as necessary to the country’s survival as its army and fleet, even if the words they say are threats to use said forces.

Homeland Security – The Aniceans like to keep to themselves and take the defence of their borders seriously. Counter-intelligence agencies work in tandem with naval patrols to defend the country, although with the recent influx of refugees, who knows what may get out?

Farmhands – Even before the founding of the Empire the Aniceans were famed for their agriculture, indeed before the mighty industries of Anicea, it was farming that helped sustain the fledgling country and allowed it to reach the heights it did.

Population Traits

Industrious – The people of Anicea forged an Empire in the past with the sweat of their brow, the blood of their hearts and the iron of their swords, when they are motivated, the Aniceans can truly achieve greatness.

Look at all the babies! – Although a moderately sized nation, the sudden influx of refugees following the invasion of the Shadow has caused Anicea’s population to explode dramatically.

Academic Traits

Academy of War – The Schools of War in Anicea are old as their heritage suggests, and can draw upon the knowledge of centuries. Although not as popular as some of the centres of military knowledge the Alliance could call upon, the Naval Colleges in particular still are amongst the leaders in their fields.

Science Academy – Technology has always driven Anicea in favour of magic, and their centres of learning are evident of this. The Univerisites and colleges of Anicea are respected across Kolnur for their rich histories - indeed many credit the Science Academies of Anicea for the first steamships, which now dominate its fleet - although access has been difficult for outsiders for some time, it has not been impossible.

Military Traits

For King and Country! – The Aniceans have always maintained a standing force as a deterrence to any Alliance aggression. The army are expertly trained and highly skilled, and was of modest size compared to the total population before the influx of refugees, as befit a nation that constantly stared down an opponent across the waves.

Soldiers of the Line – The infantry form the backbone of the Anicean army, they are highly disciplined, and skilled and are looked at as the honourable warriors of the nation. They will not falter, they will not fail and they will not let up.

Strategists – The War Academies of Anicea have produced officers and Generals who are among the best in Kolnur, and wherever the military of Anicea may act, there is always some plan in play.

Military Units Traits

Light Infantry – The lightly armed infantry of Anicea have largely fallen out of fashion in recent times, with the conscript armies disbanded long ago, although given recent events, there have been calls for the recreation of the Light Infantry forces as both a conscript army, and an elite section of the army.

Heavy Infantry – The backbone of the Anicean Army, the Heavy Infantry have become immersed in stories of honour, heroism and bravery throughout Anicea’s culture, and although dwarves are the most common, both Gnomes and Dwarves can be seen standing shoulder to shoulder in the shield walls as brothers and sisters.

Arquebussers – The arquebusser has taken up a prominent role in the Anicean army, completely replacing the archer soon after their weapon’s invention. Both Gnomes and Dwarves fill the ranks, supporting the lines of Heavy Infantry with the potent firearms.

Artillery – The Artillery batteries of Anicea are powerful indeed, sporting cannon second to none throughout Kolnur, with the improvements of the Gnomes closely guarded secrets of the Artillery and Arquebusser brigades.

Naval Traits

Ship Building – ¬The shipyards of Anicea have long been famed throughout Kolnur for their work, and have produced some of the mightiest vessels to sail the seas.

Ship Artillery – The devastating cannon that line the broadside of an Iron Navy vessel can loose a barrage capable of sinking lesser ships at great range and pierce the armour of the larger vessels that stray to close.

Ironclad – The Ironclads are the pride of the Iron Navy and the symbol of Anicean naval power.

Iron Waves – The Iron Navy has always been a distributer of Anicean foreign policy, both through peacekeeping and pirate operations as well as through acts of war. Whether feared or admired, none can doubt the power of the Anicean Fleet.

Technology Traits

This…is….my…BOOMSTICK! – Developed and improved by Gnommish sceintists, the Arquebusser has quickly become a mainstay within the Anicean army.

Alchemical Alloys – The mighty walkers of the Anicean army and the hulking Ironclads of the Fleet both benefit from the superior alloys that line their hulls, allowing them to weather the fury of battle thanks to the exploitation of Alchemy and Chemistry. Even the dwarven forts and strongholds could utilise bunkers made of Alchemical Alloys superior to stone.

Cannons – The cannon has become common throughout the Anicean military, whether it be in dwarven forts, onboard mechanical walkers, within the artillery brigades or even in the Ironclads of the fleet; they deal death and destruction to those who oppose Anicea.

Steam Engine – The steam engine is a more recent development in Anicea, but has quickly become adopted in everything from the mechanical walkers of the army, the factories in industries, the Ironclads in the fleet to even more situations between.

Mechanical Walkers – The land Ironclads of the Anicean army support the Infantry in battle, giving the force some much needed mobile strength in place of traditional cavalry. Powered by steam engines, walkers are also beginning to be used much more aggressively as their mobility and speed have increased dramatically.

Trains – Since the development of steam engines, railroads have crisscrossed the nation, allowing for the mobilisation of troops and for an economic boom in industries benefiting from the network. Some have come to call the trains the ‘Ironclads of Industry’.

Racial Traits

Dwarven defences – The forts and strongholds of the dwarves have held invasion, raid and storm, they are bastions of strength and will not give in without a fight.

Need more boom – The Gnomes of Anicea have long sought to utilise superior weaponry to counter their diminuitive size, although similar in height to the dwarves, they lack their build and strength. This lead to the rapid adoption and development of firearms, and now the Arquebussers and Cannon of Anicea are among the most powerful in Kolnur.

History

Legends tell that the nation of Anicea came into being from an alliance between a collection of dwarves and gnomes, driven in part by marriages between the royal families and the ruling classes as well as the desire to stand together against the dangers of the world. However, this Anicea would be unrecognisable with the one that exists today as much has changed in the land throughout its turbulent history. The formation of modern Anicea, however, was the result of what has come to be called the Anicean Revolution. For decades the land was under the iron fist of a tyrannical king, with his reign fermenting anger, hatred and discontent amongst the populace; many feared that the nation would tear itself apart if the King did not recognise the cries of his people. Indeed, many attempted revolts were forcefully putdown in brutal shows of force.

