Aesthetically as well: Arains were probably much more "humble" than their Catholic/Orthodox counterparts. I think the big effect of preaching Jesus as being more human than he was spiritual didn't mean there was a lot of emphasis on trying to present some maddening image of heaven you'd get in richer Orthodox and Catholic churches/cathedral (especially later period, but Arianism was also dead by the time the romantic image of the "gothic" cathedral arose). Arian aesthetic would be more about the approach-ability of Jesus and possibility the divine as being human in many respects, and not some major divine hand of God and he needed to be that much.

Though Jesus WAS created according to Arius, he is not the son of God in the same way the mainstream church viewed him. This kind of falls into line that God is one and only, and any attempt at shoe-horning a trinity into God's nature is a half-assed attempt at being polytheistic while claiming it's still monotheistic by claiming the Son, the Father, and the Holy Ghost is one the same. So that might be the focus of the theological debate. Aesthetic argument might boil down to, "That church is too rich, you could have spent the money you got on alms for the poor"; but not as extreme as the Lollards (whoever thought it was amazing to be poor) or whatever.

Now, if there is anybody better at theology than me, please speak up, because the theological divides make very little sense to me and I don't understand why anybody could ever have cared. This was shit that nearly brought the Empire to civil war several times, and it would have divided everything from rival street gangs to aristocratic families. And that I truly don't get.

Zachary Karabell, in an aside in his work 'People of the Book', said that the arguments about the nature of Christ came about due to the absorption of Pagan Philosophy in the Christian Faith.

Page 47:

Among the central concerns of the Neoplatonists was the divide between the material and the spiritual, between the body and the soul. That in part accounts for the almost obsessive concern in early Christianity over whether Christ was fully divine, fully human, or some alchemical combination of the two.

<Snipped quote by Vilageidiotx>

Zachary Karabell, in an aside in his work 'People of the Book', said that the arguments about the nature of Christ came about due to the absorption of Pagan Philosophy in the Christian Faith.

Page 47:

<Snipped quote>

I do know this was true with the Arians. If you are an educated Roman with lessons in greek philosophy under your belt, then all this shit about varying levels of divinity and humanity can be made sense of, but if you are a Germanic coming from a religion where the Gods were Gods and the heroes were heroes, it made more sense for their to be complete separation. And they kept that separation going for a long time because it allowed Germanic culture to remain separate when they occupied Roman territories.

Would it be possible to take a pre-existing Sasanian house and play it, but with a mixture of fictional and historical characters?

I was thinking about using the House of Karen, one of the Seven Parthian Clans, an aristocratic family from Gorgan who had their seat at Nahavand, which would be somewhere either in the NPC area or Media I think (hard to tell in comparing the maps; near Hamadan in modern-day Iran). Anyway, they were relatively prominent in the Sasanian political and social hierarchy---Sukhra, one member of the house, had even been the de facto ruler of the empire for a little while during the 5th century (he was basically the Dick Cheney of the Sassanid Empire), and Bozorgmehr, one of his sons, was the Grand Vizier during the reign of Khosrau I. In addition, there are a number of historical spahbeds ("army chiefs") that are listed that fall within our time period---I was thinking that I could adapt some of those personages from history while filling in the rest with my own imagination. I think that using such a a prominent family would be a perfect way to illustrate Sasanian social and military traditions, and the House of Karen certainly played a role in the defense against the Arabs.

Thoughts? Or would you rather have an OC house?

Also, what year will we be starting in, or has that been decided yet?

A question about the nature of Islam in this timeline:

Given the rise of islam happened in the context of a still prominent Roman Empire, wouldn't this cause serious butterflies to the faith, if it even exists? Islam may in this world have come to being by a different prophet from a different tribe even if Islam in these sense of being a unifying faith among the arabic tribes derived from judeo-christian thought still is around. While they likely still will write in Arabic and some of the athestetics may be similiar (although I don't know if there will be mosques modelled after muhammed's house as there will in our world), the whole doctrine may be different from the Sunnis and Shias or those other schools of thought that fell into the wayside. From a doctrinal standpoint I wonder if Islam at this point might as well be a "build your own Abrahamic faith"-type deal.

I have interest, but unsure where to go. Although I do ask, are Knights a thing here?

