Sarmatian

The Siege of al-Qurait [FULL]

The Siege of al-Qurait

Original interest check: roleplayerguild.com/topics/160168-the-..

Background

The country of Taraq has long suffered under the oppressive rule and poor leadership of foreign-backed leaders. A lack of cooperation between the populace and government has led to the creation of individual parties, each one seeking rights and autonomy. Last years elections were especially chaotic with the nomination of over a dozen candidates. The UN sent financial aid and support for their preferred candidate: Ibram ibn Hassan. Fearing further UN retaliation against their parties, most candidates dropped out. Not surprisingly, Ibram won the election and was inaugurated weeks later at the capital: al-Qurait. Part of Ibram's deal with the UN included widespread disbandment of Taraq's military,; the UN promised military aid in the event of an armed conflict.

Weeks after his inauguration, a group of militants calling themselves the Black Cobras stormed the presidential palace during a successful coup. The fate of Ibram is yet unclear, but he is believed dead. The city quickly fell to the Black Cobras who also took control of outlying towns, installations, and roads.

Meanwhile, other political, ethnic, and religious groups began to arm themselves, preparing to defend against the Cobras. In a few short days the Cobras managed to intimidate the majority of the smaller groups into pledging allegiance to them. The remaining groups have proclaimed autonomy in their respective regions.

In order to curb the growth of the Black Cobras and to end the hostilities as quickly as possible, the UN has sent advisers to the various militant groups. They hope to create a coalition that can besiege, assault, and liberate al-Qurait. But cutting the head off of the Black Cobras is only the beginning, for each UN-sponsored group has their own ambitions for Taraq's future...

Gameplay

This role play will see you take charge of a militant group within the fictional country of Taraq. Taraq's capital is al-Qurait, and it has recently fallen into the hands of an aggressive organization called the Black Cobras, who are superior to you in almost every way. Fortunately for you, the UN has sent help, and they plan on forming a coalition that can work together to defeat the Black Cobras.

Your initial forces will number 30, and they're classified as Infantry (carrying small-arms weapons, like assault rifles and submachine guns). Before every operation you will be able to organize your soldiers into squads however you see fit. Tanks, troop transports, and other armored vehicles are classified as Armor, and is typically anti-Infantry. Artillery is usually anti-Armor. However, Infantry can be equipped with anti-Infantry weapons (heavy machine guns, sniper rifles) to defend key locations and anti-Armor weapons (like missile launchers and RPGs). Armor and Artillery is acquired by capturing it during a battle or by receiving it from the UN. Aerial combat can not be conducted, but air support can be obtained via the UN.
Note: Although your forces are initially capped at 30, that doesn't mean others don't exist. Theoretically, you could have have hundreds and up to thousands more, but for the moment the UN only requested small teams.

The RP will open at a briefing tent, where the leaders of the coalition forces are gathered. The UN military advisers will provide you with objectives, and you will need to work together and formulate a strategy to accomplish these objectives. The UN will not always provide you with the best choices, so feel free to ask questions, make arguments, and suggest your own objectives. During the operation, I will provide details about your situation and you must react to them properly. Once everyone has succeed/failed, we will begin the next phase. Ultimately the goal is to work towards al-Qurait, then breach its defenses and retake the city one neighborhood at a time.

Players

Note: You are free to add on to this if necessary.
Information required
Group: The name of your group. Examples: The Democratic Party of Taraq; The White Tigers; The Anjuni Clan
Banner: An image of your group's flag, banner, or insignia.
Leader: The name of the group's leader. This person will be your avatar of sorts, and will interact directly with the UN advisers and the other militant leaders. You may also give a description of this person's appearance, history, and personality.
Description: What is your group? Why do they exist, what do they want, what are their goals in this conflict, etc. A short history is required.

[b]Group[/b]:
[b]Banner[/b]:
[b]Leader[/b]:
[b]Teams[/b]:
[b]Description[/b]:
[b]History[/b]:

Current
@rush99999 - Pending
@bingthewing - Pending
@lady selune - Pending
@buddha - Amir el-Hashem
@templarknight07 - Pending

The Siege of al-Qurait (modern military)

Everyone: I will get to work on an OOC shortly. You will provide the necessary requirements for your group and we will begin the RP afterwards.

@Lady Selune Sure.

The Siege of al-Qurait (modern military)

The Siege of al-Qurait

Note: All names are placeholders and subject to change.

Background
The role play takes place in and around the fictional city al-Qurait, capital of Taraq. Taraq is a troubled province located in West Asia whose people have been oppressed for many decades by various regimes manipulated by foreign nations. The oppression has led to the creation of many organizations, each one pushing for their own rights and some seeking autonomy. Last year's elections were especially chaotic as dozens of parties nominated their candidates. Ultimately it would be Ibram ibn Hassan who won the vote. Ibram's party was small but it was backed by the UN, and so he received substantial financial support. Ibram's initial policies sought the widespread dissolution of Taraq's massive military, relying on UN assistance in the case of armed conflict.