This terror could not last, and the spark that rallied the disgruntled people to action was none other than the heir to the throne, an ancient Gnommish Prince. Although battles were fought and blood was spilled, the violence was minimal as entire armies joined their fellow countrymen in overthrowing their despot. The result of this uprising was the ascension of King Jagus I to the throne, whose first act of office was to establish a parliament that would work in tandem with the monarchy so as to ensure that the people’s wishes were always heard. The system that was eventually put in place was based on the ancient councils of the gnomes, as well as the feudal system of the dwarves, and it has survived as the system of government of Anicea to this day.

As time wore on, the nation of Anicea rapidly grew in influence and power, with the devotion and dedication of its industrious citizenry allowing it claw its way to prominence. Wars were fought, victories were enshrined and the economy of Anicea fuelled the imperialistic expansion of a Superpower. Two centuries before the formation of the Grand Alliance, Anicea was inarguably the most powerful state in all of Kolnur, or at the very least the most powerful nation that chose to throw its weight around. It was in this period that Anicea took the task of keeper of the peace upon itself, intervening in conflicts across the lands with its mighty army and patrolling the trade routes with an unrivalled fleet; Anicea mounted operations to quash civil unrest, pioneered economic aid packages and even played a role in the expulsion of bandit tribes that dared harass their merchants. However, rather than see the actions of Anicea as attempts to maintain order in the world, the country’s fellow nations soon grew irritated by the constant interventions and interference in what they considered to be domestic affairs. Soon, even the victims that Anicea tried to save resented the assistance and by the time the mighty Superpower found itself in its inevitable decline, it had no more friends to turn to.

The leading theory is that it was economic, but the decline of the Anicean Empire eventually lead to military withdrawals and the expulsion of its fleets form other countries’ territorial waters. Soon the once invincible Empire was hounded from every direction, being portrayed as the bully that dared to stick its manipulative paws where they were not wanted. The cancellation of trade agreements and the economic isolation was the last straw for Anicea, which made the decision to take the resources that needed to survive and heal its ailing economy. At first the invasions surpassed expectations, and the Empire’s armies were ordered deeper and deeper inland as politicians lost sight of military necessities and became infatuated with their own greed and the supposed ‘resurgence’ of the Empire. Although the Empire was past its prime, it was still stronger than any single nation and as such brushed aside all who opposed it. Amongst the cries of nationalism and imperialism, one voice was drowned out, that of the Navy, long since pushed out of mind as simply a deterrence force against pirates and bandits the Admirality became frantic as they saw the winds of change gather their strength, unnoticed by those in Anicea.

Two Hundred years ago the Grand Alliance was formed, and although the fledgling Alliance did not wield nearly as much power as it eventually would come to command, its Armies shattered the Anicean lines, not expecting a concerted attack. Within a week, all the gains the Empire had made in War was overturned, and by the end of the month the Empire was being pushed to the coast, lands that it had called its own for centuries being left behind in a no-holds-barred retreat off the mainland. The mighty armies of the Empire lay tattered and ruins and the Alliance prepared to mount an invasion of Anicea and put an end to the country’s tyranny. However, its forces came up against the Iron Navy, holding the line against the Alliance at sea until a shaky stalemate was earned through blood and iron. Eventually, the lives and sacrifices of the Navy lead to the signing of a treaty as the Grand Alliance chose that the losses of a protracted campaign were not worth the results, and decided that a demolished Anicea was as good as an obliterated one. Anicea survived but the Empire was no more, and it found itself cast in the Shadow of the greatest alliance Kolnur has ever known.

During the time of the Grand Alliance, Anicea became reserved and focused within its own sphere of influence, with a generation growing up bitter with the outside world and considering themselves all the better for not interfering in it and its countless problems. The one exception to this rule of self-imposed isolation, was the Navy which took on the role it always had, patrolling the seas against pirates and brigands, although when once it guarded the oceans, it was now restricted to the diminished Anicean sphere of influence. Many today argue that the continued enforcement of the Iron Navy was the only reason the Grand Alliance chose not to finish the job that it had started, and eventually the two powers learned to leave each other to their own devices. However, upon the invasion of the Shadow, even the Aniceans had to take notice of the world around them. The first indication of anything amiss to Anicea was the full-scale mobilisation of the Grand Alliance garrisons that they had been monitoring for the past 200 years; the immediate thoughts were of a coming invasion and fears of another great war. The truth, it was discovered, was far worse.

Whilst Kolnur burned, nations fell and the permnament deterrence against Anicea turned their backs on the island nation and made their way inland, the Council bickered amongst themselves as to how best deal with the situation, should they take advantage of the weakened Alliance and deal their rightful vengeance, or should they take any action at all? It wasn’t their problem, they reasoned and the Alliance had made it clear what they thought of Anicean interference. However, once again it was the Navy that took the lead, bearing witness to the fires on the mainland and the cries of cities burning in the night, the Fleet mobilised itself and decided to take the only action it could; for the first time in nearly two centuries, the Iron Navy sailed beyond Anicea’s territorial waters to stand shoulder to shoulder with its Alliance counterparts.
The end was never truly in doubt, the Alliance could not stand against such a force; however, the war with the Alliance did leave the Shadow reeling, at with its final cry of freedom and the flames of its funeral pyre, the Grand Alliance cast back the relentless armies of the dark – at least for a time. The fleets which the Iron Navy had fought alongside returned to their own nations, most of the crews wondering if there was anything left of their homes at all. As such, the Iron Navy once again took to the oceans in order to shepherd the fleets of refugees to sheltered lands; for many, the first indication that civilization was still existing beyond their shattered borders, was the glinting sight and steam cloud of an Ironclad off the coast.

