Original Interest Check/Sign-Up Thread
[youtube]oVB_L9VWVsM[/youtube]
To Lund ap Lunds, the Land of Lords, Lundland for short. Or as foreigners call it, the Doomed Kingdom.
The poor kingdoms of this desolate land were united through decades of bloody wars and deadly politics a century ago, under the house of Trisch and their banner; a red sword facing downward. The Kingdom's founder proclaimed himself Overlord, and each vassal a Lord to him. To solidify his rule, and help pacify the unruly and proud nobles, the first Overlord Aella built a mighty and luxurious court in their home of Bolgaz, the mighty fortress of Trischland. Though the fortress' luxury ill-compares to the magnificent castles of other lands, there had never been a place more resplendent in Lundland. The Overlord then invited all the nobles of his land to live at court, that they might be kept under a watchful eye, and sedated with luxury.
At first, the Overlord was a mighty and respected title, with absolute and unquestioned power. But the ages have not been kind to the position, with each successor weaker than the last, and each Lord of the realm a little greedier every generation. Over the last century, the Overlords had given away many concessions to the nobles, such as allowing someone to serve in their stead at court, and limiting their responsibilities to providing House Trisch with their full levies in times of war.
After a century, the position of Overlord has become ceremonial; a fancy title with some land attached to it.
Lundland a land mocked for its hard soil, thick men, ugly women, and cruel masters. The land faces enemies on all sides, for as poor and fractured as it is, many see it as a land unable to defend itself, and thus ripe for the taking.
In the southwest are the Bogans, the merchant princes of the Southwest Isles. Lundland is hardly considered worth trading with to any aspiring merchant, but its people are hardy, and thus make excellent galley slaves. Whenever it seems profitable, the Bogans will gather a great host of mercenaries and slavers, who think nothing of the lives they deal in, save for the gold they might bring.
In the East are the Giants, those nomads who wander the frozen deserts. They are massive men, known to grow up to seven feet tall, with the strength of two oxen. When the scant resources of the frozen plains they inhabit grow too small, or merely because they wish for riches and women, they rampage through the east, leaving a sea of smoke, and a trail of tears.
In the North lives a more organized threat; the people of the Volcanic Island. So long as the great volcano of their island never erupts, they are a peaceful people. But, when that mountain spills the rage of the gods through their lands, the warriors gather, out of both necessity and religious duty, to take what they need. A great warchief will lead them to pillage the land and steal people, to work as slaves in restoring their scorched land, and to act as sacrifices, so as to appease the hateful god of the mountain.
But the greatest threats to the land lie in the south: the Ordained Kingdom, and the Empire of Baccus.
The Ordained Kingdom is an empire in all but name. The power and religious authority of their One King is unquestionable, for their family had long since consolidated their power. The whole of their land is lush and fertile, their people numerous, their cities large and prosperous, their wealth uncountable. They are second only to the Baccus Empire, which matches the Ordained in not wealth, but sheer size, for it is a monster that has eaten more kingdoms than comprises Lundland. It has always been ruled by cruel, merciless, and ambition leaders.
Lundland rarely need deal with them, for the two great lands seemed locked in a constant war with each other. But every so often, if there is peace between them, one or both of the them will decide to plunder and conquer the southlands of Lundland. In these wars has the kingdom suffered her bloodiest battles, and faced her most dreaded defeats. Woe has been the king to deal with such wars.
The kingdom has not only enemies without, but enemies within. The Land of Lords is no mere title, for thanks to the incompetence of past Overlords, each Lord of the land might be considered a petty king in and of themselves, as even they have vassals owing fealty to them. Every Lord has had to deal with their vassals, who in peace will wage war on each other, and scheme to claim land and privileges held rightly by the Lord, and it is the same for the Overlord.
With so many enemies and so much infighting, Lundland rarely sees peace. And things have only gotten worse in recent times.
The great Overlord Balthazar, who had worked so dutifully to protect the land, and increase the pitiful authority of his title, died in a battle with a small group of mercenaries under a Bogan's pay. It was a most pathetic death, for the sellswords were in flight. One of them grew panicked, and shot an unaimed crossbow behind himself. The bolt hit Balthazar in the right arm as he was riding, and the Overlord succumbed to the wound not hours later. As word got around, many soldiers started to panic themselves.
The sellswords, seeing this confusion, decided to halt their flight and regroup. With new organization and confidence, the Bogan mercenaries pillaged the land without resistance, as the feckless vassals of the land refused to fight for a dead liege.
