A Song of Iron and Coal - The second war of the five kings

[Elgappa]

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"GENTLEMAN! The TALL-TREE FELLING GUN! Capable of firing at a rate of over two hundred rounds a minute. With its rotating barrel and its handcrafted loading system. This marvel of Summer-Island engineering, is named after its ability to fell an ebony tree in just one volley. Created by the renowned Inventor Zhalhar Daa, it is capable of providing a reliable and continuous barrage of high-powered fire. A single team armed with such a weapon can take the work of thirty trained riflemen, reducing costs of your forces while also increasing their effectiveness. Well then, gentleman....Are you ready to sign!"
_{Jadhalhol Rhalos presenting the Tall-Tree Felling Gun to representatives of House Bolton near White Harbor}

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Tl´dr

Boshin War meets Game of Thrones

Points:
- NOT STEAMPUNK: No Airships, no steammechs and no soldiers walking around in armor capable of deflecting plain old bullets (Traditional Men-at-Arms and Knights however are still a thing). The technology of the world is roughly in the late 1860s
- Low to no MAGIC: Magic has mostly vanished from this world of reason after the second-long night. And while the Dragons endured, the Tall-Tree falling Gun has painfully proven that dragons are obsolete in modern warfare, if your enemy owns a rapid firing gun, or just has good marksmen. In a nutshell, expect even less magic than in the books. The age of magic is fading fast.
- No none Westerosi Powers: The global powers all have empires of their own, and Westeros, while lucrative is simply to vast and distant to colonize. So their goals are, for the moment, to exploit the continent through trade contracts and forced concessions.

It has been 20 long, humiliating years, since the battle of the Strait. Twenty years, since the world has learned, to never again fear the dragon. The banners of the Summer Empire, the Union of Leng, and the powers of the west, fly high over the ports of Oldtown, White Harbor, Lannisport and even King´s Landing. Iron Ships now cross freely along the coast, and sell their goods untaxed by the crown. The Crown and the Starks, its most valiant champions, seem weaker than ever, incapable of performing anything but the most meek protest against the new masters of Westeros.

Ten years ago, a young man from Flea Bottom had a vision to be the Warrior reborn, and cause a fired that would need six years to extinguish with an event that would be known as the "Seven Colored Banner" revolt, under the battle cry of "Raise high the gods, expel the demons and kill the dragons". Six years, the Crown had battled against the rabble, while foreign merchants and mercenaries earned a fortune selling to both sides.

In the end, there would be a crown victory, but the realm had been shattered. And while, de-facto the dragon on the throne still rules, and the Stark's of Harrenhal are still the masters of the realm, nobody has any illusions, that its the great houses that once more rule their petty realms. All it will take, is a little push.

For the age of the dragon is over, and the era of iron and coal has began....

How did the Books end? What was the second-long night? Who were Jon Snows Pa...

We don't know. Srly, I do not want to write an ending for this story, and as such there won't be a "canon" ending, besides the certain pointers.

- There was a full Targaryen restoration with Ageon the VI. (nope, not gonna say which one he is) crowned King around six-hundred years ago
- An event called the "Second Long Night" has happened and was ended by the sacrifice of a great hero, who drove his sword through the chest of his lover, slew the night king and restored the realm. Almost every single house in Westeros has claims that their ancestor was this hero
- There has been a great decline in population during said event, as well as a great loss of knowledge and history. The Citadel in Oldtown was burned down, and maester-culture has ended violently with the purge of the institution as a whole by Targaryen loyalists following the second-long night. Westeros had an intellectual dark age, a decline of literacy and stagnation of technological progress, made worse by its strict isolation policy.
- The Faith of the Seven has been greatly diminished by the rise of the R'hllor Faith, which is now the second-largest Faith in the seven Kingdoms. Likewise, many institutions of the Faith have greatly suffered following the purges after the second-long night.
- Following the Second-Long Night, Westeros has remained isolated with very limited contact to the outside world, ruled by a strong Hand of the King that has become the hereditary position of House Stark of Harrenhal, enforced by the dragonlords of House Targaryen. This isolation lasted for almost four hundred years.
- Westeros has stagnated, both due to the loss of life and know-how during the second long night, but also due to the violent purge of the Citadel and the Faith of the Seven, reducing the literacy of the Westerosi people by almost 3/4th of its former state. Limited trade has brought over things like smoothbore muskets and simple cannons, but they have been mostly used for smuggler and pirate hunting.
- The Isolation was broken when a combined naval force of Summer Empire, and Union of Leng, forced the "Opening of the Strait" annihilating the outdated Naval forces of the Crown, and gunning down the two dragons send to burn down the Iron Ships. Capturing the heir to Harrenhal and forcing a humiliating treaty to open Westeros to the new Global Powers of the East, South and West...