Now, Anicea has found that it is not alone in this new world, and although some countries did survive, not nearly did as was hoped. The result is that refugees who were expected to move on to other nations had to be taken in by Anicea, causing its population to explode. Fortunately, the land had always maintained a powerful military as a deterent against the Alliance, so was able to maintain order and control, and the bountiful farms of Anicea could feed the masses. In spite of this, one thing was for sure: in this new world, no more could Anicea seclude itself and trust in the waves as its wall, although whether this is the moment for the Empire to once again ascend, or the final nail in the coffin of a fallen giant, only time will tell.


MILITARY:

Navy
1000 Ironclads

Army
90,000 Heavy Infantry
20,000 Artillery Batteries
3,000 Mechanical Walkers (30,000 total)
60,000 Arquebussers

Kogan-Sul - Therizza

Nation Name: Kogan-sul
Chosen Colour for Nation: Yellow
People of Importance: Supreme Leader Alawat Khan, Forgefather Snori Fiendfoe
Population: 2 million Dwarves and 8 million humans
Traits:

National Traits
-National Security
-I believe you have underestimated the sneakiness sir
-Farmhands:
-Ranchers

Population Traits
-Loyal
-Look at all the Babies

Academic Traits
-Academy of War

Military Traits
-Golden Horde
-Strategists
-Mithril Armour (Free?)
-Longbows
-Masterful Cavalry
-Soldiers of the Line

Military Units
-Heavy Infantry
-Archers
-Light Cavalry
-Heavy Cavalry
-Artillery

Technology:
-Cannons
-Steam Engine
-Trains

Naval Traits:
-Iron Waves
-Ship Artillery
-Ironclad

Racial:
-Born on a Horse (Human)
-Gems in the Rough (Dwarf)


History:
The nation of Kogan-sul was founded by nomadic tribes fleeing an unknown enemy. Settling in the shadows of the great Mount Kogan, the tribesmen carved out a living from the land, whilst always maintaining their horsemanship skills on the open steppes which surround the region.


Legend has it that a warband stumbled across a dwarven outpost in the nearby mountains, fighting bravely but being turned back by the heavily armed and armored defenders. The ruling khan saw this as an opportunity to gain a powerful ally, and a pact was struck with the dwarves of Mount Kogan, hailing from Clan Fiendfoe.

Through the centuries the nation prospered, spreading to the nearby shores of the great sea. Trade grew, and eventually traders were a common sight in the city's bazaars. Dwarven merchants could be seen selling their wares, mighty weapons forged in the heart of the nearby fortress-city, and loads of bulk ore would routinely be shipped out for far-away ports.

The prosperity enjoyed by the nation did not come without cost, and constant military vigilance became a trait engrained into all. Several wars were fought, as well as punitive expeditions Through the crucible of combat, the humans and dwarves forged a unique bond.

While the nation has remained isolated in recent memory, the strongest enemy Kogan-sul has ever faced is closing in. Felling the ancient Alliance, the Great Shadow now threatens to consume the nation of men and dwarves alike. The smith-hammers can be heard in the streets, sharpening steel and mending armor. Supreme Leader Alawat Khan is raising a horde unseen in an age and Forgefather Snori Fiendfoe has summoned his war-council. Kogan-sul is going to war.

MILITARY:
Army
100,000 Heavy Infantry (Dwarven)
50,000 Artillery (Dwarven)
50,000 Archers (Human)
100,000 Heavy Cavalry (Human)
100,000 Light Cavalry (Human)
400,000 Conscripts
Navy
1000 Ironclads

The Empire - Marshal Ragnar Defeated - Autumn 1247

Nation: The Empire
Nation Color: Dark Red/Maroon
People of Importance: Emperor Giaus Octavian
Prince Vexpasian
Prince Marcus
Population: 6 million Humans and 4 million Ogres

TRAITS:

National Traits
-Homeland Security
-I believe you have underestimated the sneakiness sir
-Ranchers
-Farmhands

Population Traits
-Industrious
-Look at all the babies

Academic Traits
-Academy of War

Military Traits
-Golden Horde
-Fearless
-Strategist
-Mithril Armour
-Superior Forging
-Sneaky Sneaky
-Longbows
-Kill Them From A Distance

Military Units Traits
-Heavy Infantry (Ogres)
-Light Calvary (Human)
-Archers (Human)
-Artillary (Human)
-Mages (Humans)

Naval Traits
-NONE

Necromancy Traits
-NONE

Divine Magic Traits
-NONE

Elemental Magic Traits
-NONE

Illusion Magic Traits
-Cloak Of Invisibility
-Imaginary Swords Cut Too

Technology Traits
-Cannons

Racial Traits
-OGRES
-Increased Fortitude
-HUMANS
-Born in the saddle

History
(TO COME)

MILITARY:

Navy
-NONE

Army
175,000 Heavy Infantry (Ogres)
100,000 Light Calvary (Humans)
100,000 Archers (Humans)
20,000 Artillery (Humans)
5,000 Mages (Humans)

400,000 Light Infantry/Conscripts (Humans)

The Republic of Esterwynne - Santaire

Nation Name: The Republic of Esterwynne (Pronounced Ester-win)

Chosen Colour for Nation: Silver or Grey.

Nation Government Type: Republic

People of Importance
The Council - 100 people who form the leaders of the Republic, they are evenly divided between Elves and Humans and a consul is elected from both, a man or woman who is willing to defend the land at all costs. The current consuls are Matrim, one of the greatest strategist to walk the halls of the School of War and Moiraire, the most powerful Elven Mage seen in Esterwynne since the death of the last Arch-Mage. Also important is the leader of The Warders; Lan Halfelven, a man and a Blademaster better would be almost impossible to find

Population:
4,917,013 at the last census, two million of which were elves and the rest human


Traits:

Population Traits
Loyal - If there is one thing you can rely on when it comes to the people of Esterwynne, it is their unfailing loyalty to the realm. They would never dream of betraying their country

Academic Traits
School of War - The School of War at Kel Delvolwen is one of the greatest military academies in the world; second to none, but equal
with few. Within its walls have been taught some of the greatest military minds ever seen on Kolnur

Guild of Mages - The Guild of Mages is without a doubt the greatest of its kind. The lore within has lasted for millennia. It also holds the only record of Varokesh’s fate; to be used as a warning to all those who would attempt to use the vortex for selfish ends