Just weeks after President Ibram's inauguration the palace was stormed by militants calling themselves the Black Cobras, believed to be former Taraq military. The coup has thrown the country into turmoil; the Cobras have rapidly taken control of outlying towns and installations surrounding al-Qurait, and now seek to consolidate their holdings.

Meanwhile, various groups spread across Taraq choose sides: some pledge allegiance to the Black Cobras, while others proclaim autonomy in their immediate vicinity. The Cobras, however, are very powerful and hold considerable influence over their rivals.

In order to curb the growth of the Black Cobras, and to end hostilities as quickly as possible, the UN has sent military advisers to the various groups in the region. They hope to create a coalition that can besiege, assault, and retake the city of al-Qurait. Cutting the head off of the Black Cobras will not end the hostilities, however, for the dozens of UN-sponsored militant groups all have their own ambitions for the future of Taraq...

Gameplay
You will be playing as a small group participating in the Siege of al-Qurait. Your group is native to the region and regardless of its past, your priority now is to help remove the Black Cobras from the city. The history, composition, goal, ideology, etc is entirely up to you. You may be creative and form your own ethnic group, religion, etc. Each group will have an initial 30 members; that allows for three fire teams made up of ten soldiers.

The actual siege will be a long and arduous process. For starters, there are roads, installations, and towns located on the outskirts of the city which must be taken. After breaching the city's defenses you will need to liberate it neighborhood-by-neighborhood.

For the most part, your soldiers are classified as Infantry (basic units, standard small-arms weapons). You can further choose their loadout. Heavy machine guns are ideal for holding and defending key locations, sniper rifles provide excellent covering fire, and anti-armor weapons can help deal with armored vehicles. Depending on your status and accomplishments, you could receive Armored Vehicles (mostly anti-infantry) to assist you. The final unit type is Artillery, which is mostly anti-armor. Your group does not have access to helicopters and jets, but you can acquire air support via your allies in the UN.

Depending on your past, how you handle combat situations, your effectiveness, assets gained, etc, your influence with the UN will fluctuate. Some nations may prefer your group to take power after the siege is over, others may oppose you, etc.

Any tips, suggestions, questions, or thoughts of interest?

A RP about modern warfare, West Asia (Fictional)

moved

Hansa - An alternate-history of the Northern Crusades

Well that's a shame, I was interested in joining.

@caliban22

Heheh, I felt like only two people were interested! Sorry. You guys could always move to PlayDiplomacy though!

Hansa - An alternate-history of the Northern Crusades

I'm moving this to PlayDiplomacy.com to see if it has more popularity.

Hansa - An alternate-history of the Northern Crusades

@Dogematix

Look up the Wikipedia article of Biship Albert of Riga, and of the Livonian Order, then the Hanseatic League, and that'll give you a general understanding.

Hansa - An alternate-history of the Northern Crusades

Hansa

Welcome to Hansa! You will start in Lubeck, Spring 1200 (each turn is one season). Each player has come to this Imperial city to prepare for their journey to the Baltic Sea. Here in Lubeck, you will either buy supplies or donate coin to the Swordbrothers. Supplies are used to build settlements along the Baltic coasts, which produce resources to be sold back at Lubeck. Donating to the Swordbrothers increases your influence, and they will accompany you to the Baltic and assist in defending your settlements.

When you establish a settlement on the Baltic coast, you must decide which resource it will produce. This can be amber, wax, fur, beer, wine, salt, spices, etc. Each commodity sells for varying prices back in Lubeck. Each settlement produces 1 unit per turn, as in 1 unit of fur, or 1 unit of amber, etc. You may use an additional unit of supplies to upgrade your settlement to the next level, wherein it will produce an additional unit (level 2 produces produce 2 units of fur, level 3 produces 3 units, etc). Additionally, you can use supplies to build more settlements inland. Inland settlements are able to produce 2 resources as opposed to 1, but are more likely to be attacked by Baltic pagans.

Income generated by your trading actions can be used to buy more ships, warehouses (store more resources for later), armories (equips locals with weapons), stables (equips some locals with horses), churches (increases Swordbrother influence), as well as palisade or stone walls for protection.

Donating to the Swordbrothers increases your influence with them. Building churches also increases your influence. They are extremely capable fighters who will protect your settlements from the pagans, and reside in local garrisons within the settlement. The Swordbrothers are eager to push inland and capture the pagan hillforts. Once a hillfort has been claimed you can help the Swordbrothers build a stone fort in its place, which increases the size of the crusading order, and also allows them to exercise control over the villages in the vicinity (thus securing land to build new settlements).

You may eventually annex or conquer the land of other players and may even carve out your own kingdom, bishopric, or duchy in the Baltic. The Swordbrothers may even form the Livonian Order once they have enough stone forts and are of formidable size. The Livonian Order will become its own faction, and will aid or hinder you depending on your influence with them, previous dealings, etc.