A question about the nature of Islam in this timeline:

Given the rise of islam happened in the context of a still prominent Roman Empire, wouldn't this cause serious butterflies to the faith, if it even exists? Islam may in this world have come to being by a different prophet from a different tribe even if Islam in these sense of being a unifying faith among the arabic tribes derived from judeo-christian thought still is around. While they likely still will write in Arabic and some of the athestetics may be similiar (although I don't know if there will be mosques modelled after muhammed's house as there will in our world), the whole doctrine may be different from the Sunnis and Shias or those other schools of thought that fell into the wayside. From a doctrinal standpoint I wonder if Islam at this point might as well be a "build your own Abrahamic faith"-type deal.

I have interest, but unsure where to go. Although I do ask, are Knights a thing here?

I'm likewise interested in what trajectory Islam will take in this world. Part of the reason the Islamic conquest had so much success was due to the quasi power vacuum that the fall of Rome and the Hunnic invasions had wrought in the region. With a stable Roman Empire, I have a feeling that the conquest will be more easily checked, especially in the Levant and the Maghreb. But I suppose the point of the RP will be the clash between Rome and the Caliphate, no?

I was thinking about using the House of Karen, one of the Seven Parthian Clans,

I was hoping somebody would take up a Parthian family. Go for it.

Also, what year will we be starting in, or has that been decided yet?

634 AD

Given the rise of islam happened in the context of a still prominent Roman Empire, wouldn't this cause serious butterflies to the faith

It could, but i've chosen not to change it for the sake of simplicity. Like any alternate history, i'm just tweaking what I want to really. As for the stability question, the Roman Empire survived but it isn't necessarily stable. The Empire would still be experiencing the teetering internal cohesion it had been experiencing since the Severans. In the real world, the Eastern Empire sort of played at being the total Emperor for a few centuries, and many of the Germanic Kings were at the very least playing lip service to the Imperial title. In doing so, the Germanic Kings gained legitimacy among their still often Roman subjects, and the Emperor got to pretend that the Germanic Kings were just ruling in his stead.

In this scenario, however, the Roman Empire is physically stretched across this land. They have to pay to defend it, to man the borders, and when there are border incursions they have to fight them off. We can just as easily say that the bloody wars with the Parthians also still went on, meaning that both Empires will be somewhat exhausted.

But of course it is alt history. Who the hell knows how we will end up letting this play out.

I have interest, but unsure where to go. Although I do ask, are Knights a thing here?

More or less. There would be no chivalric code or knightly orders of course, but the concept of giving land to your household guard or heavy cavalry wouldn't be strange. In some sense, Knighthood derived from how important heavy cavalry in the period of the late Roman Empire, and it shares a sort of mixed heritage with the Germanic household guard and the Roman equestrian class.

And I personally will probably use this term, and a few other anachronistic terms, to put some emphasis on how we are evolving out of antiquity and entering the medieval world.

I was hoping somebody would take up a Parthian family. Go for it.

Perfect! Do you have any particular NS template in mind right now, or is that still forthcoming. It's my day off and I'd love to get some work on this in before I am once again a slave to the dread despots of retail. :

A question about the nature of Islam in this timeline:

Given the rise of islam happened in the context of a still prominent Roman Empire, wouldn't this cause serious butterflies to the faith, if it even exists? Islam may in this world have come to being by a different prophet from a different tribe even if Islam in these sense of being a unifying faith among the arabic tribes derived from judeo-christian thought still is around. While they likely still will write in Arabic and some of the athestetics may be similiar (although I don't know if there will be mosques modelled after muhammed's house as there will in our world), the whole doctrine may be different from the Sunnis and Shias or those other schools of thought that fell into the wayside. From a doctrinal standpoint I wonder if Islam at this point might as well be a "build your own Abrahamic faith"-type deal.

I have interest, but unsure where to go. Although I do ask, are Knights a thing here?

Christianity still being a factor there would still be the Abrahamic ground-work for faith such as Islam to rise among the Arabs. And the only significant thing that'd be changing in the geo-politics of Arabia is the name of the Empire of Rome is not the Byzantine Empire. But the traditions of Rome may have changed in such a way to resemble Byzantium anyways. So it's really just a larger - and stretched - Byzantium.