Military Traits
For the Republic - The people of Esterwynne view military service as an honour and with good reason. Their soldiers are among the best trained, armed and armoured in Kolnur; the numbers of the army may be small, but there is no shortage of volunteers to replace those who fall in battle. If anything the only reason the army is so small is because there aren’t enough trainers to bring the soldiers to the level required

Elven Longbows - Each lovingly hand crafted by Elven artisans the longbows of Esterwynne are famed throughout Kolnur for their power. They are capable of punching arrows through heavy armour at close range and pierce light armour at distances of over 200 paces

Mithril - If there is one thing the dwarves envy Esterwynne for it is their Mithril mines. These mines, operated almost solely by magic, produce more Mithril than almost any other mine network in Kolnur and it is put to good use, armouring soldiers for war

Elven Craftsmanship - The weapons wielded by the soldiers of Esterwynne, from a foot soldier’s dagger to an officer’s long sword is crafted with Elven skill and woven with enchantments, turning what was simple metal into a killing device. The oldest blades even seem to have sentience infused into them, so great were the magics woven into their metal

Strategists - Trained in the Academy of War the Generals of Esterwynne are still some of the greatest in the world and with good reason for many of the Alliance's generals studied there also

Soldiers of the Line - The warriors of Esterwynne, though mostly famous for their mages are also famed throughout the lands for the masterful discipline of their front line soldiers. They have been trained to the peak of martial perfection and can march for days upon end and still be ready to fight at the end of it. It is for this that they are both respected and feared

Fearless - Fear is alien to the soldiers of Esterwynne, who believe that the only honourable death is one where your death accomplishes something. It does not matter what that something is, be it as simple as warning others of a bandit raid and dying on the way or as great as sacrificing yourself so that the many might live, both are honourable to the people of Esterwynne

Elemental Magic Traits
Mastery of Magic - There are none in Kolnur to match the Mages of Esterwynne in their command of the elements. At the Guild of Mages resides the wisdom of thousands of the greatest Mages Kolnur has ever seen and with the words of these great men guiding them Esterwynne’s mages have surpassed all in their mastery of the arcane. They are capable of controlling the movements of the earth, forming flames hot enough to melt stone, commanding the tides and summoning storms

Racial Traits
Elves - The Elves of Esterwynne are masters of the arcane arts, so much so as to put many of their human counterparts to shame

Humans - The humans of Esterwynne are explorers by nature with a yearning to discover more of the world and so the maps in the School of War are some of the most detailed charts in Kolnur


Military strength

The Fall - This is what the coming of the Shadow has come to be known as by the people of Esterwynne. After it was done, the armies that once caused the foes of the Alliance to tremble at their coming was in ruins. Where once over a million men marched at the call of the Alliance now less than fifty thousand remain living, the rest burned in pyres, the smoke plumes of which could be seen from the dragon peaks of Aleria

The Sentinels - The frontline soldiers of Esterwynne, The Sentinels are crossed trained as heavy cavalry and heavy infantry. Every one of them is adept with the lance, the halberd, the sword and the shield. It is they who make up the bulk of the armies of Esterwynne and the sight of the Sentinels marching to battle has put fear into the hearts of foes uncountable. The Sentinels, though made up of both races, are vastly composed of humans for they are more suited to stand in the shield-wall than the graceful elves who also call Esterwynne their home. Their number was shattered, decimated by the countless conflicts as they struggled to save the Alliance. All for nought. But the seven thousand remaining are veterans of The Fall and they will never take a backwards pace, even in the face of certain death. Where once fear was rare, now it has ceased to exist in their hearts.
Numbers - 7,513

The Guardians - Though they are not as feared as The Sentinels, they should be. The Guardians are trained as both light infantry and archers and it is they who cause the tracts of enemy dead from skilfully laid ambushes and devilish traps. It is they who darken the sun in battle with countless arrows. The arrows in flight make a sound that has come to be known as the Devil’s Harp Music for when they fall it as if Death himself has come to the battlefield and swept his scythe through the enemy. There are only six thousand of them remaining and they struggle to hold all the land they kept after The Fall. But they will never surrender
Numbers - 6,962

The War-Magi - These are not the fabled Arch-Mages, whom even the Arch-Lichs feared. But they are mages and they have no small supply of power. Mostly trained in fire and earth magics they immolate or crush their foes with ease though there are only a thousand of them remaining. But they are still the strongest mages in Kolnur. Woe betide he who dismisses that simple fact
Numbers - 1,150

The Warders - The mere rumour of The Warders joining the field of battle has ended countless battles before they had even begun. Quite possibly the best soldiers in Kolnur, they were renowned as such even before the Alliance fell to the shadow. It is they who halted the Shadow at the Battle of the Passes, the Siege of Karovonhra. It was they who drove the Shadow back and they who payed the steepest price. Once numbering in the thousands, nay the tens of thousands there are now less than five hundred remaining. But they stand unbowed and fearless. Should they march again as they once did, the Shadow itself will tremble at their coming
Numbers - 201

Total Numbers - 15,826

History

Bastion of Light
Champions of the Alliance
Founding Member
Republic
Nomads

Terra - brendxb Defeated - Autumn 1246

NATION

Nation Name: Terra
Chosen Colour for Nation: Blue
People of Importance:
Government
King Sebastian Orwell IV
General Le Marc
Advisory council
Rebellion
Mclanahan the Slaughterer
Gorok the Bloodthirsty

Population: 7 million
4 million Humans
3 million ogres

TRAITS:

National Traits;
Farm hands
Homeland security
Ranchers

Population Traits;
Loyal
Industrious
Look at all the Babies

Academic Traits
Science academy
Academy of war

Military Traits
Golden horde
Fearless
Strategist
Superior forging
Mithril armour
Masterful cavalry
Soldiers of the Line

Military Units Traits
Light Infantry
Heavy cavalry
Arquebus
Artillery

Naval Traits

Necromancy Traits

Divine Magic Traits

Elemental Magic Traits

Illusion Magic Traits

Technology Traits
This is my BOOMSTICK
Cannons
Steam engines
Trains

Racial Traits
Ogres;
Increased fortitude
Humans;
Farming is in the Blood



History
There is no assured start to the nation that is Terra. However the most accepted idea is that Terra once was a large group of nomads who eventually settled in the fertile land. There, the group successfully grew, attracting more and more wanderers until tribes eventually formed, then turned into towns and cities which inevitably lead to the idea of a nation being formed.