Though Balthazar's eldest son, Rone, was eventually crowned the new Overlord, it was far too late. The Bogan mercenaries had rampaged across all the land belonging directly to the Overlord, and beyond. The vassals of the realm had all gone back to their separate lands, none willing to do anything but save themselves. And as the confusion and desperation grew, so did the enemies of the kingdom, who sought to take advantage of the land's weakness. Rone saw all his father worked to achieve disappear before his eyes. With no men at call, he could do nothing but stay in the mighty fortress of Bolgaz. The servants saw him become more and more reclusive, as the young lord did nothing but lock himself away in his bedroom for hours, or even days at a time. Many believe Rone has lost his mind to despair.
With a weak ruler as he, all who have even the slightest claim to the throne are now crying of their divine right to rule on whoever will listen, but there are two in particular who have garnered significant support.
Balthazar's eldest daughter claims the throne is hers by right, for though it has been tradition for the eldest son to inherit, it is stated in the writs of the Overlord that the eldest child inherit the throne, with no mention of gender. Though many lords laugh at her claim, she has pressed them with such vehemence at court that the marshal of the realm, Uthred, tried to have her arrested. She escaped Bolgaz, and has not been heard of in some time.
There is also the next in line for the throne, Theodore Trisch, the first cousin of Rone. He also asserts his claim to the throne through the writs, for according to them, the next-in-line to the throne should serve as acting regent if the current Overlord is ever indisposed, until such a time when the Overlord either recovers their health, or dies. And while Rone is technically capable of rule, it is clear to many how mentally unstable he is, and numerous Lords support Theodore's claim to the throne.
All that said, however, enemies rampage across the land, and most Lords fear for their survival. The question of the throne is the furthest thing from most of their minds.
For now, most are well with an Overlord who will watch his kingdom burn.
---
Greetings,
For those who are familiar with this, welcome back. I thank you for ploughing through what was essentially the beta for this NRP. I don't make great claims to this incarnation being perfect, but I believe this version to be a vast improvement on the admitted clusterfuck it had started out as, and as a direct consequence, far more enjoyable and streamlined. Also to your interest, more buildings are coming, but none of them shall be available at the very start, so I decided to leave them out of the rules until I'm sure there will be no balance issues. Also, border concerns are out, save for March of Mishfarden. You're now in constant danger whether you like it or not.
For those just joining this, I welcome you even more warmly. I thank you in advance for your interest, and I do hope you enjoy your stay in our fine land. . .
Below are the latest incarnation of the rules, along with a few other useful things, but here are some key points for people who don't want to wade through the rules to find them:
* To express your interest, simple say so and create a lordship using the template found below. I have the final word on whether you are accepted or not, and reserve the right to say as little or as much as to why or why not.
* The game will work by PMing me whatever Actions you'd like to accomplish in a season. If you make an IC post, and it is highly recommended you make at least one each season, you can do so using any of your characters. All diplomacy between lords are instant, because of the Overlord's Court. The Overlord's Court is located in the fortress of Bolgaz, and by law of the land, each Lord is required to either be present there themselves, or have someone who speaks with their authority be there in their stead. If goods or people are being exchanged, or you are trying to relay a message to a Lord who doesn't have a representative at court, or to any traveling characters, travel times will come into play. For travel times, I'm afraid you will have to look at the rules.
* If people are not fed, they starve. Starving means a number of whoever is starving will die, subject to random result. This was too short and unrelated to put in the rules, but it should be common sense.
* Marriages are a way of cementing a formal alliance between two houses. How strong the alliance is depends on which two members are being married. For example, a marriage between a firstborn daughter of one lord and a second-born son of another will be a lot stronger than a marriage between an uncle of one lord and a niece of another. Marriage is not mentioned in the rules because its importance is entirely up to the players.
* Upon the completion and acceptance of your sheet, you will be given vassals. These vassals will have land technically separate from your own, but pledge loyalty to you by offering you all their levies in times of war. This is the limit of the responsibilities, and it is up to you to decide the specific dos and donts of your land.
* To conquer a fief, you must capture it's manor. It's as simple and complex as that.
With those things out of the way, here are other useful writs for your consideration:
Rules XXII
---
Annums Past. . .
AU 107
---
Inspiring Music
[youtube]rjLtuAoAoGQ[/youtube]
[youtube]7RCM2IeiB00[/youtube]
[youtube]xaRNvJLKP1E[/youtube]
[youtube]E2zbAO5_jCE[/youtube]
[youtube]u01Dk8O53JQ[/youtube]
[youtube]oVB_L9VWVsM[/youtube]
To Lund ap Lunds, the Land of Lords, Lundland for short. Or as foreigners call it, the Doomed Kingdom.