Per any direct effects on Arabia: I don't think it would have been major. In-so-far as I know it's not like the Sassanids or the Romans offered patronage to Mohammad or any of his rivals. The only tangible effect I can see happening is merely the inspirational unifying aspect of Islam as a religion for the Arabs. The only significant changes that would be made to Arab culture would come into effect only when they start taking land. Instead of Greek influences in architecture and ad-hoc'ing local words for administrative positions (like tax-collector) it'd be replaced by some borrowed and transliterated Latin. Different languages too may be favored for translations of Roman writing into Arabic. But at this early stage, there wouldn't be much direct effect of this Rome to the Arabs.

Alright, I've quickly put together my NS. Apologies if it's a bit awkwardly written---there are a lot of concepts which are admittedly a bit new to me, and I'm continuing my research to ensure that my depiction of Sasanian Persia is, at the very least, as accurate as I can manage. I'll be reading some scholarly articles and papers and will probably update this a little bit; I still need to do some more research on Zoroastrianism. Additionally, there's not much in the manner of characterization, as I haven't drawn up character profiles for all the members of the House, and that will change soon. Anyway, without further ado:

The Ghassanid and Lahkmid rivalry is still in place, so the relationship between Arab mercenaries and the northern Empire is still there. I see no reason for the change in Roman politics to delay the Aksumite invasion of Himyar, which is one of the major events leading to Mohammed. So yeh, there seems to be no necessary reason to change the basic trajectory of the Muslims

Now, if Aaron wants to RP a historical Caliph or make up his own, that is his choice.

Alanda, Spāhbed of the West, Marzbān of Armenia

I've went ahead and freed up Armenia, so it wouldn't belong to either Empire. My reasoning is that Armenia was only ever part of either Empire in a loose sense, and usually managed to be more or less independent due to the inaccessibility of the place. By the seventh century, due to the influence of Christianity, it was pretty solidly in the Roman sphere anyway.

@Vilageidiotx Ah, I see, I'll remedy that right away

Would Azerbaijan be a more suitable substitute?

Leader Name: Theophilius Melissenus (Theophilos Melissenos)

Faction Name: Roman Empire

Map Province: Dicose of Egypt

History/Bio: The Dicose of Egypt suffered under heavy taxation and religious differences, although for several reigns, the Emperors have tried to find a compromise that would please both East and West, sometimes favoring the West, sometimes favoring the East. The latest compromise was Monothelism, the idea that Christ had two natures, but one will, which in turn was seen as a 'lukewarm' and 'watered-down' version of Chalcedonian and Miaphysite doctrines. The reason that the Early Church was so insistent on dividing itself via debates on the nature of Christ was because of their adoption of Pagan Roman Philosophy, most prominently Neoplatonism, whose distinction between the material and spiritual influenced people from Origen and St. Augustine.

Needless to say, this adoption made even the slightest of differences into a philosophical, life-and-death situation, literally. Not merely that, but the adoption of Pagan Roman Mores, including the rule that Women must adopt the surname of their closest male relative or husband, also permeated Christianity, turning it from a religion that made widows and unmarried women relevant, to a religion that lynched Pagan Female Scholars in Alexandria itself.

Okay, enough lecturing. My point is, the conflict between the Melkites (Semitic name for Orthodox/Catholic/Chalcedonian) and the Miaphysites in Egypt itself was divisive and destructive, but at the same time, more managable than it looked as long as one concilated the landed families that held all the power. And that was what Theophanes Melissenos, once he came to power in Egypt, started to do.

Born to the Urban Elites in Constantinople, Theophilus was no genius, but still a bit of a savant, who rose up in the ranks, including in the last great war against the Sanassids. Enduring several defeats before final victory, Theophilus learned much about war, but at the same time, from the final campaigns at Cestiphon, also about how superior tactics, mobility, and yes, deception, are vital to turning the tide of a battle.

In Egypt, Theophilus began hearing words from Arab Merchants of the actions of Muhammad, as well as his battles. At first disdainful of this new 'Prophet', he nevertheless retained enough presence of mind to know that as exhausted as the Roman and Sanassid Empires were, they might be caught by a surprise attack. Not merely that, but the fact was that he was prescient enough to know that the normal Roman treatment of the Arabs in Arabia, which inovlved using them as pawns in the Roman - Sanassid conflict, and, like all pawns, casting them aside when they're no longer useful, created much resentment. Therefore, his current advice is to treat the Ghassanids and other Christian Arabs more fairly instead of treating them with disdain.