This sparked the areas first conflict, where cities fought cities for control and the right to rule. This continued until all settlements either followed one of the two states, Terra and the Settled. For a time the war stagnated, each small nation equal to the other, until a new threat came. Like the humans a large group of ogres decided to make their home in the fertile land. After being forced to continually move the Ogres claimed the land in order to form a civilization of their own, and with the humans currently locked in war both decided to leave the Ogre issue.

Taking advantage of this the Ogres spread word of the paradise and like the humans, they too rapidly grew filling up their small space as more and more wanderers came to make a home. Soon by their natural strength, unity and sheer determination to make a home the Ogres had amassed a force larger than any single native human force with the goal to drive out the warring humans and claim the land. The Ogre horde (as the army was called) sent its attack against the Settled and quickly began to cut towards their capital taking advantage of how all their main forces were locked in combat. However King Soru Orwell took notice of the brutality and offered a peace treaty with the settled in order to deal with the neglected issue that grew to threaten them both.

Together the nations pushed the Ogres out of the capital and back into their own land, soon their home was now surrounded. Then the question of what to do with the defeated ogres came, their army in shambles the Settled’s leader demanded that the ogres be eradicated. However, the King Soru, was able to make the final choice thanks to how the Settled’s army was also in ruins and had little to no morale remaining. In the end Soru took the Ogres land and brought them into the Empire (specifically the army) after which he marched his forces into the Settled’s capital almost unopposed - thanks to the people questioning their government for allowing the Ogres to almost wipe them out - and quickly he took power over the Settled claiming it for his own, promising better days. And while there was resistance from both the Settled and the Ogres everyone eventually unified under Soru’s rule and the country of Terra was formed. An age of prosperity and progress began and lasted until Soru died, but to this day he is remembered as Father Soru the Great, founder of the nation.


As generations passed, a gap between humans and ogres began to appear. Humans were seen as the masters more and more, claiming it was due to how the land was won by them in the past. And as time passed the ogres became second class citizens of the Terran nation, but the small nation was pressed for space as its population continued to grow. This situation sparked the great expansion where the nation of Terra turned into the Empire of Terra.

In this age of change it made first contact with the other empires and nations - including the alliance. Seeing the potential of unification, the Terran Empire quickly joined. Still it was desperate to prove itself and there was an obvious simple way to do that. Quickly utilizing its army Terra became a force of the alliance, obeying its commands and quickly gaining respect for its sizable military of both man and Ogres. One of the famous early campaigns of Terra, was the push against the Anicean Empire’s captured territory. The swift and powerful attacks helped decimate the Anciean land forces, pushing them to the sea; although Anciea’s navy held the line the Terran ground forces were praised for their strength. And so Terra steadily gained respect and power as a Champion of the Alliance; then the shadows came.

At the time of the shadow rise King Sebastian Orwell IV had recently taken power and following the tradition of Terra, the Shadows were met with a head on attack. The Terrans military was told at first to spread out and eradicate any shadow forces as they appeared which went well up until the number of shadows increased to the point where they were far superior to any single force and couldn’t be ‘contained’.

At first King Sebastian Orwell IV refused to pull his men out due to how it would be the first major ground withdrawal for decades. But as the army continued to fight in un-defendable positions their casualties grew massive. Soon even the king had to admit defeat and pull his men to Alliance borders.

From the outside the Terran army was a beacon of hope, holding the line for the others to pull back. But on the inside, the army was falling apart. Due to the army’s reputation many nobles had bribed their youth into the force as officers, even with a lack of training and experience, causing many victories in the past to be only thanks to numbers and strength alone. Now outnumbered many officers and commanders fled, leaving the military command in chaos.

When the shadows hit again smashing past the entirety of the Alliance’s combined force, one commander - ‘Mclanahan’ - took control of the Terran forces in the conflict zone and instead of holding the line as his orders told him he began moving his men to reinforce Terra’s borders. However en-route his commanders re-took control taking credit for the Terran army being one of the few surviving forces of the Alliance fronts, and sent him to Terras’s neighbours instead. In doing so when the shadows had pushed past enough of the Alliance, the Terran military was able to hold the ground thanks to a familiarity of the area and its defences. As a side effect the Shadows began to concentrate their forces on the heavily defended neighbours leaving the Terran homeland mostly untouched.

Once the Shadows were repelled and the Alliance lay in ruins, Terra seemed to be a beacon of hope for all on the outside. Standing above the chaos, defending its allies even while surrounded by enemies. Like always however, it was different on the inside. The Terran military was slaughtered and the neighbouring militaries were a step worse having been subjected to the brunt of the Shadow’s attack acting effectively as bait - they were practically decimated.

Seeing the devastation and knowing he would return to a life bordering slavery, an Ogre veteran named Gorok convinced a large force of his comrades to stand against the Terran empire and fight for freedom. Effectively Gorok formed the first formal rebel group and many veterans of the shadow war began to join, up until the government wrestled control back again and began sending ‘fresh’ troops to dispatch of the rebels. At first there was a slaughter and the wounded, war weary rebels fell quickly, until commander Mclanahan resigned from the military and joined Gorok. It was not long after that the entire rebel group began to melt away from the Empires forces.

Now with the Shadows returning, the Terran empire once again prepared to mobilized its army. However the rebels have resurfaced and continue to grow; and in the military many soldiers are refusing to fight and enter another slaughter.