The poor kingdoms of this desolate land were united through decades of bloody wars and deadly politics a century ago, under the house of Trisch and their banner; a red sword facing downward. The Kingdom's founder proclaimed himself Overlord, and each vassal a Lord to him. To solidify his rule, and help pacify the unruly and proud nobles, the first Overlord Aella built a mighty and luxurious court in their home of Bolgaz, the mighty fortress of Trischland. Though the fortress' luxury ill-compares to the magnificent castles of other lands, there had never been a place more resplendent in Lundland. The Overlord then invited all the nobles of his land to live at court, that they might be kept under a watchful eye, and sedated with luxury.
At first, the Overlord was a mighty and respected title, with absolute and unquestioned power. But the ages have not been kind to the position, with each successor weaker than the last, and each Lord of the realm a little greedier every generation. Over the last century, the Overlords had given away many concessions to the nobles, such as allowing someone to serve in their stead at court, and limiting their responsibilities to providing House Trisch with their full levies in times of war.
After a century, the position of Overlord has become ceremonial; a fancy title with some land attached to it.
Lundland a land mocked for its hard soil, thick men, ugly women, and cruel masters. The land faces enemies on all sides, for as poor and fractured as it is, many see it as a land unable to defend itself, and thus ripe for the taking.
In the southwest are the Bogans, the merchant princes of the Southwest Isles. Lundland is hardly considered worth trading with to any aspiring merchant, but its people are hardy, and thus make excellent galley slaves. Whenever it seems profitable, the Bogans will gather a great host of mercenaries and slavers, who think nothing of the lives they deal in, save for the gold they might bring.
In the East are the Giants, those nomads who wander the frozen deserts. They are massive men, known to grow up to seven feet tall, with the strength of two oxen. When the scant resources of the frozen plains they inhabit grow too small, or merely because they wish for riches and women, they rampage through the east, leaving a sea of smoke, and a trail of tears.
In the North lives a more organized threat; the people of the Volcanic Island. So long as the great volcano of their island never erupts, they are a peaceful people. But, when that mountain spills the rage of the gods through their lands, the warriors gather, out of both necessity and religious duty, to take what they need. A great warchief will lead them to pillage the land and steal people, to work as slaves in restoring their scorched land, and to act as sacrifices, so as to appease the hateful god of the mountain.
But the greatest threats to the land lie in the south: the Ordained Kingdom, and the Empire of Baccus.
The Ordained Kingdom is an empire in all but name. The power and religious authority of their One King is unquestionable, for their family had long since consolidated their power. The whole of their land is lush and fertile, their people numerous, their cities large and prosperous, their wealth uncountable. They are second only to the Baccus Empire, which matches the Ordained in not wealth, but sheer size, for it is a monster that has eaten more kingdoms than comprises Lundland. It has always been ruled by cruel, merciless, and ambition leaders.
Lundland rarely need deal with them, for the two great lands seemed locked in a constant war with each other. But every so often, if there is peace between them, one or both of the them will decide to plunder and conquer the southlands of Lundland. In these wars has the kingdom suffered her bloodiest battles, and faced her most dreaded defeats. Woe has been the king to deal with such wars.
The kingdom has not only enemies without, but enemies within. The Land of Lords is no mere title, for thanks to the incompetence of past Overlords, each Lord of the land might be considered a petty king in and of themselves, as even they have vassals owing fealty to them. Every Lord has had to deal with their vassals, who in peace will wage war on each other, and scheme to claim land and privileges held rightly by the Lord, and it is the same for the Overlord.
With so many enemies and so much infighting, Lundland rarely sees peace. And things have only gotten worse in recent times.
The great Overlord Balthazar, who had worked so dutifully to protect the land, and increase the pitiful authority of his title, died in a battle with a small group of mercenaries under a Bogan's pay. It was a most pathetic death, for the sellswords were in flight. One of them grew panicked, and shot an unaimed crossbow behind himself. The bolt hit Balthazar in the right arm as he was riding, and the Overlord succumbed to the wound not hours later. As word got around, many soldiers started to panic themselves.
The sellswords, seeing this confusion, decided to halt their flight and regroup. With new organization and confidence, the Bogan mercenaries pillaged the land without resistance, as the feckless vassals of the land refused to fight for a dead liege.