Leader Name: Abdullah ibn Abi Quhaafah

Faction Name: Quraysh

Map Province: lolArabia

History/Bio: The tribe of the Quraysh trace their ancestry to the time or Abraham, and even before. Claiming to be descendants of the first-man, Adam. As well as Abraham his self and his son Ishmael. For generations the tribe carried the Bedouin way of life among the deserts of Arabia, they and the tribes that made up their clan identity.

Their way of life would not change until the Roman year of 400 when Qusai ibn Kilab, through diplomacy and war, settled their clan at the rich city of Mecca and was pronounced the clan's first king. Although, the title would not transfer to an heir and after Qusai's death there would be no named King of the Quraysh, nor any central leading figure for several centuries after.

However, the tribe retained their position as the shiekhs of Mecca and the custodians of the pagan shrine of the Kabbah. They grew powerful and wealthy as merchants as they assumed and retained their bountiful position at the center of Arabic life. Unchallenged and unchanged for several centuries the Quraysh blossomed into a powerful merchant tribe. In a sense, nearly the defacto rulers of Arabia through their powerful influence through Mecca and the Kabbah at its heart.

The ripples that would change the course of the tribe hit the oasis waters of the Bedouin tribes in the Roman year of 570.

Born a fatherless orphan, Abū al-Qāsim Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd Allāh ibn ʿAbd al-Muṭṭalib ibn Hāshim was the son of Abdullah, an aspiring merchant of the Banu Hashim. Abdullah – who had been called to Syria on a merchant voyage – however never lived long enough to see his son Mohammad born, as he fell ill and passed away, leaving his widow and unborn son his meager wealth as a caravan merchant.

When born, the young Mohammad was sent to live with nomadic Bedouins. However while living with his foster parents, his mother Amina passed away herself, officially orphaning him. His foster family took great care to see that he did not starve, but during his child-hood the tribe of the Banu Hashim had been in decline and there was difficulty among them to raise him as a successful child. As he grew into adult-hood he began to make caravan voyages with his uncle – Abu-Talib - to Syria, beginning a young career as a caravan merchant.

While in Syria with his uncle Mohammad met a Christian monk. In conversation, the monk is said to have sensed the importance of Mohammad as a voice of God.

As Mohammad came of age he struck out on his own as an independent merchant. Traveling the roads from the Indian Ocean to the Mediterranean sea, acquiring a vast reputation as a truthful and honorable arbitrator and dealer. His reputation came to surpass him as he traveled, attracting an offer from the 40 year-old widow Khadijah whom he married. Khadijah would remain faithful to her husband, and became one of his most important financiers in his later adventures.

In his piety, Mohammad adopted the practice of praying alone in a cave on Mount Hira outside of Mecca. There it is said the first of many transformative moments happened to him. Coming down from the mountain at the age of 40 he claims to have been visited by the angel Gabriel who reveals to him the first of his many revelations from God, and the beginning of a turning point for not only himself and the Quryash: but for all the Arabs.

Over the next several years Mohammad gathers the first of his many future followers in secret, out of fear of retaliation by his own tribe and clan. Many of these early followers becoming his closest friends and loyal of companions. These companions – the Sahabah – included many prominent faces including that of Abu-Bakr, the father-in-law of Mohammad and first righteously guided Caliph.

These figures would follow Mohammad as he came into the public light as a prophet, he and their flight from Mecca to Medina as the elders of the clan sought his assassination, and the battles and return to Mecca. They received dutifully the words of the Quran and became the prophet's most trusted confidants.

With Muhhamad's death Abdullah ibn Abi Quhaafah – Abu-bakr – was elected among the early Muslim tribes as the first Caliph – successor – to the political institution created by Mohammad. With a hard hand, he enforced the solidarity of this new regime by wrangling the clans and tribes who claimed to have only signed an alliance with Mohammad himself and committed apostasy, solidifying himself and the Caliphate as the sole defender and lords of all the Bedouin Arabs. And in doing so united the clans and to turn them north to enforce their unity, and to carry the force and word of the Ummah.

Allahu ackbar.

@Vilageidiotx Ah, I see, I'll remedy that right away

Would Azerbaijan be a more suitable substitute?

The third map in the OP covers what specific provinces are available. In this case, you'd be looking for Atropatene.