Military units

Conscripts
Light infantry = 200,000

Elites
100,00 Arquebus = 100,000
50,000 Artillery = 50,000
50,000 Heavy Cavalry = 50,000

The Great Trade Republic - HOGGLORD

Nation Name: The Great Trade Republic (known as the GTR in common speech)
Color:Orange
Important individuals: There is a council of leaders: 2 monarchs, 2 military generals & the 6 most influential merchants, they decide the actions of the Republic.
Population: There are roughly 3 million people living in the Trade city at any one time, the rest are scattered across the remaining cities, which remain undisclosed.

History:
The earliest records of the history of this republic are when two large groups of gnomes and humans grouped together. The humans had traversed from across the ocean and the gnomes just happened to be there. After a short and almost bloodless war (there were a collective 17 gnome casualites and 14 human ones), the two decided to band together in the interest of Common Defence. The gnomes were very adept in creating impressive technologies, which the humans took and sold. Money became the lifeblood of the city. As the weath grew, so did the populace. Soon the Great Trade Republic was born. The Republic had one major city – aptly named ‘The Evermarket’ and various hidden towns were dotted in nearby areas, concealed as a contingency plan against any form of crippling attack. Whilst they did not function inside the Alliance, they were willing to trade with any who entered their city.

TRAITS:
Human + Gnomes +1 military + 1 Illusion


3 National:
Cunning Linguists
Homeland security
I believe you have underestimated the sneakiness sir

1 Population:
Loyal

1 Academic:
Academy of War

4 Technology:
Steam Engine
This…Is…my…BOOMSTICK!
Trains
Cannons

5 Military:
Sneaky Sneaky
Strategists
Kill them from a distance
Superior forging
For king and country!

1 Naval:
Ship Building
Travel the seas

2 Racial:
Explorers by nature
No one lives here, honest!


4 Illusion magic:
Master of disguise
Cloak of invisibility
spectral Army
Imaginary swords cut too

Military: (Using Magi, Crossbowmen, Heavy infantry & Arquebussers)

100,000 troops:

1,000 Magi – These mystical individuals guard the cities with magical illusions, dissuading attacks before they can begin.
40,000 Heavy Infantry – The main force of the GTR, these are the troops that wander the streets of the Evermarket, maintaining the law. They are also called upon in the field of battle, having the thickest and strongest equipment available.
30,000 Crossbowmen – these troops are deployed in battle and long ranged shock troops, cutting down swathes of enemies before they can even reach the lines.
29,000 Arquebussers – should the enemy get close, deadly volleys of these troops will cleave deadly rends in their formations, blinding them with a dense fog of powder smoke.

Navy:
1000 ships, 1000 transports

 

[Bane_of_Kings]

I'll have a look into doing this one - not sure when I'll be able to get my post up though.

 

[son of azurman]

could you put up an example nation so that we can make sure we have done everything right.

 

[Romero's Own]

I'll get to work on that as soon as I can.

 

[Septok]

Good to see this back, it looked promising last time and I hope it can be better this time.

I've only had time for a quick skim-read, so could you tell me what's changed in the signup portion? I fully intend, as long as you allow it, to recycle Salthusiar.

 

[Alexander_Millar]

NATION

Nation Name: The Pure
Chosen Colour for Nation: White
People of Importance: The Council of Twelve, The Immortal Lord
Population: 1.2 Million Elves and 7.2 Million Humans

TRAITS:

National Traits:
-None

Population Traits
-Loyal
-Industrious
-look at all the babies

Academic Traits
-Grand Cathedral
-Science Academy

Military Traits
-Mithril Armour
-Superior Forging
-Golden Horde


Military Units Traits
-Heavy Infantry
-Magi
-Artillery
-Arquebussers

Naval Traits
-None

Necromancy Traits
-None

Divine Magic Traits
-Divine Charisma
-Divine Energy
-Holy Wrath

Elemental Magic Traits
-None

Illusion Magic Traits
-None

Technology Traits
-Steam engine
-Trains
-Alchemial Alloy
-This... Is... My... BOOMSTICK
-Cannons
-flamethrowers
-Mechanical Walkers
-Mechanized Warriors

Racial Traits
- Elven High Mages
- Explorers by nature

History
It is said that The Pure came from another world, brought to this one by their ruler and god, The Immortal Lord, to bring the light of truth to this forsaken land. With there first arrival, the men of the land they first touched fell to there knees in awe and reverence at the sight of The Lord and his servants. Soon a great change came across this land. Under the guidance of the Council of Twelve and the priesthood, a new golden age was brought about, with technology bounding forward under the zeal of worship. But this shinning exterior only served to hide the bloody truths. Any questioning of the council or their lord ws swiftly dealt with, and the trespassers made a brutal example of.

Soon The Pure Land, as it had come to be known as, was a shinning bastion of faith and technology, ruled over by the church and The Immortal Lord. Soon The Pure turned its eye outward, looking towards expansion and the purification of the lands that were beyond it's borders. The prosecution of fanatical crusades of purification and expansion soon followed.

With the first appearance of the Great Shadow, The Immortal Lord stirred from his great white Citadel for the first time in over a half a millennium... The alliance was swiftly joined to end this "impure" stain on the world, and The Pure were instrumental to holding the Shadow back for long enough for the Alliance to muster it's armies.

After the defeat of the Shadow, The Pure retreated back to their lands to continue with plans known only to them. In the intervening centuries very little was heard from The Pure, with only minor Crusades as the only indication of life in their lands...

Now with the Shadow once more arising, The Pure are one of the few who stand ready to hold back the unending tide of undead, and may hold the key to the survival of all, deep within the White Citadel, with Their Immortal Lord and god...

MILITARY:

Navy
-None

Army
100 000 Heavy Infantry
60 000 Arqubussers
60 000 War Priests
140 000 Mechanized Warriors
16 000 Cannon and Artillery Batteries
2 400 Mechanical Walkers (Counting as 10 men each)

400 000 Light Infantry(Conscripts)

 

[Romero's Own]

if you wanted an example sheet, there's one right there.

Accepted Alexander_Millar, Welcome aboard. Although you have an extra 6000 professional troops you may want to use.