Though Balthazar's eldest son, Rone, was eventually crowned the new Overlord, it was far too late. The Bogan mercenaries had rampaged across all the land belonging directly to the Overlord, and beyond. The vassals of the realm had all gone back to their separate lands, none willing to do anything but save themselves. And as the confusion and desperation grew, so did the enemies of the kingdom, who sought to take advantage of the land's weakness. Rone saw all his father worked to achieve disappear before his eyes. With no men at call, he could do nothing but stay in the mighty fortress of Bolgaz. The servants saw him become more and more reclusive, as the young lord did nothing but lock himself away in his bedroom for hours, or even days at a time. Many believe Rone has lost his mind to despair.
With a weak ruler as he, all who have even the slightest claim to the throne are now crying of their divine right to rule on whoever will listen, but there are two in particular who have garnered significant support.
Balthazar's eldest daughter claims the throne is hers by right, for though it has been tradition for the eldest son to inherit, it is stated in the writs of the Overlord that the eldest child inherit the throne, with no mention of gender. Though many lords laugh at her claim, she has pressed them with such vehemence at court that the marshal of the realm, Uthred, tried to have her arrested. She escaped Bolgaz, and has not been heard of in some time.
There is also the next in line for the throne, Theodore Trisch, the first cousin of Rone. He also asserts his claim to the throne through the writs, for according to them, the next-in-line to the throne should serve as acting regent if the current Overlord is ever indisposed, until such a time when the Overlord either recovers their health, or dies. And while Rone is technically capable of rule, it is clear to many how mentally unstable he is, and numerous Lords support Theodore's claim to the throne.
All that said, however, enemies rampage across the land, and most Lords fear for their survival. The question of the throne is the furthest thing from most of their minds.
For now, most are well with an Overlord who will watch his kingdom burn.
---
Greetings,
For those who are familiar with this, welcome back. I thank you for ploughing through what was essentially the beta for this NRP. I don't make great claims to this incarnation being perfect, but I believe this version to be a vast improvement on the admitted clusterfuck it had started out as, and as a direct consequence, far more enjoyable and streamlined. Also to your interest, more buildings are coming, but none of them shall be available at the very start, so I decided to leave them out of the rules until I'm sure there will be no balance issues. Also, border concerns are out, save for March of Mishfarden. You're now in constant danger whether you like it or not.
For those just joining this, I welcome you even more warmly. I thank you in advance for your interest, and I do hope you enjoy your stay in our fine land. . .
Below are the latest incarnation of the rules, along with a few other useful things, but here are some key points for people who don't want to wade through the rules to find them:
* To express your interest, simple say so and create a lordship using the template found below. I have the final word on whether you are accepted or not, and reserve the right to say as little or as much as to why or why not.
* The game will work by PMing me whatever Actions you'd like to accomplish in a season. If you make an IC post, and it is highly recommended you make at least one each season, you can do so using any of your characters. All diplomacy between lords are instant, because of the Overlord's Court. The Overlord's Court is located in the fortress of Bolgaz, and by law of the land, each Lord is required to either be present there themselves, or have someone who speaks with their authority be there in their stead. If goods or people are being exchanged, or you are trying to relay a message to a Lord who doesn't have a representative at court, or to any traveling characters, travel times will come into play. For travel times, I'm afraid you will have to look at the rules.
* If people are not fed, they starve. Starving means a number of whoever is starving will die, subject to random result. This was too short and unrelated to put in the rules, but it should be common sense.
* Marriages are a way of cementing a formal alliance between two houses. How strong the alliance is depends on which two members are being married. For example, a marriage between a firstborn daughter of one lord and a second-born son of another will be a lot stronger than a marriage between an uncle of one lord and a niece of another. Marriage is not mentioned in the rules because its importance is entirely up to the players.
* Upon the completion and acceptance of your sheet, you will be given vassals. These vassals will have land technically separate from your own, but pledge loyalty to you by offering you all their levies in times of war. This is the limit of the responsibilities, and it is up to you to decide the specific dos and donts of your land.
* To conquer a fief, you must capture it's manor. It's as simple and complex as that.
With those things out of the way, here are other useful writs for your consideration:
Rules XXII
---
Annums Past. . .
AU 107
---
Inspiring Music
[youtube]rjLtuAoAoGQ[/youtube]
[youtube]7RCM2IeiB00[/youtube]
[youtube]xaRNvJLKP1E[/youtube]
[youtube]E2zbAO5_jCE[/youtube]
[youtube]u01Dk8O53JQ[/youtube]