Leader Name: Theophilius Melissenus (Theophilos Melissenos)

Faction Name: Roman Empire

Map Province: Dicose of Egypt

History/Bio: The Dicose of Egypt suffered under heavy taxation and religious differences, although for several reigns, the Emperors have tried to find a compromise that would please both East and West, sometimes favoring the West, sometimes favoring the East. The latest compromise was Monothelism, the idea that Christ had two natures, but one will, which in turn was seen as a 'lukewarm' and 'watered-down' version of Chalcedonian and Miaphysite doctrines. The reason that the Early Church was so insistent on dividing itself via debates on the nature of Christ was because of their adoption of Pagan Roman Philosophy, most prominently Neoplatonism, whose distinction between the material and spiritual influenced people from Origen and St. Augustine.

Needless to say, this adoption made even the slightest of differences into a philosophical, life-and-death situation, literally. Not merely that, but the adoption of Pagan Roman Mores, including the rule that Women must adopt the surname of their closest male relative or husband, also permeated Christianity, turning it from a religion that made widows and unmarried women relevant, to a religion that lynched Pagan Female Scholars in Alexandria itself.

Okay, enough lecturing. My point is, the conflict between the Melkites (Semitic name for Orthodox/Catholic/Chalcedonian) and the Miaphysites in Egypt itself was divisive and destructive, but at the same time, more managable than it looked as long as one concilated the landed families that held all the power. And that was what Theophanes Melissenos, once he came to power in Egypt, started to do.

Born to the Urban Elites in Constantinople, Theophilus was no genius, but still a bit of a savant, who rose up in the ranks, including in the last great war against the Sanassids. Enduring several defeats before final victory, Theophilus learned much about war, but at the same time, from the final campaigns at Cestiphon, also about how superior tactics, mobility, and yes, deception, are vital to turning the tide of a battle.

In Egypt, Theophilus began hearing words from Arab Merchants of the actions of Muhammad, as well as his battles. At first disdainful of this new 'Prophet', he nevertheless retained enough presence of mind to know that as exhausted as the Roman and Sanassid Empires were, they might be caught by a surprise attack. Not merely that, but the fact was that he was prescient enough to know that the normal Roman treatment of the Arabs in Arabia, which inovlved using them as pawns in the Roman - Sanassid conflict, and, like all pawns, casting them aside when they're no longer useful, created much resentment. Therefore, his current advice is to treat the Ghassanids and other Christian Arabs more fairly instead of treating them with disdain.

The church doctrinal issues weren't really Imperial ploys, but rather reactions from popular theologians in certain regions. The monophysites came from Alexandria originally, and any Emperor who choose to adopt this belief would be doing so as a reaction to their existence rather than masterminding their own interpretations. At least, that is how it worked out traditionally.

I would say mind you spelling, go through and make sure all the words are in their proper form, and you should be good.

Leader Name: Abdullah ibn Abi Quhaafah

Faction Name: Quraysh

Map Province: lolArabia

History/Bio: The tribe of the Quraysh trace their ancestry to the time or Abraham, and even before. Claiming to be descendants of the first-man, Adam. As well as Abraham his self and his son Ishmael. For generations the tribe carried the Bedouin way of life among the deserts of Arabia, they and the tribes that made up their clan identity.

Their way of life would not change until the Roman year of 400 when Qusai ibn Kilab, through diplomacy and war, settled their clan at the rich city of Mecca and was pronounced the clan's first king. Although, the title would not transfer to an heir and after Qusai's death there would be no named King of the Quraysh, nor any central leading figure for several centuries after.

However, the tribe retained their position as the shiekhs of Mecca and the custodians of the pagan shrine of the Kabbah. They grew powerful and wealthy as merchants as they assumed and retained their bountiful position at the center of Arabic life. Unchallenged and unchanged for several centuries the Quraysh blossomed into a powerful merchant tribe. In a sense, nearly the defacto rulers of Arabia through their powerful influence through Mecca and the Kabbah at its heart.

The ripples that would change the course of the tribe hit the oasis waters of the Bedouin tribes in the Roman year of 570.

Born a fatherless orphan, Abū al-Qāsim Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd Allāh ibn ʿAbd al-Muṭṭalib ibn Hāshim was the son of Abdullah, an aspiring merchant of the Banu Hashim. Abdullah – who had been called to Syria on a merchant voyage – however never lived long enough to see his son Mohammad born, as he fell ill and passed away, leaving his widow and unborn son his meager wealth as a caravan merchant.