And as for changes Septok, I've completely gotten rid of Mental and Physical traits as well as demolishing the traits that had no real effect. But with a little effort I am sure you can bring Salthusiar back to life

 

[Alexander_Millar]

Thanks for the heads up fixed up the numbers now, should all be good now thanks, looking forward to it

 

[Glasses man]

Could I make a nation comprising of dwarfs and gnomes whose military is largely comprised of machines/mechas/etc?

 

[son of azurman]

damn glasses you had the same idea as me,ive got two ideas any way if you want to do the dwarves and gnomes techie guys

 

[Romero's Own]

To be honest Glasses man, you can create whatever kind of nation you want. So if it's a nation of techies then, be my guest.

 

[Septok]

NATION:

Nation Name: Salthiusar

Chosen Colour: Teal/Sea Green (Forum colours, basically any greenish turquoise)

Nation Government Type: Benign Dictatorship (i.e. they don’t care about politics and their ruler is the same as when they were founded)

People of Importance:

Hésperion (Co-founder, status unknown)
Irèsp (Co-founder, current ruler)
Calleis (Head Magus)
Dalàth Scieris (Head Librarian)
Slaér (Head of The Guardians)

Population: 500,000 Elves (note: many of them are not truly elven, as the city attracts many students who settle into its society, and they entertain a number of visitors of other races)

Summary of populace*: The Salth (the name for all inhabitants of Salthiusar) are a community of book-lovers, philosophers and magi. Their city, Salthiusar, is home to the largest library of magic in the known world, and contains one of the greatest magic schools known also. They have a reproduction problem, as less than 1% of their race can reproduce, but they also enjoy immortality. As such, they rely greatly on a lack of war and incoming magical students to support their population, as their curse turns students into immortal elves (albeit with killing their reproductive system) at the end of a single month within Salthiusar.


TRAITS:

National Traits: Homeland Security

Population Traits: Loyal; Industrious

Academic Traits: School of Wizardry

Military Traits: For King and Country! (They don’t really have much of a military, but they do have a lot of mages who are keen to defend the country and who will blast elements on the enemy)

Military Units Traits: Magi (all troops are magi)

Naval Traits: None!

Necromancy Traits: Speak with the Darkness; The Spirits hear my Call

Divine Magic Traits: None!

Elemental Magic Traits: Lesser Air; Greater Air; Lesser Water ; Greater Water ; Lesser Earth ; Greater Earth ; Lesser Fire ; Greater Fire. (One of these is the elven bonus trait)

Illusion Magic Traits: Cloak of Invisibility; Spectral Army; Master of Disguise; Imaginary Swords Cut Too

Technology Traits: N/A
Racial Traits: Elves – Elven High Mages

Historical Traits: Isolationists; Leave me out of it; Wizards in hiding

Historical summary*: Founded long before the Alliance, the nation of Salth was formed by Hésperion and Iresp, a pair of friends, both mages trained by a kindly old mage. They shared a love of books, knowledge and most importantly magic. After their tutor’s death, they travelled far and wide, across the land, learning and collecting, until they eventually realised that a simple dwelling would be insufficient – they needed a better place. So they travelled to a distant land, after learning crystal singing from the masters, and imbued the land with magic. They sang, aided by a choir of those drawn to their cause, and, after weeks of tireless chanting, Salthiusar was built.

After some time, Hésperion realised that his and Irèsp‘s lives would be over. So he began on a dire and dark quest. He sang a new tower from the mountain to the north, entered, and never returned. However, one night, Irèsp went searching for him. He found the tower, found its darkest reaches, and conversed with Hésperion. He learned of the curse bestowed upon the nation, a curse with a flip-side. The population had been rendered mostly incapable of reproduction, but they also enjoyed one benefit – they had all become immortal. Time could not touch them, but Hésperion was lost to them.

Following this, Irèsp took control of the nation, which none minded. He knew war would come, as it always does, so he set up the Salth Mages’ Guild to aid in magical tuition and The Guardians to protect the city. He trained many for both organisations until he could pass the responsibility on to those he had trained. Meanwhile, more and more people travelled to the city and the library grew. New accommodation had to be sung; new library sections had to be made; new wizard professors were needed. All happened, and Salthiusar grew strong, but still in need of support.

The modern time is known by the Salth as the time of Shadow. Iresp rules the land fairly, though, like the entire populace, cares little for politics. Every person who stays even a month in Salthiusar gains the curse, but few who stay so long rarely wish to leave, save for voyages in the pursuit of new knowledge. The nation has a secret in Hésperion, who keeps in hiding in the northern tower. Some say that he has seen the future, the end times and all, but has become a slave to the gods. None know for certain, but there is something fishy in Salthiusar, and war is due to come. But when it arrives, they will be ready.

MILITARY:

Navy: None – they have no potentially useful naval routes, mostly because they live in a massive city of turquoise magic crystal.

Army: The nation has only 500 full-time soldiers, hired as both mages and protectors, but the citizens of the nation are all prepared to defend the land, so up to 50,000 are willing to fight in defence. They are all Magi.

*I know it’s not required and shouldn’t be on the sheet, but I felt like it’s a good thing to have.

ADDED 09/03/13
CALENDAR, literally translated:
Sunken Sun/December – Winter, 31 days
Snow’s Birth/January – Winter, 31 days
Thaw/February – Winter, 28 days (always)
Breaking Cold/March – Spring, 31 days
Sow/April – Spring, 30 days
Rebirth/May – Spring, 31 days
Risen Sun/June – Summer, 30/31 days
Wither/July – Summer, 31 days
Harvest/August – Summer, 31 days
Redeath/September – Autumn, 30 days
Rain’s Birth/October – Autumn, 31 days
Darkening/November – Autumn, 30 days
----------------------------------------------------------

Hope it's up to scratch, I basically just reworked the signup from the last rendition. So it might have problems.

 

[Romero's Own]

Looking good Septok.

I welcome you and your immortal elvish bookworms once more

 

[Septok]

Looking good Septok.