- All houses of the book are playable. No, you don't need to provide me a reason how they weaseled their way out of extinction. But 400 years have passed, and the first reliable records start 250 years ago.

_{OOC: This is the most basic of interest checks. I can understand that a lot of people are really burned out on a Song of Ice and Fire, and I will most likely take a week or two to get anything serious started, but the Idea stuck in my head, and I love the time period. So just want to run it by and see who likes the idea.}

[Neianna86]

I'd love a ASOIAF and a take on how guns and (assuming the death of Magic once more) changed things as a whole.
Though perhaps it is a bit daunting to factor in the other continents and places, because as a starting point Westeros is large enough of its own as a set up.

[Elgappa]

I'd love a ASOIAF and a take on how guns and (assuming the death of Magic once more) changed things as a whole.
Though perhaps it is a bit daunting to factor in the other continents and places, because as a starting point Westeros is large enough of its own as a set up.

@Neianna86

Allow me to clear up things.

The RP will be in Westeros, will be about Westeros and will stay in Westeros. The other powers are factors, but they are too distant and too occupied to really play that big of a part, outside exploiting the houses, sell weapons and advise in the modernization of the continent. This is about a Westerosi War and its painful journey to modernize.

[Neianna86]

Good to know, I was concerned there for a second.

You said no steam punk so I am thinking you don't want steam engines or an industrial revolution, but focus more on the war aspects correct?

[Elgappa]

@Neianna86
Oh, there will be plenty of steam, but very little punk. Railroads, early tractors, and steamships will be around. This is very much about the industrialization of Westeros, the social change and all this jazz.

With "No Steampunk" I mean, i dont want to see anyone putting in Airships, or Steammechs or all that kind of stuff. Technology will be very much limited to what we had in the 1860s in our real world, with Westeros being a backwater that only has been open to that for around 10 years or so.

[Neianna86]

Right I just wanted to be sure about that.

Could you imagine a Railroad works being build through Westeros? Undoubtedly funded by the Ironbank.

[Elgappa]

@Neianna86

Absolutly. Its not just about war, but the social and industrial progress of a nation dragged "violently" into the modern age. Another theme will be the "old powers" revolting against this change. Knights not wanting to lose their priviliges, the disgruntled houses wanting to get rid of an outdated dynasty on the Iron Throne (or keep it in a modern fashion), the stranglehold of the Starks as hands of the King...etc, etc. Lots of interesting points to have a lot of great RP interactions about.

[Neianna86]

Concerning that though...any ideas on the structures of power?

With that I mean if a new class of citizens (the wealthy traders) rises to power, did you have any intention into dividing Westeros into regions that have specific goods and thus if one wanted to play for example a powerful merchant/owner of a coalmine or a manufacturer owning several factories it would be regionally specific?

Also how far do you allow them to advance? Or is that to be determined in the RP?

[Elgappa]

Merchants are actually a rising force in this new order. During the Period of Westerosi isolation, social mobility was pretty much dead, but with the opening of the country, they have become a new driving power. They have yet to translate their wealth and soft power into hard power, but yes, this will be one of the topics of this rp. And while every player are to start as a noble house, things can also change with new political ideas enter the country just as much as guns and other goods.

[Liotrent]

I love the idea but I have absolutely no knowledge about Game of Thrones. Would it be alright if I watch though if this takes off?