When born, the young Mohammad was sent to live with nomadic Bedouins. However while living with his foster parents, his mother Amina passed away herself, officially orphaning her. His foster family took great care to see that he did not starve, but during his child-hood the tribe of the Banu Hashim had been in decline and there was difficulty among them to raise him as a successful child. As he grew into adult-hood he began to make caravan voyages with his uncle – Abu-Talib - to Syria, beginning a young career as a caravan merchant.

While in Syria with his uncle Mohammad met a Christian monk. In conversation, the monk is said to have sensed the importance of Mohammad as a voice of God.

As Mohammad came of age he struck out on his own as an independent merchant. Traveling the roads from the Indian Ocean to the Mediterranean sea, acquiring a vast reputation as a truthful and honorable arbitrator and dealer. His reputation came to surpass him as he traveled, attracting an offer from the 40 year-old widow Khadijah whom he married. Khadijah would remain faithful to her husband, and became one of his most important financiers in his later adventures.

In his piety, Mohammad adopted the practice of praying alone in a cave on Mount Hira outside of Mecca. There it is said the first of many transformative moments happened to him. Coming down from the mountain at the age of 40 he claims to have been visited by the angel Gabriel who reveals to him the first of his many revelations from God, and the beginning of a turning point for not only himself and the Quryash: but for all the Arabs.

Over the next several years Mohammad gathers the first of his many future followers in secret, out of fear of retaliation by his own tribe and clan. Many of these early followers becoming his closest friends and loyal of companions. These companions – the Sahabah – included many prominent faces including that of Abu-Bakr, the father-in-law of Mohammad and first righteously guided Caliph.

These figures would follow Mohammad as he came into the public light as a prophet, he and their flight from Mecca to Medina as the elders of the clan sought his assassination, and the battles and return to Mecca. They received dutifully the words of the Quran and became the prophet's most trusted confidants.

With Muhhamad's death Abdullah ibn Abi Quhaafah – Abu-bakr – was elected among the early Muslim tribes as the first Caliph – successor – to the political institution created by Mohammad. With a hard hand, he enforced the solidarity of this new regime by wrangling the clans and tribes who claimed to have only signed an alliance with Mohammad himself and committed apostasy, solidifying himself and the Caliphate as the sole defender and lords of all the Bedouin Arabs. And in doing so united the clans and to turn them north to enforce their unity, and to carry the force and word of the Ummah.

Allahu ackbar.

Allahu ackbar

You did refer to Mohammed as a she once though. Might want to fix that =p

@Vilageidiotx, Thanks!

gtg rest.

@Vilageidiotx

A Mohammad bint-Amina.

Fix'd.

Mercenary Army app

Leader Name:
Sigbjörn "Bláserkr" Ivarsson

Faction Name:
The Blue-Shirt Army (Old Norse: Bláserka Hirð)

Map Province:
Currently in Diocesis Pontica, scouting for employment opportunities and trading

History/Bio:
The Norse peoples first entered into history following their numerous raids across the North and Baltic Seas. Taking advantage of the chaotic state that the Huns and migrations of Germanic peoples had left the region in. Though Frisia and Britannia had been common targets, a favorite was the Baltic, which was now grealy weak and in complete uproar after the migration period. Various Swedish tribes took advantage of this weakness to begin raiding and colonizing the Baltic Coast, gaining access to the complex river system that let the explorers travel further inland, and opening up direct trade routs with the Roman Empire via the Daugava and Dneiper Rivers leading to the Black Sea.

Trade has Made Sweden one of the Dominant Powers in Scandinavia, alongside Denmark to its south; but while Denmark trades with and raids the West, Sweden looks east to the Rivers leading it to Rome. A particularly powerful tribe being the Rus, who have begun extensive trading missions from the Baltic, selling their goods and their services as mercenaries. One of these mercenary bands are the Blue-Shirts, known as the Bláserka Hirð, or simply the Bláserkar in their own language. Founded by the nobleman Ivar Blueshirt of Sweden, this band of mercenaries, around 3-4 thousand strong on average, consisted of Ivar's most trusted companions, including his own son, Sigbjörn. Well known among the kings of Europe, the Blue Shirts have earned their reputation as fearsome warriors and well trained soldiers, who are worth their price to hire.

With the death of Ivar only 11 years ago, Sigbjörn has taken control of his father's land and titles, including the constituents of the Blue-Shirt army, who currently spend most of their time in the Baltic at home, tending to their farms and trades until a call is made to them for employment.