I welcome you and your immortal elvish bookworms once more

Awesome. Also, when making the map (as I assume you will), could you place me without any sea borders, like last time? Thanks.

 

[Alexander_Millar]

Looks like we have a bit of an ideological difference here already...

 

[Septok]

Books for the book throne! Knowledge for the knowledge city!

Oh, in case I haven't made it very obvious, they're kind of pacifistic. They're unwilling to fight, but they'll do it if necessary. They don't pick grudges and help their allies with conjured armies and knowledge. Wink wink nudge nudge.

 

[Alexander_Millar]

Embrace our religion and accept our superiority, and I'm sure we won't have a problem... Otherwise, we may be forced to revoke your library cards

Sorry, it seems like I may have a nation of religious fanatics and they will do anything to further their cause, anything at all...

 

[KeyanM]

Keyan's Nation

NATION
Nation Name: Turokhi
Chosen Colour: Red
People of Importance: The Dwarven King Kragnol. The Shaman Council.
Population: 6.5 million humans, 3 million dwarves.

TRAITS
National Traits:
-Homeland Security
-I Believe You Have Underestimated The Sneakiness Sir
-Farmhands
-Ranchers

Population Traits:
-Industrious
-Look at All the Babies

Academic Traits:
-Academy of War

Military Traits:
-Fearless
-Superior Forging
-Mithril Armour
-Masterful Cavalry
-Soldiers of the Line
-Golden Horde

Military Units:
-Heavy Infantry
-Light Cavalry
-Artillery
-Magi

Naval Traits:
-None

Necromancy Traits:
-Negative Energy
-Speak with the Darkness
-Spirits hear my call

Divine Magic Traits:
-None

Elemental Magic Traits:
-Lesser Earth Magic
-Greater Earth Magic
-Lesser Fire magic
-Greater Fire Magic

Illusion Magic Traits:
-None

Technology Traits:
-None

Racial Traits:
-Born on a Horse
-Gems in the Rough

HISTORY:
The origins of the Turokhi nation lay in the distant past, long before the coming of the Great Shadow, or the forming of the Alliance.
Once, they were little more than tribes of warring warriors, living day to day, never building permanent homes, or settling down. These fierce horse warriors competed of the scarce and limited resources of their homeland, and bloody conflict was a daily occurrence. This harsh lifestyle instilled crassness in the value of a human’s life, and bread a ‘dog eat dog’ mentality. Despite the hardships, the tribes grew large and strong, with only the greatest among them living to an age past twenty. A members worth in a tribe was measured by a combination of their skills as a warrior, the stock of their horse and the name of their fathers.
With is growth in population, the Turokhi raiders were forced to expand the territory in which they plied their bloody trade in, and soon gathered a reputation as the bloody handed horse masters. It wasn’t long after that they were noticed by the powerful nations of this world, and their age of unopposed raid and slaughter was soon to end.
They were mercilessly prosecuted, with tribe after tribe falling to the power of these nations armies, until none but the strongest tribes remained. It was in this time that the first great hero of this nation’s history was born.
Pragos was a young boy, no more than sixteen when the first campaigns of extermination were prosecuted against his people. Long had the shamans of his nations predicted the coming of a saviour, a man to unite the tribes and lead them to a paradise, where they could live in plenty and never worry about a meal. Little was it known that this prophecy was to come true in their hour of darkest need. Four years after the beginnings of the great extermination, Pragos had become a powerful warrior, a skilled horseman, and an inspirational leader. Under his leadership, his tribe grew to consume the remainders of the tribes shattered by the Extermination.
Knowing that he could not defeat this invader, he lead his people in a mass exodus, fleeing before the oncoming foe, for more than a moon they fled, but hey were slowed by the need to bring their herds, as well as children and elders. With the enemy closing with every day, Pragos made a decision. He, with twenty thousand of his followers turned to face their enemy and buy time for their people to escape.
With Pragos’ sacrifice, his nation was able to flee into the mountains, but now, they were leaderless and trapped in unfamiliar lands. Hundreds of thousands of refugees, with flocks numbering in the millions, the Turokhi nation was shattered. It was at this time that a twist of the fates led a scout to a ravine in an attempt to find water. Following the ravine, the scout stumbled onto a sight that would forever change the fate of his people…
A new land, one of rolling hills and raging rivers, going on as far as the eye could see, and in the centre, a single peak, reaching up to pierce the very clouds. The Turokhi were quick to spread into this land, but had failed to see the truth. This paradise had already been claimed. A nation of dwarves, ruled over by an ancient household, with an ancient king, had created their kingdom in the mountain in the centre of this land. Quick were the dwarves raised to war, and soon the black smokes of war were seen on the horizon by the Turokhi.
An epic battle, lasting days, with thousands on both sides falling. A stale mate was reached on the fifth day, with the dwarves unable to pin the Turokhi and finish them, and the Turokhi unable to breach the dwarves’ defences. A truce was called, and the leaders of the respective sides met for the first time, in council. When the story of the Turokhi was explained, the dwarf king understood the pain they had suffered, as his people had too suffered at the hands of the nations of this land, and everyone knows, no one can hold a grudge like a dwarf…
A treaty was formed, one of mutual cooperation, where the Turokhi pledged to supply the dwarf nation with food and a portion of their spoils, and the dwarves would open their land to these people and would supply them with any goods they wished to trade with. But the core of their understanding was forged in the mutual hatred of the outside world, and a pact sworn to avenge themselves on those that had wronged them.
Now, seven hundred years later, with the weakening of the outside world, the Turokhi and their dwarven allies stand ready to smash apart their enemies and reclaim the lands rightfully there’s, and nothing will stop them this time. Legions of dwarves, and a host of horse warriors the likes of which this world has never seen stand ready to complete the will of their leaders and destroy the lands remaining in this world. And there are few powers in this world left that can stop them…

MILITARY:
Navy:
-None
Army:
-400 000 Conscripts (Human)
-175 000 Light Cavalry (Human)
-100 000 Heavy Infantry (Dwarven)
-25 000 Shamans (Human)
-100 000 Artillery Batteries (Dwarven)