Anyone interested in the Northern Crusades? Teutonic Knights, Crusaders, Poland, Novgorod, Lithuania, Mongols, Danes...

@depressedsoviet@buddha@oak7ree

I am trying to develop some kind of role play, and so far this is what I have:

Hansa

Leaving Lubeck
The game starts in Lubeck, Spring 1200. All players begin with 1,000 coin (the currency to be used) and a single cog (the trade ships). Here in Lubeck, the coin will be used to purchase supplies; alternatively you can donate to the Swordbrothers (the precursor to the Livonian Order). A single unit of supplies is 200 coin, and will be used to build and upgrade settlements. Donating to the Swordbrothers increases your influence with them, and attracts the crusaders to your cause. These are the 'opening moves' of the role play, and once your choices have been determined the game advances to Summer 1200.

Example: I purchased x2 units of supplies, and donated the other 600 coin to the Brotherhood.

Settling in the Baltic
You must pick a spot along the Baltic coast to build your first settlement (which must be a coastal settlement). It costs 1 unit of supplies to build a settlement, which starts at level 1. You can start at level 2 by using 2 units of supplies, or level 3 by using 3 units of supplies; and so on. Alternatively you can save your supplies to build/upgrade future settlements.

Your settlement will produce one of several resources. Those resources are:
Amber; Hemp; Flax; Tar; Potash; Furs; Salt (more will be added)

A level 1 settlement produces 1 unit of your chosen resource. So you might produce 1 unit of amber, or 1 unit of Fur, etc. Level 2 produces 2 units, while level 3 produces 3 units, and so on.

The prices of these goods change over time, sometimes for the better, sometimes for the worse. You can load specific amounts back onto your trade cog and have it delivered to Lubeck, earning you some more coin.

Maintaining Settlements
You can use your coin for several purposes. You can build palisade and stone walls to protect against attacks, armories to arm the locals, stables to equip local troops with horses, warehouses to stockpile your goods, churches to gain the favor of the Church, etc. You can also purchase additional trade cogs. Ultimately, you may want to buy some more supplies to build another settlement further inland; inland settlements have the added bonus of producing two resources rather than one.

The Swordbrothers
Historically, the Swordbrothers assisted Bishop Albert of Riga in his Northern Crusades. In this role play, however, they're assisting you. Everyone has equal influence with them at the beginning of the role play, but giving them donations increases your influence; building churches and forts also increases your influence.

What exactly is this influence? The Swordbrothers are small in number, but they're extremely capable combatants and are essential to protecting your claims in the Baltic. Players with higher influence receive a higher garrison of knight-brothers in their settlements. The Swordbrothers want to push inland, however, and subdue local pagan tribes and destroy their hillforts. They then want to convert these hillforts into stone forts, and you can help them do this. By helping them build stone forts, they can exercise control across the local region and further fend off attacks to your settlement. This helps you move inland as well and build more settlements.

Additionally, guest crusaders from England, France, and the Holy Roman Empire make appearances, usually arriving in the Spring or Summer, and are willing to assist the knight brothers until the end of Fall. These guests typically don't remain in the area during the Winter.

The Swordbrothers are looking to consolidate in the area as well, and will eventually form the Livonian Order. They may or may not prove to be a threat to you in the future...

Conflicts
Throughout the Baltic are Livonians, Latvians, Estonians, and more. These tribal pagans resent you and wish to see you expelled from the Amber Coast. They may make attempts against your settlement, and you should be prepared. The bulk of your defense rests in the hands of the locals, and their size depends on the settlement level. Generally, spearmen and crossbowmen are common, but with a stable you can have some horsemen too. Your best soldiers, however, are the Swordbrothers, who inspire allies and strike fear into the hearts of their enemies.

Some tribes may prove to be overly aggressive, in which case you may need to enlist the aid of the Swordbrothers to destroy the nearby forts and villages.

Anyone interested in the Northern Crusades? Teutonic Knights, Crusaders, Poland, Novgorod, Lithuania, Mongols, Danes...

@Sarmatian It was Danzig that was contested, but in fact it was most of the land around that that was also contested. The land given to them by the Polish king was never meant to remain theirs, but once they amassed larger power, they refused to give it back. Danzig was among that land, I believe.

@Buddha

Right, it's been a while since I've done my reading. I read William Urban's Teutonic Knights book, and aside from some video games and online research, that's where most of my knowledge comes from.

They were actually doing something similar in Hungary, I think. The King at the time had them defending against the Cumans, but the King's son believed they were "building a kingdom within a kingdom" or something, and so when the King died and the son became the next monarch, the Teutonic Knights decided it was time to up and leave. I think that's when Hermann von Salza had them sent to Prussia, as he saw it as a great training ground before sending his knights to Outremer.